ancorage spots on the hudson river ?
- Thread starter jonf
- Start date
Allright guys i know were all a little bored waiting waiting for the season to kick off, & i really enjoy the fun banter too . so lets get back to some of our FAVORITE ANCHORING SPOTS along with the good fun, some of us actually like to use our boats and enjoy anchoring out , and generally go a,little farther then just to the other side of the creek to croton and back to sit on our boats in the marina all day( yea i'm just joking about the last part , so take it easy on me )thanks again for all the great ideas guys...........john f .
- Joined
- Mar 18, 2001
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Bowline is too dangerous for most boaters to even attempt entering, I have seen hundreds of boats end up on the brick wall, there is no room for error. The holding is not good and there is no place to go to shore.
Croton is the place to go!
Perhaps we can get Bob to try to get in there...
Croton is the place to go!
Perhaps we can get Bob to try to get in there...
Cant beat bowline if its rough .it is a piece of cake just follow the south side on the way in as far as your depth finder will let you,someone always ties a homade plastic jug or two on the old sunken rock barge edge not that bad really. i've tied a jug or two over it myself & have swam around it , been some pretty big boats in there before, including sail boats. keep em comming - best whishes .......john f.
John, more info as requested.
When you look at the chart of "The Hook" you will see three islands which are pretty much one long land mass now thanks to dredge spoils. From north to south you have Upper Schodack Island, Lower Schodack Island and then Hotaling Island on the end. Google Schodack Island and you will find a lot of neat historical info if you are into that.
Stay close to the islands upon approach until past the Hook Boat Club. It is shallow below the club on the east side. We can get about as far as the top of Hotaling island (just south of the first big bay you see) which is about two miles or so with the big boats and have gone up quite a ways past that in the dinks or jet skis. A canoe or kayak would get you even further during high tide and there is a hand launch on the creek side of Schodack State Park.
The holding is excellent. Mud bottom with depths about 15' at MLW, a few deeper holes that hold huge cats. It is deffinately one of the best most protected anchorages on the river. Completely isolated from the main channel and usually calm if the channel is rolling. Eagles and Hawk nests on the islands. Fun to watch. We are in there all the time with a minimum of three or four boats, dinks, jet skis, dogs you name it. Only a few miles from Coeymans or Shady.
Pete mentioned Gay's point AKA Hudson River Islands State Park. This is a boat access only state park on the east side between Coxsackie and Athens. There is a dock and small beach with out houses and a pavilion near the beach. We anchor out south of the docks and tie a stearn line to a tree to keep the bow toward the channel. There are camp sites with picinic tables and fire rings and a nice beach at low tide. This is open to the main channel and does get rocky with traffic and wind. Further south there is an island that you can get behind if you are careful which is a very protected and beautiful place to hide.
Another little known anchorage is on the east side of Coxsackie Island south of the Yacht Club, stay south of the club's docks. It is shallow but manageable. Don't block the approach to the club and you will be fine.
When you look at the chart of "The Hook" you will see three islands which are pretty much one long land mass now thanks to dredge spoils. From north to south you have Upper Schodack Island, Lower Schodack Island and then Hotaling Island on the end. Google Schodack Island and you will find a lot of neat historical info if you are into that.
Stay close to the islands upon approach until past the Hook Boat Club. It is shallow below the club on the east side. We can get about as far as the top of Hotaling island (just south of the first big bay you see) which is about two miles or so with the big boats and have gone up quite a ways past that in the dinks or jet skis. A canoe or kayak would get you even further during high tide and there is a hand launch on the creek side of Schodack State Park.
The holding is excellent. Mud bottom with depths about 15' at MLW, a few deeper holes that hold huge cats. It is deffinately one of the best most protected anchorages on the river. Completely isolated from the main channel and usually calm if the channel is rolling. Eagles and Hawk nests on the islands. Fun to watch. We are in there all the time with a minimum of three or four boats, dinks, jet skis, dogs you name it. Only a few miles from Coeymans or Shady.
Pete mentioned Gay's point AKA Hudson River Islands State Park. This is a boat access only state park on the east side between Coxsackie and Athens. There is a dock and small beach with out houses and a pavilion near the beach. We anchor out south of the docks and tie a stearn line to a tree to keep the bow toward the channel. There are camp sites with picinic tables and fire rings and a nice beach at low tide. This is open to the main channel and does get rocky with traffic and wind. Further south there is an island that you can get behind if you are careful which is a very protected and beautiful place to hide.
