Ice Yacht News

Baby, it's STILL cold outside, but ever since a truly amazing day trip a couple of years back with Tugster Will, Bowsprite and paddling friend Jeffrey Anzevino, every cold snap has a silver lining - I start watching the website of the Hudson River Ice Yacht Club to see if they get to sail. I grew up in Hawai'i and I don't think that I will ever get to the point where I actually like severe cold, but knowing those magnificent old stern steerers and the dedicated (and hardy!) sailors who care for them will be able to get out to play does make me happy.

I've been watching their site all week, and it looks like our cold snap may have done it for them! A lot of the Hudson River fleet is up in Wisconsin for the Northwest Ice Yacht Association's 100th Anniversary Regatta (good luck to the Hudson River contingent and congrats to the NIYA on the big anniversary!) but it looks like the folks who couldn't make that might just be sailing Tivoli Bay on Sunday! I don't think I can swing a trip up there on such short notice but if anyone is looking for something fun to do outside this weekend, I highly recommend a trip to see the iceboats sail.

Keep an eye on the current conditions page at the HRIYC for updates, and if you decide to go, visit the Launch Sites and Directions page of the HRIYC site, and scroll down to:
Hudson River
South Tivoli Bay
Barrytown NY 12507

That gives the location in several ways including a link to a Google map set up with the launch site pinpointed - you can use that to get driving directions, plus an email link to the gentleman who coordinates the Tivoli Bay sails - could be helpful to check in with him for confirmation and details on parking (the spot for visitors is a ways from the bay and you follow a trail down) and such.

And just to give you an idea how much fun and how beautiful this Hudson River iceboating is, here's a little collection of video snippets I took during our day with on Tivoli Bay, which I stitched together and slapped on a little Handel for fun later on (I think it stayed cold for a while so I had some indoor time to fill). Enjoy!