New York Harbor

We knew to leave Hoffman’s Marina at Brielle during slack tide to safely maneuver away from the dock and gracefully pass through the railroad bridge. The next challenge was the Manasquan Inlet. There are stories of sunken ships at this inlet, so we were vigilant. We followed a small fishing vessel out, watching his strategy. He paused for a bit, then powered through a lull in the big waves. We did the same.

Once again, we were out on the Atlantic Ocean, ever aware of the big rolling swells, praying for no rogue waves. The majority of the time, the seabed was 50-65 feet below our keel. It’s a trade off… slow, shallow and nerve-wracking or deep and safe with manual steering due to the significant motion. Auto-pilot is useless when the waves turn your boat frequently. This confuses the auto-pilot, so we got a good arm workout.

We did the Helmsman Shuffle, changing places every 30 minutes. At this depth, crab pots are a non-issue, although there were some infrequent bobbing buoys to dodge. (What on earth are they fishing for?) We got passed by several “go-fast” yachts. I was a bit envious, until I thought about our diesel-sipping trawler. We have the right boat for the rivers, canals, locks and lakes ahead.

Four hours later, we saw the big shipping channel buoys. (Yeah!) We were at once relieved and yet anxious. The next hour was a real workout! Turbulence, wakes, big and little boats converging on the same channel in and out of New York. It’s the busiest harbor in the world, I’m told. 

The biggest ships head towards Perth Amboy; we wanted through their channel and into the NY Harbor basin, to an anchorage by the Statue of Liberty. On the way we played “Dodge the Ferries, the Barges, the Small Tankers, the Tour Boats, the wakes,” as well as avoiding some fast pleasure boats. I stood by the Captain’s side, binoculars in hand, “head on a swivel,” pointing out one potential threat after another. I will say, my Captain kept a cool head. 

Once behind Lady Liberty, we set anchor. The water was very choppy, but we hoped for calmer waters by evening, after the ferry, tour boat and barge traffic slowed down. We were rewarded with calm waters and spectacular views.

On this night, we set an anchor alarm and Pete served as night watchman. He took the couch so as not to disturb me. He got up a few times to ensure our hold. (I love this man!) I slept fairly soundly. We woke to a foggy morning barely able to see our anchor ball. The fog lifted by 09:00, and Lady Liberty came into view once again, only this time, the flag was at half-staff. It’s National Peace Officer’s Memorial Day. I was thoughtful of my many law enforcement family and friends, and grateful for their service and dedication. 

After breakfast, we pulled up anchor and headed to Liberty Landing Marina (only 2 miles away), our home for the next week. We will host 3 members of my west coast family. With a pump-out, a boat-rinse, and laundry done, we are ready.

Post Script. 

We got an email (with an interesting article) and a call from our dear west coast friend, Tim, suggesting that we were in the path of a Derecho. How could this be? It was warm, sunny, with not a cloud in the sky. Oh, but it changed quickly! All of a sudden winds picked up, the sky clouded over, the marina staff scrambled to secure boats, jet skis, and any equipment and supplies on the docks and decks. First responder sirens started blasting across the city. 

We added another dock line and fender, grabbed a beer and chips and climbed into the flybridge to watch the show. Wind, thunder, lightening, and heavy rain, for about 30 minutes. Then, as quickly as it snuck up on us, it was over. We can add another first. We survived a DERECHO!