Have You Seen This Dock?

Passing along a message posted on the NYC Kayaker moderated email list. Hoping that local waterfront and boating enthusiasts will help keep an eye out for the lost dock. One of the local tugboat owners did mention on a related Facebook post that a dock this size is very hard to tow and suggested that it may have just been cut loose - whether it's that or somebody actually stealing it for their own use, this is a really lousy thing to do. Here's the note that accompanied the photo:

The board of Manhattan Community Boathouse requests help in recovering their modular dock.  It was at Pier 96 on the Hudson River and was removed sometime in the past two weeks.  The dock is used at the free kayak programs run at this location by Manhattan Community Boathouse (and previously by DTBH).   The board of MCBH has filed a police report and asks the waterfront community to help find the dock, and the culprit(s) that took it.

If anyone has information, please contact the boathouse at

manhattancommunityboathouse"at"gmail.com (replace "at" with @ as usual).

Hope they get their dock back soon!

Hudson River Sewage Dump

Updated w/closure & advisory info at 4:30 pm. Please scroll down past italicized section for details.

If you have access to a kayak & Hudson River waters in the NYC vicinity, and you had any thoughts about beating the heat with some rolling and rescue practice - DON'T.

A fire at the North River Sewage Treatment Plant has knocked out a couple of pumps and there's been a massive discharge (ongoing as I post). Click here for full details.

Via the NYC Kayaker Distributed E-mail List - thank you as always to the Hudson River Watertrail Association for maintaining this incredibly useful "kayak grapevine". I usually hear it there first.

Adding a suggestion, slightly later - if you were considering attending any of the area's public paddling programs this weekend, it would be a good idea to check the website of the place you were going to go before you do. I think most of them have phone numbers you can call for a status update or will make announcements on their sites. I'm only aware of one so far (Hoboken Cove) that has made the call to not run their program this weekend, but others are considering it & will make their decisions as the situation develops.

Sebago will most likely be open for business as usual - we're way way south and around a very sharp turn, I think we're unlikely to have any problems. As long as the Brooklyn beaches along the inlet to Jamaica Bay are OK, we are too - click here for water quality reports.

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Update, 4:30 pm...hat tip this time to the the New York City Watertrail Association, http://www.nycwatertrailweb.blogspot.com/ -

Rob Buchanan from the Village Community Boathouse got a press release from the DEP a little while ago. None of the beaches in the Lower Harbor or the Rockaway Peninsula have issues; as of now, seems that it's mostly the area north of the Verranzano that's been impacted. Testing will continue and if there are any changes in status, it'll be up on the water quality site shown above (think I got that from Andy Novick originally, thanks Andy).

Here's the description of the area that the DEP says IS affected:

Water quality modeling indicates that there is no immediate impact to permitted beaches due to the dilution capacity of the river. Based on recommendations from NYC Health, the Hudson River, the East River from the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge to Verrazano Bridge and the Harlem River will not be fit for recreational activities such as swimming, canoeing, kayaking, windsurfing or any other water activity that would entail possible direct contact now through at least Sunday.

Hooray For Gateway Bike & Boathouse!

A ha ha ha haaa! Great news from my friend Rick at Gateway Bike & Boathouse!

This just in:
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Dear Gateway Bike & Boathouse Supporter,

I’m happy to announce that the National Park Service and Gateway Bike & Boathouse will be working together to provide kayaking opportunities at Riis Landing in Gateway National Recreation Area for the 2011 boating season! This remarkable achievement comes after many years of effort on both sides. A special thanks to all of our supporters who have donated their time, money and support to get us to this point. It will be well worth the wait.

