NYCkayaker Advice on Sunday Manhattan circumnavigation

[Erik Baard]

Hi Mark!

Enjoy your trip! A few tips:

1) The Battery is best in the early morning when traffic is light 
(reducing not only navigational stress but also the confused water of 
wakes reflected off the wall). PLEASE have a marine radio tuned to 13 
and announce yourself. Hell Gate is best entered about 2.5 hours after 
high water at the Battery, in my experience. Again, please make good 
use of that radio. Good rest points in this vicinity include Hallets 
Cove, the west side of Randalls Island, and the cove of Mill Rock. If 
you opt for Hallets Cove, take the east channel past Roosevelt Island. 
This will require a diagonal crossing of the Gate, so please be very 
careful.

Also, be mindful that the section of the East River just north of the 
Queensboro Bridge is littered with buoys and mooring balls because of 
waterfront and tunnel construction

2) The western channel of the East River is not closed. Indeed, because 
of construction, the east channel is often shut down. The CG asks that 
you contact them on when in the area, but so far no problem with kayaks 
passing. But on the west side you must cling to the Roosevelt Island 
shore to avoid hassles.

3) Other restricted zones (list members might add others or correct me 
on this): power plants (100 yards -- most relevant in the east channel 
and so it's again advisable to hold to the Roosevelt Island shoreline), 
ferries and other passenger vessels (100 yards), and the Brooklyn Navy 
Yard, and refineries/fuel depots (75 yards). Be aware, however, that 
you're damned both ways in tight spots like the area near the 
Williamsburg Bridge. You'll have to dance through the tiny strip of 
area between the yard/power plant/bridge support/refinery/depot zones 
or in shipping lane.

4) Taking the east channels is best done by crossing to Brooklyn 
between Stuyvesant Cove and the Williamsburg Bridge -- there's a nice 
line of sight for traffic watches and it's a bit narrow. Crossing over 
again should be done by hugging Roosevelt Island and darting across. 
There are several spots of current shadow at the northern end of 
Roosevelt Island. Be patient and resist the urge to play Frogger.

5) I recommend radioing at each ferry terminal. NY Water Taxi and Sea 
Streak are GREAT about communicating. Some Circle Line and NY Waterways 
captains are decent too. I rarely get replies from Staten Island 
ferries, so it's best to get their schedule right in your head ahead of 
time. But Staten Island ferries are best about sounding their horns 
before pulling out -- never fail.

On the Harlem River, resist the temptation to get too relaxed and drift 
into the center channel. A break at the Sharpe boathouse is a great 
option and a reminder to the managers of that wonderful resource of the 
broader paddling and rowing community. Yeah integration!  :)

Also, on the East River remember the lesser-known users like seaplanes 
and the Water's Edge restaurant ferry. Pleasure boats don't often use 
radios, so give a paddle wave. But not too enthusiastically -- the 
Roosevelt Island emergency responders are bored and sometimes jump at 
the chance to rescue a happy paddler.

Finally, with all of this shore hugging on Roosevelt Island, be mindful 
of fishing lines. Lots of them!

Have fun!

Warm regards,

Erik

Erik Baard



On Sep 8, 2006, at 2:24 PM, mark handy wrote:

> All:
>
> I might do my first circumnavigation of Manhattan on Sunday, with 
> someone who has done it once before.  I have paddled extensively from 
> Randall's Island, around Upper Manhattan, and down to Pier 96, so I am 
> looking for advice about the southern half of Manhattan.  Specific 
> questions I know to ask:
>
> When to pass the Battery and Hell Gate and any other danger points.
>
> Is the channel on the Manhattan side of Roosevelt Island completely 
> off-limits, or can we legally creep along the western shore of 
> Roosevelt Island?
>
> What other restricted zones are there?  I know only about the U.N., 
> about the passenger ship terminal, and about keeping away from bridge 
> piers.
>
> If we need to be on the east side of Roosevelt Island, where should we 
> do the crossings from Manhattan to the east channel and back to the 
> Harlem River?
>
> Do you experienced circumnavigators radio the ferries at each ferry 
> terminal, or do you eyeball the situation and then make a dash for it? 
>  Which channels do you use?
>
> Thanks for advice on these questions and anything I've missed.
>
> Mark
>
>
>
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