Another little known anchorage is on the east side of Coxsackie Island south of the Yacht Club, stay south of the club's docks. It is shallow but manageable. Don't block the approach to the club and you will be fine.
Hogan , been reading alot of your posts here and most are very informative & funny i've been enjoying them . But have to disagree with you on bowline , you aren't going to hit bottom if you watch your depth as stated + the south side is the only way in. A bout dragging never happend to me or any one i know plus the fact that thier is really no current there , have friends who go there to wake board cause its so calm, i've sat there watching for quite awhile barly moving , especially if there is no wind. As far as moving the buoy never saw that either ,doubt anyone would waste thier time doing that , i know it's been washed away before i've replaced it, but mabey thier is a buoy vandal out there somewhere, what can you say about that kind of moron , but he is probably as real as bigfoot, or the lockness monster , maybe see him on the history channel? I have been boating for twenty plus years in the area and never saw anyone hung up on the sunk barge , i've heard of people hitting it but it's no where near as much as your making it out to be. Mabey sea-tow or or another tow boat will chime in hear to help clear this up. My uncle (retired now ) ran a tug on the river for over 30 years & i have vintage pictures of tugs & equpt. in that hole , i will have to ask some of the capts. if they ever heard of such a thing for us , but i am pretty sure what the answer will be . KD thanks for the good info. hopefully we will get more like it from others to share . thanks all........john f
KD, just got finished putting a few of your tricks on my chart , i'm looking at NOAA , chart # 12348 & 12347 corrected to dec. 2000 in a maptech chart book . your instructions were clear as a bell the first big bay your talking about between hougtaling & lower schodac is about as far as you can go ( huh) i'll take your word for it , just looked like it was deep to little schodak but i know how charts can be outside the channel & really appreciate you taking the time to post that detailed info. btw i will have to check out the history on the area i owe you a few beers or what ever you like to drink when i come up that way i'll have to keep you posted it woul be nice to meet you someday . best whishes .......johnf
jonf, I grew up on Jefferson st. and can tell you quite a few stories. Real old timers can tell you about the second pile of house remains that was blasted by O&R when they used bowline for access to build the plant. There are also alot more pictures of boats on the pile.
jonf,
I have experienced everything that Hogan said about Bowline. That pile is like a sharp peak. I was fortunate to only trim a little off the top of it. My depth gauge (at idle speed) went from 18' to blank ... Then the awful sound of prop shrapnel. The bottom has lots of peaks and valleys. If your anchor sets on the "side" of a peak and the wind direction shifts, it will break loose.
I have experienced everything that Hogan said about Bowline. That pile is like a sharp peak. I was fortunate to only trim a little off the top of it. My depth gauge (at idle speed) went from 18' to blank ... Then the awful sound of prop shrapnel. The bottom has lots of peaks and valleys. If your anchor sets on the "side" of a peak and the wind direction shifts, it will break loose.
If I was still down there I would anchor at Bowline once in awhile (assuming its not more crowded
than it was 10 years ago). But all the hazards others have spoken of are real. We hit the pile
because the little sign that was sticking out of the water at the time had already been knocked
over by somebody. I remember saying, "where the Hell is that signpost?" and then
seeing it under my bow after we hit...
Also, one time a bunch of the natives' kids were throwing ROCKS at us
as we negotiated the narrow channel to get out. Because the kids were little the rocks
didn't come too close to hitting us, but I remember wondering whey their friggin'
parents were standing right there saying nothing as they did it. Had they been
teenagers they'd have put a few rocks through my salon windows...
than it was 10 years ago). But all the hazards others have spoken of are real. We hit the pile
because the little sign that was sticking out of the water at the time had already been knocked
over by somebody. I remember saying, "where the Hell is that signpost?" and then
seeing it under my bow after we hit...
Also, one time a bunch of the natives' kids were throwing ROCKS at us
as we negotiated the narrow channel to get out. Because the kids were little the rocks
didn't come too close to hitting us, but I remember wondering whey their friggin'
parents were standing right there saying nothing as they did it. Had they been
teenagers they'd have put a few rocks through my salon windows...