Here’s a quick update on how it’s shaping up:
1. Building #215 in Riis Landing (on the west side of the parking lot opposite the ferry) has been renovated to serve as our boathouse
2. 26 kayaks, singles and doubles, sit in and sit on, have been purchased by NPS through a grant by Coke-a-Cola
3. NPS has asked the Gateway Bike & Boathouse to assist them in running a kayaking program in Riis Landing
4. Programming for 2011 will consist of “walk-up” kayaking for people wanting to try kayaking for first time and organized tours for those with some experience
5. The boathouse being opened to the public during the months of July and August with weekends having set hours and weekday events as scheduled
6. Gateway Bike & Boathouse volunteers who help run the kayak program will earn the privilege of using the boats individually when available
7. There is no room in this facility for any private boats owned by individual GBB supporters at this time
8. There will be no bicycle component this season. We want to focus exclusively on developing a smooth kayaking operation first.

********************************************
Blogger's side note: That covers the info that the general public who's interested in trying kayaking there needs to know. Website & directions can be found at the end of the post. The initiation of their program means that the Gateway Bike & Boathouse is actively looking for volunteers - the email continued with specific info for people who are interested in that angle. If you are interested in helping out, please read the following, and then contact Rick at RickHoran"at-sign"GatewayBoathouse"dot"org . It's terribly short notice, but if you can't make it, contact him anyways - these walk-up programs always need lots of people & I'm sure Rick would be happy to hear from anyone who can't make it. If you can, tell Rick & John that Bonnie said "Hi" - they are both great guys!
********************************************
Train the Trainer
The first training session for Gateway Bike & Boathouse volunteers has been scheduled by Park Ranger John Daskalakis, who has been operating NPS’ successful kayaking program in Canarsie. Rita Mullally and Unit Supervisor Dave Taft have also been instrumental in bringing this kayaking program to Rockaway.

John has invited us to participate in a special training session this Thursday, June 30th from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. Bring your bathing suits as this will be an on-water training session. John will review safety procedures, paddling techniques, the topography of the Riis Landing coastline, current/tide information, procedures for checking out boats and dealing with the public among other topics. The weather is supposed to be beautiful.

Gateway National Recreation Area – Riis Landing. The Boathouse, (Building # 215) is on the left side of the parking lot, just behind Building #217.



Please let me know if you can make it so we know how many folks to expect. If you cannot make this session, there should be other opportunities soon. Hope to see you there!

Rick

http://www.gatewayboathouse.org/
The Gateway Bike & Boathouse is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization

Congratulations to Rick & the rest of the gang behind the Gateway Bike & Boathouse. It's been a long trail with some ups & downs for them and it is WONDERFUL to see all their hard work finally coming to fruition.

NYC WaterTrail Web: Fleet Week Security Zones 2011

It's almost Memorial Day Weekend, which means it's Fleet Week here in NYC. If you're a local boater, or thinking of visiting the area, you might find today's NYCWatertrailWeb posting to be very helpful!

NYC WaterTrail Web: Fleet Week Security Zones 2011: "Below is an excerpt from the CG notice about Fleet Week which describes security zones which will be in effect for several days..."

Go Navy!

NewYorkology has a full schedule of events, and photos and videos from today's Parade of Ships.

Blue Drinks, Tonight at Pier 66:

From the NYC Watertrail Association:

Blue Drinks at Pier 66 Maritime
Tuesday May 10, 6:30-9:30pm
$5 drink specials and light refreshments served

Tuesday May 10 from 6:30 - 9:30pm will be the first in what we hope becomes a series of harbor-related networking events. Modeled on the Green Drinks series and sponsored by the NYC Water Trail Association, "Blue Drinks" is for the human-powered boating and water access advocacy community- the boaters, the swimmers, the organizers, the teachers, and of course, the volunteers.

The event will be a great chance to catch up with friends and colleagues as the boating season gets underway, meet new paddling partners, learn about new boating groups, launch sites, and volunteer opportunities, and hear what the NYCWTA has been up to and what we hope to accomplish this season and in the future. Bring your group's flyers, cards, and announcements to share and pick up the newest NYC Water Trail Map and a free laminated NYCWTA Tide Wheel which is very useful for planning harbor outings and Manhattan circumnavigations.

