Okay now, we’ve reached the pinnacle. We have boated, in our own boat, through New York Harbor, past the Statue of Liberty on one side and Manhattan Island on the other. Pretty incredible!

The cruise was very simple and sea conditions very benign: <2 ft at 8 seconds from the east. Headed northeasterly out of Manasquan Inlet into the shipping channel and came through NY Harbor almost by myself until I turned to the north around Brooklyn to starboard and Staten Island to port. We traveled under the Verrazano Bridge and then there lies the island Manhattan! The Statue of Liberty to port, Brooklyn and Manhattan to starboard and all the water mayhem you’d expect in NYC! I felt totally confident as we and other boats maneuvered around together. If you recall, this was the reason I had AIS installed months ago. The ability to “see” and be “seen” in a busy port is without compromise.

The city looks so manageable from water. Perspective is similar from an airplane. Yet from water everything seems reachable. Familiar sights were evident: Coney Island, Brooklyn Bridge, One World Trade Center, Empire State Building, and Chrysler Building. Once we got about parallel with midtown Manhattan water traffic lessened and by the time we got to the East River in Harlem we and a tour boat were the only boats on the river! The Hudson River then became flat, nary a ripple. The river gorge reminds me of the TN River, sloping shores on starboard and escarpments to port.

Our weather here has been fantastic and great for boating. Glad to be out of the hurricane zone just a bit south in NC. However, we had to turn on the A/C once we got into port.

Tomorrow, we take the train into the city and visit the 9-11 Memorial. Lunch at Katz’s and dinner at Gallagher’s (my dear mother-in-law will be smiling upon us). Wednesday it’s West Point and CIA for dinner. Thursday, we move on.