Relaxing Day
Riverfront
Park Dock
We
woke to another beautiful day...clear blue skies and 57 when we got up. Stan
fixed breakfast on the grill and we sat on the flybridge and had a leisurely
morning enjoying our peaceful little anchorage. We decided today would be a
short cruising day. We only traveled 16 miles up river to Athens; they offer a
free dock to cruisers. It's located in a pretty park. The park and dock were
all replaced last fall after Hurricane Irene flooded this whole area. We were
told that the buildings at the top of the park had 17" of water in them. The
Riverfront Park is very pretty, the people in town are very nice and there are
a few restaurants, but very little of anything else.
It
was the perfect day and place to catch up on a few things. After a quick bike
ride around town and a trip to the convenience store I worked on getting all my
June photos in order. If I don't get them labeled quickly...I forget where they
were taken. Stan did a few little projects and made sure things were ready for
the locks. Tomorrow we will go through The Federal Lock in Troy and start the
Erie Canal in a few days. For happy hour the guys found a place in town that
brew their own beer, while Pam and I enjoyed margaritas on the boat.
A little history of this area: Henry Hudson was
commissioned by the Dutch East India Company on January 8th, 1609 to find a
passage to the “islands of spicery” that would eliminate the lengthy and
expensive voyage around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope. Provided with an 80-ton
ship, the Half Moon, and a crew of twenty, Hudson embarked on his journey in
early April of that year.
Over a century later, a town bearing the name Hudson was
established along the river of the same name. A group of whalers on Nantucket, fearing
that England would reclaim her colonies, decided to move their business inland.
After sailing one hundred miles up the Hudson River, they selected a site on
the east bank of the river for their new home. Directly across the river from
Hudson, the city of Athens, which would become a shipbuilding town, was
subsequently founded. Together, the cities became an important and busy port on
the Hudson River during the nineteenth century.
Relaxing morning on the flybridge
Cruising up the Hudson River
Todays scenery
Stewart House
The Pearl in Athens
Gallivant & The Pearl
Relaxing morning on the flybridge
Cruising up the Hudson River
Todays scenery
Hudson/Athens Lighthouse - Midstream between Hudson and Athens was a large mud flat
called Middle Ground Flats that was completely submerged at high tide. Many a
ship found herself unexpectedly stranded on the flats, prompting Congress to
appropriate funds for the construction of a lighthouse to help ships avoid the
obstacle in 1872. Its beacon was lit for
the first time on November 14, 1874.
Athens & their 80' aluminum floating dockStewart House
The Pearl in Athens
Gallivant & The Pearl
Stan airing up our "balls"...we'll need them in the locks. Notice we had to move our boat...there is a ferry that uses this dock on Friday and Saturday, so we are rafted off of Gallivant again.
What a great blog, and a great journey! We're planning a trip up the Hudson, and your site was so helpful. Thanks!
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