The venue is Pier 66 Maritime, aka the Barge, on West 26th Street and the Hudson River--the fabulous multi-use public access space created by the late, great John Krevey (special thanks to Angela Krevey for helping to arrange this). We hope this gathering of people committed to free public water access in some small way honors his memory and celebrates his contributions to the waterfront. The Barge will be offering $5 drink specials to NYCWTA folks all night.

Please consider making a $10 donation to support our work!

*********************
Blue Hawaiian picture lifted from the Cabana Bob's recipe page.
*********************

Friends don't let friends paddle drunk!

The Blind Men And The Elephant-Sized Kayak Event

Strange week on the local kayak forum...

You know the City of Water Day I'd mentioned here a couple of times, the one Sebago clubmate Shari reviewed on the Sebago blog?

Well, I was actually surprised when I got back into town on Sunday & there really wasn't any chatter on the list about it.

Finally, Erik (of the Long Island City Boathouse and Nature Calendar) posted an enthusiastic thank-you to Carter at the Waterfront Alliance and Ray Fusco, a local paddlesport organizer who Carter had brought in to help with the safety & logistics coordination of the paddling segment of the event.

Now, that's not a job I would have wanted! This was huge - groups of paddlers paddling from as far north as Yonkers, and as far south as my own club, all converging on an dock that's snuggled into one corner of a 4-way intersection of busy shipping channels - the Buttermilk Channel (east side of Gov's I), the Anchorage Channel (the main channel running up the Upper Harbor), the East River (running out to Long Island Sound) and the Hudson (up to Albany). The Staten Island Ferry runs through there, and zillions of smaller ferries & sightseeing boats, and freighters and barges and tugs, oh my! The currents are strong, their confluence between Gov's I & Manhattan can get extremely bouncy...I was never crazy about crossing that area back when I was guiding, you really had to keep your eyes open, keep your group together & gogogogo!!!!

When I first heard about the City of Water idea...I have to say that I thought of that, and a Governor's Island flotilla that happened a few years ago where a cold front (forecasted) blasted through in the middle of the event & all sorts of heck broke loose, and I walked into that spring planning meeting quite skeptical, mind full of ways this could end up being a total mess... But I listened to Ray & Carter's safety plans & y'know, they'd thought of pretty the same set of possible problems, and assuming participants accepted them, the proposed safety measures really seemed to cover most of the easily foreseeable ways in which things could go wrong. I walked out a lot less skeptical than I walked in.

That, btw, was why I felt like such a jerk when I asked Ray & Carter to please ignore all their careful preparations & let me sneak in even though I missed the deadline. If they hadn't shown such advance care, I wouldn't have wanted anything to do with it!

Anyways...long story short (this is supposed to be a quick lunchtime post & I sort of digressed) - Erik posted a thank-you - and suddenly everybody...

Np, it wasn't EVERYBODY - but a few people who've been involved in the local kayak organizations for years & years - some WAY longer than me - started venting their frustration with the security measures. Preregistration, waivers, and especially the security boats that oversaw the crossings.

Not surprising. Kayakers have an image problem in NY Harbor. It's probably about 10% deserved. Why do I say that? Because I'd bet that by now, about 90% of the regular local kayaking is being done by people who have at least a few clues, or by newbies under the direct supervision of people who have more than a few clues.

It's not fair that the rest of us get tarred with the same brush, but unfortunately, it's the nitwit 10%, bobbing cheerfully down the middle of the channel or something, that get noticed - the airwaves around their head may be turning blue with anti-kayak imprecations, they'd never hear though. "VHF? Heck, traded mine in for a sweet DVD player right when they first came out. Oooh, listen to the tugboat toot, hi tugboat!"

So the perception of kayaks as being toys & kayakers as being incompetent GRATES. No doubt about that. I think that what happened with this event was that a number of people felt that the various requirement were an over-nanny-fication of the event. Took it a bit personally - especially the Coast Guard requested safety boats, which people felt were a totally unnecessary bit of overkill.

