Category: Uncategorized
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Moving Product
The spell of perfect weather came to an end Thursday, with temperatures rising again, though thankfully winds continued to blow steadily from the south. The second half of the week also has brought some interesting tanker traffic. Wednesday evening saw a Marshall Islands flagged tanker, The Amigo, coming down the river after having likely brought…
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Summer research
Another very pleasant day, with southerly winds building into afternoon and setting up some good sailing. Commercial traffic on the River seemed rather light after yesterday’s flood of hoppers and empty tanker ATBs, though by the end of the day there were a number of loaded tankers heading north. Kirby Corp’s tug Mako remains anchored…
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Perfect Tuesday for pushing rock
Cooler air, lower humidity but still with the same steady breeze out of the southwest made for perfect conditions on Tuesday. River traffic was fairly heavy with a lot of rock and gravel heading south. The Mako remained anchored off 72nd Street, going on four days, but perhaps her brief visit to the Upper Bay…
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Breaking the heat wave
The heat wave of the past few days finally broke on Monday, with cooler air moving in and heavy thunderstorms hitting in the afternoon, knocking sailors and other recreational boats off the River. Commercial traffic was light and not particularly notable. Saint Emilion, Morgan Reinauer, and Mako remained at anchor in the River in the…
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Triathalon Sunday
The annual New York City Triathalon was held Sunday, though the running and biking segments were cut in half due to the extreme heat. The swimming segment went off as planned, unlike last year when elevated bacteria caused that leg to be canceled. Swimmers entered the water off a dock at 81st Street and swam…
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Inland seas
A short trip to Cleveland brought an opportunity to observe some marine traffic away from the North River this week. In Flushing Bay next to LaGuardia, we observed two Norfolk Towing tugs operating near the DSNY’s North Shore Marine Transfer Station, where commercial waste is transferred to containers and loaded on barges destined for the…
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Heat advisory, storm warning
A heat advisory remained in place Thursday, with Manhattan temperatures in the 90s even as steady southern breezes continued to provide a modicum of relief on the water. In the early afternoon, thunderstorms formed over New Jersey and moved across the River, sending recreational boaters scurrying for safety. Commercial traffic was rather light.
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Still cooking
Wednesday brought another day of blazing hot temperatures, though a southerly wind built throughout the day providing some relief on the water. Commercial traffic was rather heavy mid-week, with a number of tanker barges, hoppers and a bulk carrier moving through The former Bouchard tug Evening Mist came through with hoppers loaded with stone or…
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The Dog Days of Summer
Scorching heat prevailed Tuesday, with Monday’s storms having done little if anything to cool things down. Fortunately, decent 10+ knot winds out of the southwest provided some relief by the water. River traffic was generally familiar and typical, with one notable exception seen in the skies. The highlight of the day was to see a…
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Summer squalls
Lines of thunderstorms moved through the area throughout the day, starting first thing and then recurring at midday and in the afternoon. The sun broke through periodically but humidity remained high. The Haggerty Girls was (were?) anchored in the River in the morning, but headed down to the Upper Bay in the afternoon and was…
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Summer weekends
As we move into mid-summer, the days start to run together. Heat, interrupted by occasional storms, and winds from the southeast building as the heat builds up through the day making for excellent afternoon and evening sailing. River traffic continues as usual, and boaters, sailors, paddle boarders and even swimmers are out in force.
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Calm but sad
I always feel calmer when I’m by the River, but this morning the calm was mixed with a heavy dose of sadness knowing that an 8-year old boy had died in yesterday’s afternoon’s boating accident. The river is wonderful and vital, but it is also crowded and powerful, and can be dangerous at times. The…
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Capsized
Tuesday saw a terrible accident on the river as a small boat carrying twelve people capsized and partially sunk. Ten people were rescued by ferries according to reports, but FDNY and NYPD divers had to retrieve two. Apparently, two were brought to the hospital in serious or critical condition. There was no word on what…
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Student driver
The Training Ship Kennedy arrived today at Pier 88. The ship belongs to the Massachusetts Maritime Academy which uses it for a winter sea term, but in the summer it is attached to Texas A&M Maritime Academy for their summer sea term. The ship is a former freighter launched in 1967. A&M’s summer voyage brought…
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Sunday blues
Another pleasant, hot but breezy day on the river Sunday with heavy commercial and recreational traffic. Krisitin Poling lefter her anchorage early but was replaced by Centerline’s Adeline Marie. Adeline Marie is, according to tugboatinformation.com, another former Bouchard boat which was briefly leased to Unico Commodities last year under the name Rubio (Unico being also…
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Back so soon?
Aruna Berk passed us on July 1 heading for Buchanan with a load of gypsum from Spain (see Wind and Wallboard). She headed back to sea a week later on July 8, passing ahead of the departing Italian destroyer visiting Pier 88. However, she was back again a day later. Having made a big loop…
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Summer Friday
Moderate temperatures gave way to rain in the afternoon. River traffic was fairly light and typical, without any notable movement. Krisitin Poling anchored off 72nd Street late Thursday with an empty barge and remained there for all of Friday. The Poling-Cutler tugs seem to usually favor anchorages further upriver near the bridge or beyond but…
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Ciao Caio Duilio
The Italian navy destroyer Caio Duilio has been visiting New York City, tied up at Pier 88 after participating in NATO exercises in the North Atlantic. She departed Thursday morning, with some help from two Moran tugs. The bulker Aruna Berk passed by as the Duilio was getting underway, having discharged its cargo of gypsum…
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Back to work and play
The HOS Browning supply vessel which had been anchored off 72nd Street since Friday pulled up its anchor Wednesday and headed back to its berth in Elizabeth. She was replaced by a luxury yacht, the Lunasea. While the North River anchorages are mainly used by tanker barges, super yachts will sometimes anchor here as well…
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After the fourth
The fifth of July arrived with little fanfare, pleasant temperatures and periodic rain. The small cruise ship Insignia arrived from Europe, loaded passengers and headed off for Bermuda in the evening with some assistance from JRT Moran. The offshore supply vessel HOS Browning has remained anchored off 72nd Street since Friday. As we discussed in…
North River Notes 