The Hudson River.

Pre-Departure from Liberty Landing Marina

We had a great stay at Liberty Landing Marina, it's a bit pricey but the location is what you pay for.  My morning started off much the same way that every morning has been throughout the entire trip.  I started off with an early rise, shower and engine room check then I took tank for his walk on shore before getting underway.  We walked around the marina building and parking lots where Tank did what he had to do after about 20 minutes.  As we arrived back at Tropical Horizons II, Capt Steve was there to help get Tank back on board in preparation for our departure.  This time I wanted Capt. Steve and Diane to sit back while Karen and I got off the dock on our own, after all we won't always have extra hands to help us out.  

Leaving Liberty Landing Marina

This departure would be a little different as we would be backing out of the Marina into the channel that leads to the Hudson River.  This channel is used by other marinas and a ferry service.  This will require timing the ferry departure along with any other traffic that may be in the channel.  As usual the engines and generator were running and warming up as I brought all of our navigation systems online.  I topped off the water tank, unplugged the shore power cable and then went about removing all of the dock lines that were not working, leaving only two lines that Karen could easily manage on her own.  I removed the boarding ladder, and as the ferry started out of the channel, released the stern line.  Heading back into the wheelhouse, I made sure to warn Karen that I would be sounding our departure.  Normally we don't sound the horn on departure because it can be quite loud, but we were  backing out into a working channel so this was a necessity.  Capt. Steve ensured I had it right, One long blast for leaving the dock and three (3) short blasts for vessel operating astern (in reverse).  

Manhattan skyline in the morning light.

I gave the instructions to release the lines and eased the Tropical Horizons II away from the dock to starboard and in reverse.  Keeping an eye on the channel for any oncoming traffic while Karen kept an eye on the port and starboard bow to make sure were were at a safe distance from the dock and any other boats, we backed slowly into the channel.  Once in the channel, we made our turn and headed into forward gear making our way into the Hudson River.  This was a smooth departure and I was quite happy with it, also Karen and I did it completely by ourselves which is what we needed to do.  

Goodbye Lady Liberty, we'll be back soon enough.

Ferry terminal.

Notice the size of the fireboat and we're not sure what that structure is that they are building.

NYC is so interesting mixing the old with the new.

Some architecture is more art than utilitarian. 

Once into the Hudson, we started to make our way out of New York and towards Half Moon Bay Marina.  The trip would have us arrive there in the early afternoon.  Our plan was to arrive and anchor in Haverstraw Bay just outside the marina.  The scenery along the way was great and Capt. Steve and Diane pointed out many of the sights that they were familiar with.  This was like enjoying a guided river cruise aboard your own boat.  The Chesapeake Bay had a series of buoys that supposedly narrated certain areas along the bay, unfortunately none of them worked, but that would be such a great idea on the Hudson, you could enjoy a guided tour aboard your own boat!  Then again, maybe it would be too distracting.  On thing is for certain, we'll need to pick up some guidebooks for these areas as there is so much to see.  Our short cruise was just a preview, I know there is so much more to see along this route.  

Leaving Manhattan in our wake.

The Empire State Building and cruise terminal.

The Hudson, still very much a working river.

A beautiful old lady running down river.

You can see the pride in ownership in many of these tows working the river.

We arrived at Haverstraw Bay just around lunch time.  I looked for an area where we would have deep enough water to anchor in even as the tide would run out.  The Hudson River remains tidal right up to the first locks on the system just around Waterford.  I found an area that I was comfortable with and handed the helm over to Karen as I went forward to deal with the anchor and ground tackle.  The anchor windlass on Tropical Horizons II is a tricky one to deal with as it is a gravity drop windlass.  This means that you disengage the clutch and breaks and the chain and anchor will drop down free falling.  You need to watch your fingers, toes, and anything else that can get in the way of the chain.  When that 110 lb. anchor drops it is going in one direction only....straight down!  

With Karen at the helm and myself on the bow, we communicated to each other on our headsets and as I freed the anchor and it dropped I gave Karen instructions on how to shift the engines.  With the anchor on the bottom, I started paying out the chain estimating how much chain was dropping calculating a 5:1 scope for the depth of water we were in.   Normally I would calculate a 10:1 scope for the depth at high tide, but our stop here was temporary as we were only stopping for lunch.  With the anchor set, I placed my foot on the chain to feel if the anchor was dragging or hitting rocks or if it was digging in.  The anchor set flawlessly, I asked Karen to set the engines in neutral then full stop on both engines.  With the engines shut down, I placed our anchor bridal on the chain and release pressure from the windlass transferring the load to the mooring cleats that the bridal was attached to.  It was time to enjoy some lunch and the scenery.

It was nice to be at anchor.  With the old Tropical Horizons, we had only anchored out a few times.  It is always peaceful being on a boat at anchor, Karen and I both love it, but our four legged crew members do not always agree.  After a nice lunch, it was time to fire up the engines again and bring up that anchor.  This process worked out the same way as when we dropped the anchor, Karen at the helm and me on the fore deck.  We brought up the anchor and contacted Half Moon Bay Marina, making our way in for the evening.

MEAT PIE!! Oh Yeah! It's not for everybody, but I like it!

Karen and Tank after a very filling dinner!

Arriving at the marina we were in a 50 foot slip that was located just at the entrance to the marina.  That meant we would arrive into the marina and make a hard turn to starboard into the slip.  There were no other boats next to us, so I wasn't too concerned.  Once again we arrived very slowly and the young dock hand who was there did a good job at handling the lines and securing us in the slip.  Once tied off we had a bit of an issue with power, but the boost function on our transformer took care of that and we were ready to settle in for the rest of the afternoon.  That evening had us welcoming two of Capt. Steve's friends aboard for cocktails before we retired for dinner and another good night's sleep.  Capt. Steve had now visited with two of his childhood best friends that he had not seen for some time.   We were happy to meet some of Steve's good friends.

What a wonderful end to a great day on the Hudson.