Category: Uncategorized
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Winter is still with us
North River anchorages filled up again Sunday as 25 knot winds swept the Harbor and temperatures dived on the penultimate day of astronomical winter.
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Dual Power
Friday saw a small tanker moving up the North River, Albany bound and notable for a number of reasons: 1) this is the second oil products tanker from Northern Europe to come through in two days, but the first two such cargos this year;2) the Mia Desgagnes is a dual LNG/oil powered ship, the first…
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Clearing up and clearing out
The North River anchorages cleared out Thursday as winds abated and temperatures climbed. The highlight of the day in terms of traffic was a foreign flagged tanker heading north for Albany, arriving from Europe and likely carrying a cargo of refined products, the first presumed European products cargo observed by NRN this year.
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Beware the Ides
Skies cleared Wednesday but the winds remained elevated, gusting above 40 knots with gale warnings in effect all day. Tanker barges were moving around the River but through cargo seemed rather light.
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Mid-March Nor’easter
Storms have rolled through the New York area as we reach the middle of March, with a wintery mix on Friday followed by a nor’easter arriving Monday evening. By Tuesday afternoon, winds had shifted around to the northwest and were gusting above 40 knots, with gale warnings going into effect. Heavy snow accumulated on the…
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Double arrival
Friday kicked off with dual cruise ship arrivals, with Norwegian Getaway and Gem pulling into the North River terminal within minutes of each other. Otherwise traffic was unremarkable, with familiar tugs pushing tanker barges in either direction. Bad weather was on the way, with a mix of rain and snow expected Friday evening.
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Signs of spring?
Thursday again saw typical River traffic and improving weather conditions, with winds abating and temperatures warming. Days start off frigid but struggle to stay cold this time of year as the sun gets closer to the northern hemisphere. Coast Guard Sector New York’s ice season has officially concluded as of Tuesday this week.
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Windy Wednesday with a visitor from afar
Mid-week traffic on the River seemed light and entirely unremarkable after a more interesting start to the week, with the exception of a visiting fast ferry heading to Nyack for service. However, whipping northwest winds limited NRN observation opportunities. A bald eagle was sighted off 73rd Street but, sadly, not photographed.
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You don’t need a weather vane…
A whipping northwest wind made it feel like winter again on Tuesday. Robbins Reef recorded gusts over 40 knots and a small craft warning was in effect for the harbor. River traffic slowed a bit after a frenetic start to the week but tanker barges began to accumulate at the anchorages again. Activity this week…
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Philadelphia Story and the voyage of the Baylander
Wye River arrived on the North River Monday with a loaded looking tank barge on the wire. This towing configuration is not usually seen on the River other than for tugs coming from or heading directly to sea, and, indeed, in this case, Wye River’s AIS showed it arriving from Philadelphia. This is another pattern…
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Working weekend
Saturday evening brought another bulker bringing Spanish gypsum up to the Buchanan wallboard plant, and Sunday saw the tanker Hanfia Lise heading back to sea after delivering a cargo of what was probably Canadian-refined oil products in Albany. Otherwise, traffic seemed light after the flurry of recent days. By the end of the weekend, all…
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Return to work
The sun rose Saturday morning on a crowded North River anchorage, as tug and barge combinations took shelter from the overnight gale conditions. Robbins Reef recorded a gust over 40 knots Friday night, but conditions improved Saturday with clearing skies and reducing winds even as temperatures dropped a bit. Tugs in the River headed out…
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Weather coming
Tanker barges and tugs seem to be accumulating in the North River anchorages ahead of weather coming in Friday night. By sundown, Genesis Vigilant, Adeline Marie, Patrice McCallister, and Dean Reinauer were all anchored south of the Bridge, and Mount St Elias and Kimberly Poling were to the north. Gale warnings and coastal flood warnings…
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Tanker time
A foreign-flagged tanker moved up the River Thursday morning, arriving from Montreal and likely bringing a cargo of refined products from the refinery there. Most oil products move north on US flagged tanker barges pushed by tugs or articulated tug/barge combinations (ATBs), coming from the refineries and pipeline terminals in North Jersey or, sometimes, from…
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In like a lion?
March kicked off with a heavy slug of two-way traffic dominated by ATBs, with a sugar barge and some stone hoppers also in the mix. The weather was more moderate though, with clear skies and temperatures in the 40s.
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Snow at last
Snow finally arrived on the final day of February, bringing 1.8” of accumulation in Central Park and ending a record long winter snow drought. The powder did not last long though. With snow switching to rain and temperatures rising into the high 30s, there was little left on the roads for the evening commute. March…
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Finishing windy
Damp conditions prevailed through Thursday. By Friday, the sun was out, but a brisk 25 knot wind out of the northwest brought gale warnings to the harbor and put a good chop on the river. Thursday morning saw the B. Franklin, Genesis Glory, and William F. Fallon, Jr all anchored in the fog on the…
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Less common traffic
Conditions have deteriorated as the week has progressed following the Washington’s Birthday holiday, with Wednesday bringing rain and hail, though still no measurable snow. Traffic on the River has included some vessels seen less often, though activity has been generally light.
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Buying in bulk
The dip down to freezing on Saturday was short-lived, with temperatures climbing back to just shy of 50 again on Sunday. River traffic remained moderately heavy, with the third bulker of the weekend coming through Sunday. The Reinauer Twins remained anchored off 110th Street for a third day.
North River Notes 