I don't know, it's tough. I don't feel like I need a safety boat for an average tour that I might be guiding where there's a 1-to-4 guide ratio (Sebago's standard). I REALLY don't need a safety boat with people I paddle with for recreation. But there have been situations I've been in where I was very very happy to have a motorboat get involved (one rescue in a non-organized group paddle where conditions turned bad, and a couple of swim escort situations). I actually thought that for an event this big, having a few safety boats was a good idea. Things can get weird, people can get excited about an event like this & maybe the excitement overrides caution a bit, people override their second thoughts, or don't have 'em in the first place...not quite mob psychology, but a similar letting-go of your senses of personal responsibility in the face of the anticipated fun & excitement of being part of this really big festive celebration.

When you maybe have that, and then suddenly reality say "Ahem...", and maybe people are suddenly in over their heads - well, that's when I'd think that you might just look at that safety boat like the cavalry riding to the rescue.

But I kept that more or less to myself, until I happened, in the middle of the "we don't need safety boats", to wander over to Tugster & reading what appeared to be a very different take on the day.

It wasn't very specific but it's pretty clear that at some point, at least one of the safety boats was NOT overkill...

Seems what we had was B-Mates. Blind Men And The Elephant Syndrome. I think another thing that's easy to forget in a multi-group event of that size & complexity is that no individual group's experience is The Experience. The people who were objecting? All pretty veteran paddlers & rowers, leaders of the human-powered boating community, and all, as they were correctly pointing out, quite capable of getting their groups to Gov's I without help. And that's what they did, and they saw plenty of other paddlers arriving & maybe just figured that that was the whole story.

Well, it wasn't.

A reference to whatever happened finally did get posted. In fact it sounds like maybe there were a couple of instances where the precautions totally paid off. Again, no detail - but what I found fascinating was how quiet things suddenly got with the introduction of the concept that maybe not all the groups involved were operating with the same level of care as those who'd felt like the presence of the safety boats were not just superfluous, but somehow condescending.

Too bad, in a way. Be nice if everyone was as responsible as 90% of the local paddlers try to be.

Oy. So much for quick post...

That's why I started blogging, I guess.

International Space Station Flyovers

One of the regulars on the NYC Kayaker list publicizes a series of non-organized Full Moon Paddles that happen out of Foundry Cove in Cold Springs, NY. They're completely informal, there's no leader, you bring your own boat & you're responsible for your own safety - all W. does is announce what time you'll likely find a bunch of paddlers there getting ready to enjoy an evening on the river.

I'm not sure exactly what night the Cold Springs Full Moon Paddle is this weekend, but W. posted another interesting event today. I'm trip leading at Sebago in the morning, so I'm not going to try to get myself out to somewhere with a good view of the correct patch of sky (aside from having stuff to organize & needing to get a good night's sleep, I'm also not sure how good a view I'd get, being a resident of the glowing megalopolis itself). But it does sound neat, so post it, I will.

Out on the Hudson River tonight, a most wonderful thing awaits: a flyby of the International Space Station! If you haven't witnessed this before make a point of it for it's an experience you won't soon forget. It is, save for the moon, the brightest thing in the night sky and even small binoculars will give you some hint as to its size and shape.

At 9:49 PM tonight, head on out to a place with a wide view of the sky, especially to the south southwest. While it's unfortunate this puts the sky into the glow of the megalopolis to our south, the ISS will quickly rise in the sky to about 54º above the horizon at 9:51PM and then take another two minutes to pass into the northern horizon. It will be the really bright "star" moving silently through the sky.

If you're out in the early morning hours, the ISS will repeat it's crossing of our skies beginning at 4:11 AM tomorrow morning coming out of the west northwest and will reach an elevation of 85º, almost directly overhead.

If you miss this evening's flyby or cannot get up in the morning, you can repeat this tomorrow night starting at 10:12PM looking a bit further to the west than tonight. The ISS will reach 44º elevation at 10:15PM.


