OUT WALKING WITH THE MASS OF HUMANITY on the streets of NYC a few days ago (for the first time in more years than I'm willing to admit) my maritime jonesing soul took over and propelled my feet eastward along 33rd Street towards the East River.
It was a blessedly hell-bent walking pace that I hope some of you can empathize with. Yup, a blessedly hell-bent walking pace flying at ground level past the Empire State Building with a quick gander upward at that Art Deco icon/worlds most famous building and thinking, "This town seems less Art Deco than I remember." Onward and eastward my feet continued to carry me and maybe I thought, "I'm hardly a student of architecture or art, and that includes Art Deco." I could have been a little saddened thinking upon this, saddened, or feeling a touch of melancholy spawned possibly from a personal history of perusing old 1950's magazine advertisements over the years and allowing myself to become enchanted with the pictures and words like streamliner, zephyr, etc. Advertisements that obviously had little to do with reality but I didn't want to believe that. And also maybe I harbored a subconscious longing to believe those doctor recommended cigarette ads from back in the day? No, I didn't think that. And nope, the year was not 1953. The year was 2016 and the month was January.
And yet none of that internal battle (or that internal realization?) slowed my blessedly hell-bent walking pace eastward towards the river. It was my arrival at the edge of the East River that put an end to the walking (and the internal battle or realization) and there, at the rivers edge, I simply stopped and looked across.
The green-red-green striped bifurcation buoy south of Roosevelt Island immediately caught my eye. It's located nearly straight across the river from where I stood in the park on the rivers edge and I naturally began assessing the status of the East Rivers tide and current whilst staring at the buoy.
The height of the tide I'd say was close to high and the current didn't appear to be moving too quickly as far as I understood how the East River moves. "It must be the tail end of the flood current." I thought as a watched an orange piece of flotsam move slowly to the left, away from the green-red-green striped bifurcation buoy (my New York nautical navigator brain was doing its thing). "In a little while that'll change," I continued thinking, "and then the ebb will kick in and the water will start moving to the right."
I looked again at that green-red-green striped bifurcation buoy and then I turned a little to the left and looked at Roosevelt Island and then back at that buoy. I did that a few times returning to a familiar conundrum or quagmire or perplexed feeling that reminded me of the few times I've navigated the East River. In particular I was reminded of the times I'd navigated in the direction from upper New York Bay to Long Island Sound (or moving from right to left when looking across the East River from the Manhattan side), and how that particular green-red-green bifurcation buoy south of Roosevelt Island had always thrown me into a state of befuddlement.
Well, on this particular land visit to New York (my first land visit in more years than I will admit as I said earlier), I, with the aid and ability of just being able to stand there, stop, reflect, think, and do whatever else I had to, on this land visit, I came to the realization that I was going to learn WHY that particular BIFURCATION BUOY, the one south of Roosevelt Island, is "green-red-green" and not "red-green-red".
Here is a 21rst century definition of a bifurcation buoy, the definition that pops up when you Google "bifurcation buoy". (google was not a verb back in 1953)
A bifurcation buoy is used to mark the point where a channel devises in to branches. You may pass this buoy on either side (port or starboard side) when moving upstream. It's colored with red and green bands. The main or preferred channel is shown by the color of the top band.
https://aceboater.com/en/bifurcation-buoy
Now, when making way into New York's East River from Upper New York Bay, according to how the buoy's are arranged at the Upper New York Bay end of the East River, one is returning from sea. When returning from sea in the United States, we mariners have a rhyme to remember what side of the channel the red buoy's are on.
"RED, RIGHT, RETURN."
Yes, here in the good ole US of A when you are in a channel returning to port from sea, the red buoy's or day-marker's mark the right side of the channel.
Now, when a vessel navigates from Upper New York Bay, it can continue through the East River, through Hell Gate which is sort of a fork in the road as one can go left and navigate the Haarlem River or, (like I always have done) go right and then continue on the East River under the Tri-Borough Bridge, the Hell Gate Bridge, past Rikers Island, past LaGuardia Airport, under the Whitestone Bridge, under the Throggs Neck Bridge and then into western Long Island Sound.
Now, the confusing thing to me, and maybe to you? is when does one change from returning from sea to returning to sea in this maritime labyrinth?
Maybe if I were a tad bit enlightened I'd look at this labyrinth in a similar light as one of those old labyrinths often seen in church yards, or Block Island, and get into a meditative state so to speak. Actually, I do get into a meditative mindset sort of when navigating, but I digress.
For some strange reason I've had it in my thick head that Hell Gate would be where the channel markers would switch. Why Hell Gate? Maybe I've seen it as the hub of the whole waterway, a giant spoked bicycle wheel with Hell Gate as the hub and the Harlem River and East River as the spokes. Maybe I subconsciously think to over-hall the old Schwinn hub, take the thing apart and grease the bearings and races and then tweak the spokes and then it's like a brand new bike until some modern high tech superlight sealed bearings thing blasts past after the rider just barely taps the pedal.
The channel markers do not change at Hell Gate. The channel markers change somewhere around the Williamsburg Bridge I've very recently learned thanks to the internet. And knowing that the channel markers change around the Williamsburg Bridge tells me (and anyone else navigating the East River) that GREEN-RED-GREEN BIFURCATION BUOY south of Roosevelt Island makes sense! Why should I doubt the Coast Guard and question how they choose to arrange their buoys?