Pictures don't lie nor have an opinion . please no one take offense to my response i never want to see any boater hurt or a vessel damaged thats why i startad this thread with the intention that the hrcc could share knowledge for safty as well as good spots so please keep that in mind but it's hard to state a fact without it seeming that way . If you look at the grounded boats plain and simple they are in the wrong spot , run into any underwater object and of course that will happen , just DON'T blame it on the object for lack of knowledge , piloting or safe navagition skills. Would you for instance say the same of a skier going down a bare slope with one tree or rock in the middle of it then ,smacking right into it ,and blaming it on the tree or rock , and claiming the slope to dangerous ???? Iguess you would from what some are saying. if it wasn't equiptment failure , most would probably reckomend sking lessons "follow" ?. Entering bow line requires much less of a hazzard and manuvering then most would use to back into a slip espically if thier is wind , current , boats , ploes, ........ to contend with. thiers always risk when venturing out of a channel even with a chart and knowing how to use it thats basic knowledge but it seems like it must be stated here. Bow line is a piece of cake IT'S A STRAIGHT SHOT IN provided you know where to line -up which is the south end , if you follow it & stay as far to the south as your draft will comfortably allow and pass the sunken barge ( let me call it that for now .. more at end) jus turn to starboard ( YOU'R IN ! )whats so hard about that? i don't see how i've been proven wrong about that simple fact . it's preety wide seen boats squeese past each other there before, some of you seem to know a lot about it mabey you could help by giving pionts on shore to line up with or other info on approach . look at the size of some of the boats in there in your picturss looks like they made it with no problem . As far as the holding goes the picture doesn't prove anything look how many boats are on two hooks , i believe you when you say they drifted but thier is a lot of factors involved there, seen that happen at croton too. again you have to know what your doing . Some marinas at stony point where some of you (as well as myself) are docked have less water than bow line approach as well as other marinas on the river (I SEE LESS MUD RUNNING MY EXCAVATION CO.ON ARAINY DAY then trying to get near piermont for example) would you say they are dangerous. I 'm taking the time to post to help and enjoy chating with you all hoping we can share info. for the better of us all so try to keep that in mind not trying to be a know-it-all cause i sure as heck ain't thats for surei've hit so much crap floating in that river i'm thinking of changing the boat name to log basher, but facts are facts thats basically what i'm trying to state . about my pm i'm going to join i also would like to support the site was just feeling it out . Like i said before i've swam on the sunk barge thats what i recall i was told it was the config. of wood looks like it to me and there is a few bricks scattered on it( no suprise to anyone who knows the histiry of the area) but seems to be a old sunk rock barge but i really don't now could be a little of everything brick wall/ house / ....... maybe someone will chime in who knows ? hat would be cool....best whishes all look forward to hearing from you .......john f
- Joined
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- RO Number
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- 9,936
Jon, run-on, single spaced lengthy posts like yours are impossible to read.
Nobody is blaming the wall, we are pointing out that it can be tricky getting in there - the pictures prove our point. It is not a "piece of cake" getting in there.
I have NEVER had a problem with my anchor dragging at Croton. I have had problems in Bowline - if you anchor in there enough, you will too!
We had a raft-up with every other boat putting out a bow and stern anchor, with plenty of scope on both, the tide turned and the wind changed, we ALL started to drag.
Nobody is blaming the wall, we are pointing out that it can be tricky getting in there - the pictures prove our point. It is not a "piece of cake" getting in there.
I have NEVER had a problem with my anchor dragging at Croton. I have had problems in Bowline - if you anchor in there enough, you will too!
We had a raft-up with every other boat putting out a bow and stern anchor, with plenty of scope on both, the tide turned and the wind changed, we ALL started to drag.
Hogan, mostly useless - one liners, re-read what you posted " bowline to dangerous for most boaters to even attempt to enter " if going straight and looking at a depth finder is dangerous to you you must be terrified when you have to pull into your slip, on that note glad you posted a picture of your boat so i'll have a warning of a danger if i see one comming , you just don't get it or maby you do as in your other post of poor butch whos picture proved how much he gets it too , no offense butch but he said you get it not me ....john