Interested in finding out more about flyovers visible in your area? NASA can help you out!

Interested in getting (and participating in) a lot of the latest NYC area paddler info, discussions, debate, gossip, and other kay-yaketty-yak? Join NYCKayaker!

A Plug for NYCKayaker

I'd posted this to my old listserve after exchanging some emails with the folks from the Hudson River Paddler's Guild (no real website at that link as I post, been that way for a couple of months now, but now that they're done with the proposal, maybe it actually will be "coming soon") about the boathouse design group meeting and the importance of participating in the local paddler's grapevine this week - the trunk, if you will, of that grapevine being the long-established NYCKayaker list (yes, the very list that I used to regularly clog with my ramblings until I created this blog as a diversion - I still participate, and I do still ramble sometimes, but on the whole Frogma lets me keep my list posting to things with an actual point, or things that are too cool not to share).

I'm so happy to be out of the stupid musical-kayak-storage game, but I just can't seem to leave well enough alone. Guess I'm feeling a little antsy about hoping to get the people who aren't really in that grapevine INTO that grapevine now, because with 3 major storage facilities in play, this is really a time when I think that if all of the Hudson River Park paddlers could just pull together, it would be incredibly useful. Unfortunately I've managed to make enough of a pain of myself that I'm not in a great position to rally people to do that, but I couldn't not at least try. Posted it to the Rustbucket group yesterday, and figured I'd post it here too since the week's turned busy I don't see having much time to post anything here until Friday or so (work's busy, and there other non-work things that are mostly but not quite finished - no major blog writing until those are all the way finished). Anyways, here was yesterday's Rustbucket rally:

For anyone who's interested in what's going on in the New York City kayak & waterfront communities beyond the barge, the Hudson River Watertrail Association's NYCKayaker list has been pretty interesting this winter. There've been meeting announcements posted (most recently, Jim W. of the Downtown Boathouse organization had posted about the Tribeca boathouse design committee meeting that happened last Wednesday), there have been some extremely interesting discussions about the types of access people want (more than I realized); activist Harry J. Bubbins has been looking for emails to help stop the Randall's Island water park, Dragonsandy very happily announced this morning that the Jersey City Resevoir is being saved & turned into a park; Rob B. occasionally weighs in with beach & natural access news. On a purely fun note, the beaver story had some excellent stories being swapped -- beavers love to flood access roads by blocking culverts - they look at the road & say "What a lovely dam, but look, some silly person has left a big hole in it - let us finish this sloppy job!", and Ralph Diaz, Mr. Complete Folding Kayaker himself, shared a very funny tale of crafting & maintaining a "beaver deceiver" which allowed him and the beavers to co-exist for a long time (the sad ending, though, is that he had less patient & creative neighbors who called in the trapper - not a catch & release operation either, sad to say).

That's just a recent sampling of the topics. Lots going on out there beyond the barge. The NYCKayaker list is a great way to keep up with that, and a great place to bounce ideas around. In the end, it's still important to communicate the ideas that you think bounce in a promising way on out to the outside world (the Trust, government people, newspaper, community boards, wherever), but NYCKayaker has, in the past, been the incubator of some of the more effective actions of the paddling community as a whole.

That doesn't happen all the time of course, mostly just in response to major events or changes (like the Hudson River Park Trusts announcing Kayak Rules that basically said "No winter paddling, and no getting wet" - those got turned into "guidelines" PDQ when the NYCKayaker gang got hold of them & went to town). NYC paddlers are an awfully disparate crew, but every now & the differences just drops & everybody starts working together. When that happens, the outcome can be pretty neat

Some of the stuff that's been posted there has been making it over here, but not all. It can get a little nutso sometimes when somebody strikes a nerve & a debate breaks out & people start taking sides - but joining it is a good way to get a sense of the larger community of which all the groups at the barge are a part.

If you're interested, you can find a full description of the purpose of the list (and the guidelines which keep it all civil - well, usually ;D) here on the HRWA's website.

Public Notice and the Hudson River Park Trust

Ah, meant to put up some pretty pictures tonight but I just remembered that there was something I'd wanted to post about a while back, but never gotten past bothering the poor people who are on various lists that I'm on. Going onto the Community Board 1 website & having such an easy time finding information about their upcoming meetings reminded me.

As I've mentioned before, I've been active in Hudson River Park stuff since I joined Manhattan Kayak Company in early 1999. Being a partner in a company that needed the Park to accomodate kayaks to even exist was a great motivator for going to all the various meetings where the Park was discussed. Once I left MKC in early 2002, I eased up on my activities of that sort - once I spoke only for Me Myself & I, LLC, I was inclined to leave the bulk of that stuff to the Officially Involved. Still, since access was still important to me, I tried to keep abreast of developments, follow the various changes, and when it seemed like it would help the Trust to hear what paddlers wanted if a whole lot of us were all shouting at the same time, I was always ready to join in on email or letter-writing campaigns & try to rally others to do the same.

I was cleaning out some extremely old emails late last year, and I ran across one that I'd sent to NYCKayaker back during my time as an independent-though-involved paddler at Pier 63. It was dated July 2003. It was entitled "Having a Voice in the Hudson River Park", and it was basically one of my usual over-wordy diatribes about how good it would be for people to take an active role in Park stuff by attending meetings, listening to what was going on, and speaking up if they didn't approve.

Most of it was just generic rah rah, blah blah, if we all speak together the Trust will have to listen stuff - but the first sentence was pretty interesting & sort of sad, considering all of the really unhappy exchanges I ended up having with a lot of people I really didn't want to fight with from late September on (as the closing of the barge played itself out). If you were for some bizarre reason actually paying attention to the various plot twists, you might recall my December 1st Tale of Two Emails post - for those who missed that, there'd been a meeting of the Advisory Council to the Hudson River Park Trust that I would have really liked to attend, except that word never spread beyond a very small group who'd taken the lead (the rationale I was given later was that the meeting room was too small for wider attendance). I was frustrated with both the Trust (for not having anywhere on their website where a person who wasn't in the "in crowd" could find out about Park-related meeting) and the (then) newly announced Hudson River Paddler's Guild", whose stated goals are sounded admirable enough in their introductory email, but who I nevertheless felt were taking advantage of the lack of freely available information on park-related matters by presenting themselves as an intermediary between the Trust and the independent paddler (for which service the "independent paddler" need only pay a $35 membership fee). I would rather have seen the Guild immediately go to work on getting the Trust to re-open a process that used to be very open, but has evidently closed down some over the last relatively uneventful year or two. Interactions between the Trust and the paddlers have often felt like a two-steps-forward, one-step-back process - somehow this time, though, it's felt more like no steps forward, three steps back.

That was really driven home by the first sentence of this email I'd written back in 2003 -

Hudson River Park Trust meetings are open to the public. Public notice is available
here: http://www.hudsonriverpark.org/public/board.html.

So apparently back in July 2003, the Trust ACTUALLY HAD A PUBLIC NOTICE PAGE.

Did you try the link? Not exactly helpful now, eh?

I'm pretty sure that back in 2003, that link would have taken you to something a lot more informative than in does here in early 2007, as in the email I went on to describe that now-lost page as being the way to see what meetings were coming up & whether they'd be of interest to the general paddling public or not.

So when I was pestering Noreen about getting public notice on their website, and she was offering having people email her directly to be put on the list instead (still meaning that you had to be enough of an insider to know that emailing her was the key to getting notice - better than nothing but still not really public, somehow)- all I was asking for was for the Trust to reinstate a service that they used to provide as a matter of course.

Making Trouble...

OK, I've got people thinking I'm making trouble again - well, I guess I am, so I might as well just fling myself in with a will.

A lot of the train-wreck business back around Thanksgiving was partially due to the fact that in the past, the local kayaking community has had an incredibly effective grapevine, which I at least didn't realize how much I relied on until it suddenly didn't work.

If you actually slogged your way through "A Tale of Two Emails", you'll recall that I therefore attempted to figure out how to find out about these meetings, coming from the point of view of a random member of the public. Couldn't find any public notice section on the Hudson River Park website. Got in touch with Noreen Doyle at the Trust, she said she'd add me to the list, and she also said that I was welcome to send around her email, and she'd add anyone else to that list who wanted to be.

Where I'd like to be a troublemaker is - I don't know what sort of notice is considered to be sufficient, but it seems to me that it's not quite enough to give a paddler permission to circulate an email address. Fact is, if there'd been a proper, easy-to-find way of receiving notice about meetings posted on the Hudson River Park website, the people I got upset with for not spreading the word about the meeting could've taken every ounce of wind out of my sails by just saying "Look, here's the calendar, too bad you didn't know about it, next time you do".

As it is, it's just not that easy to find these things out once you've gotten out of the in crowd.

So - especially if you are an NYC-area resident who's interested in the ongoing development in the Hudson River Park - two points:

one, if you're interested in receiving notice about Park-related meetings, go ahead & email Noreen - So, again, her email is ndoyle@hrpt.state.ny.us - & ask her to add you to the meeting notice mailing list.

and two, if you also think it would be better for there to be public notice someplace on their website, by all means, tell her that too.

Right now, I think it's just me who's been saying that. If you agree, let the Trust know!

And there was an interesting idea floating around recently, too - so far, most of the focus has been on our local paddlers, and in keeping with that, I was sort of aiming this at our local paddlers (if any of them are still speaking to me, she said ruefully) - but hey, if you're not from around here, and you like the idea of being able to come to New York, hire a guide & paddle out of the Hudson River Park to the Statue of Liberty, or the George Washington Bridge, or 26 miles around Manhattan - I suppose you could say something to that effect, too...

A Tale of Two Emails:

Today, I'm just going to post 2 emails, sort of to try to close out the train-wreck issue:

The first is from Noreen Doyle at the Hudson River Park Trust, in response to an email I sent her after trying & failing to find an easy way to find out about future meetings. I'd decided to do that became evident that the paddler's grapevine (formerly fairly reliable) was now apparently suffering from phylloxera:

I'll ask that your home address be added too, and we'll correct your email. And of course, people can email me if they want to be on the circulation list for meetings. It would be helpful if they could understand that the Advisory Council itself includes organizations that are specifically named to the Council. There is a legal cap on the number of members that can be added. Others are welcome to attend in that the meetings are public (though as I said space is limited at most meetings). It is up to the Chair to set the agendas, and the Trust does not control this process. People who want to know more can read the Hudson River Park Act, available on our website. Pier 63 Maritime will shortly be added to the Council as a result of last week's vote, subject to our Board's confirmation.


So...she may not thank me for the but wotthehell, Archie, wotthehell:

ndoyle@hrpt.state.ny.us

Better than nothing. Still these meetings are supposed to be public, and if the public can't find out about 'em easily, maybe that's not really public enough. It shouldn't be any easier for noted squeaky-wheel Bonnie Q. Frogma to find out about this stuff than it is for Jane Q. Paddler who paddles a Feathercraft Java & has never heard of any of our assorted local list & clubs & what-have-you, but is curious & finds the Hudson River Park website through a Google search.

Now here was the other email - from one of the folks who DID get word about the last meeting:

Dear Bonnie,
Hi, my name is Bill Bergeron and I am a paddler who used to store his boat at Pier 63. I am writing to you today to announce some exciting news that I know you'll be interested in. I, along with a number of local paddlers, have formed the Hudson River Paddlers Guild. The "Guild" is a non-for-profit corporation devoted to the interests of independent paddlers, like yourself, who use the Hudson River and surrounding waterways. We formed the Guild to give a voice to our community when we found that, as independent paddlers, we had none during the closing of Pier 63.

While the situation at Pier 63 has been our first focus we have incorporated with a larger mission ahead:

• To promote and support the practice of recreational watersports, in particular kayaking.
• To encourage training, technique, competition, and safety programs for the community of paddlers who seek ways to improve their skills and knowledge.
• To provide a forum for human-powered boaters, not-for-profit organizations and commercial entities that share the Hudson River to promote safety and communication for all.
• To improve and protect safe public access to rivers and to promote care for the aquatic environment of all rivers, in particular the Hudson River, for recreation and enjoyment.

This vision, of an organization that represents the paddlers point of view, would be incomplete without you. I am writing to ask for your input, let me know what you think the Guild can do to meet the needs of our community.

As you may, or may not be aware, independent paddlers are already having an impact. As part of a team of paddlers and water-front community advocates, we are supporting John Krevey in his ongoing efforts to modify his existing DEC permits. These amendments would provide for both storage and launching facilities to return to Pier 63 Maritime when it reopens at Pier 66A.

Recently, we were encouraged when The Hudson River Park Trust Advisory Council voted, unanimously, to recommend that the Hudson River Park Trust support John's suggested amendments. In addition, the Advisory Council will be sending a letter of support to the DEC. While this is encouraging progress it will be months before we know if these amendments will be granted.

In addition to our efforts to restore what has been our community's home, the Guild has joined a consortium of other non-profit and private groups to make what we hope will be a successful bid on the recently released Pier 66 RFP. The details of our proposal are still in progress but so far we are supporting:

• Boat Storage that is convenient and reasonable priced.
• Safe and clean facilities, including docks that are well maintained and not slippery; good lighting; readily available emergency equipment.
• Flexible launch hours, as per independent paddlers needs
• Hot showers, changing area and lockers

We would like your suggestions about how the design and operation of this new facility can serve your needs.

We also need your support. If you believe that independent paddlers should have a strong and unified voice, if you believe that access to our cities waterways should be safe and unfettered, if you believe that paddlers should be caretakers of the river environment, then join us.

Becoming a Guild Member is simple. For just $35 you will not only have a seat at the table where your voice is heard and information comes to you first-hand but you will enjoy these additional benefits:

• Website, currently under construction, with timely news and information on the issues that effect our community presented in a clear, concise and timely fashion
• Bi-monthly newsletter covering the greater Hudson region
• Subscription to Adventure Kayak Magazine, a fresh new voice in paddlesports.

To become a member simply fill out the attached PDF and send it along with a check to the address below. I will follow up within a few days of receiving it with information on how you as a member can get involved and send your suggestions.

You can get involved today by sending this message and the attached membership form to anyone you think shares the interests and ideals of our community.

Yours truly,

William Bergeron-mirsky
President
Hudson River Paddlers Guild

Interested but not ready for membership? Reply to this email with "Friend of the Guild" as the subject line and we will continue to send you updates as we make progress in this exciting time for our community.

As I'm handing out emails - Bill's is bill@hrpg.net .

Some of what they're proposing sounds useful, but I'm having a really hard time swallowing: "For just $35 you will...have a seat at the table where your voice is heard and information comes to you first-hand".

I thought that's what my tax dollars were supposed to get me.

I also have a problem with the fact that they got word of the last Advisory Council meeting & did not spread the word. No, it's not their responsibility, but it just bothers me that they didn't.

Ah well. Lovely paddle I had yesterday, wandering the mazelike grasses of the Elder's Point Marsh with TQ, looking down at the shells on the bottom through water clear as glass, musing over important questions like "If sailors get sea legs when they've sailed for a long time, what does a paddler get after paddling for a long time?". I'm pretty much settled on staying where I am. In some ways, I think it may a far, far better place for somebody who's as burned out on the Hudson River Park access issues as I am.