Ya see, back when I thought Hell Gate was where the markers changed, I'd think I was technically RETURNING FROM SEA! And with Green being the top color on the BIFURCATION BUOY south of Roosevelt Island I thought the PREFERRED would run East of Roosevelt Island, which, in the midst of riding the swift flood current up the East River and hearing a cacophony of chatter on VHF channels 13 and 16 (especially 13 where the big ships really talk to one another and occasionally us teeny tiny sailboats). Now, the channel east of Roosevelt Island wouldn't be too bad I reckon save for that one bridge after the Queens borough bridge with a vertical clearance of only 40 feet so the charts say. That's really close for me. And so during all this bewilderment I've gone into follow the leader mode and navigate the channel west of Roosevelt Island which also seems to have a straighter shot into Hellgate.
Ah, but now that I reckon I have the correct info (the channel markers changed back around the Williamsburg Bridge) and understand that when approaching the southern tip of Roosevelt Island I'm RETURNING TO SEA! And the PREFFERED CHANNEL really is the one east of Roosevelt Island, and that GREEN-RED-GREEN says so.
Here's a link to where I found the info on navigating the East River. VERY HELPFUL. http://www.offshoreblue.com/cruising/east-river.php
Fair Winds
Captain Bill
It was a blessedly hell-bent walking pace that I hope some of you can empathize with. Yup, a blessedly hell-bent walking pace flying at ground level past the Empire State Building with a quick gander upward at that Art Deco icon/worlds most famous building and thinking, "This town seems less Art Deco than I remember." Onward and eastward my feet continued to carry me and maybe I thought, "I'm hardly a student of architecture or art, and that includes Art Deco." I could have been a little saddened thinking upon this, saddened, or feeling a touch of melancholy spawned possibly from a personal history of perusing old 1950's magazine advertisements over the years and allowing myself to become enchanted with the pictures and words like streamliner, zephyr, etc. Advertisements that obviously had little to do with reality but I didn't want to believe that. And also maybe I harbored a subconscious longing to believe those doctor recommended cigarette ads from back in the day? No, I didn't think that. And nope, the year was not 1953. The year was 2016 and the month was January.
And yet none of that internal battle (or that internal realization?) slowed my blessedly hell-bent walking pace eastward towards the river. It was my arrival at the edge of the East River that put an end to the walking (and the internal battle or realization) and there, at the rivers edge, I simply stopped and looked across.
 |
| Looking across New York's East River from the E 34th Street Ferry Terminal, late January of 2016. The green-red-green bifurcation buoy south of Roosevelt Island is visible a little to the right. Sailing Hither and Thither. Photo by Captain Bill Podzon. |
The green-red-green striped bifurcation buoy south of Roosevelt Island immediately caught my eye. It's located nearly straight across the river from where I stood in the park on the rivers edge and I naturally began assessing the status of the East Rivers tide and current whilst staring at the buoy.
The height of the tide I'd say was close to high and the current didn't appear to be moving too quickly as far as I understood how the East River moves. "It must be the tail end of the flood current." I thought as a watched an orange piece of flotsam move slowly to the left, away from the green-red-green striped bifurcation buoy (my New York nautical navigator brain was doing its thing). "In a little while that'll change," I continued thinking, "and then the ebb will kick in and the water will start moving to the right."
 |
| Tugboats moving barges past Roosevelt Island on New York's East River viewed from the E 34th Street Ferry Terminal, late January, 2016. Photo by Captain Bill Podzon. Sailing Hither and Thither. |
I looked again at that green-red-green striped bifurcation buoy and then I turned a little to the left and looked at Roosevelt Island and then back at that buoy. I did that a few times returning to a familiar conundrum or quagmire or perplexed feeling that reminded me of the few times I've navigated the East River. In particular I was reminded of the times I'd navigated in the direction from upper New York Bay to Long Island Sound (or moving from right to left when looking across the East River from the Manhattan side), and how that particular green-red-green bifurcation buoy south of Roosevelt Island had always thrown me into a state of befuddlement.
Well, on this particular land visit to New York (my first land visit in more years than I will admit as I said earlier), I, with the aid and ability of just being able to stand there, stop, reflect, think, and do whatever else I had to, on this land visit, I came to the realization that I was going to learn WHY that particular BIFURCATION BUOY, the one south of Roosevelt Island, is "green-red-green" and not "red-green-red".
 |
| Photo of East River Ferry sign taken in late January, 2016. Photo by Captain Bill Podzon. Sailing Hither and Thither. |
Here is a 21rst century definition of a bifurcation buoy, the definition that pops up when you Google "bifurcation buoy". (google was not a verb back in 1953)
A bifurcation buoy is used to mark the point where a channel devises in to branches. You may pass this buoy on either side (port or starboard side) when moving upstream. It's colored with red and green bands. The main or preferred channel is shown by the color of the top band.
https://aceboater.com/en/bifurcation-buoy
Now, when making way into New York's East River from Upper New York Bay, according to how the buoy's are arranged at the Upper New York Bay end of the East River, one is returning from sea. When returning from sea in the United States, we mariners have a rhyme to remember what side of the channel the red buoy's are on.
"RED, RIGHT, RETURN."
Yes, here in the good ole US of A when you are in a channel returning to port from sea, the red buoy's or day-marker's mark the right side of the channel.
Now, when a vessel navigates from Upper New York Bay, it can continue through the East River, through Hell Gate which is sort of a fork in the road as one can go left and navigate the Haarlem River or, (like I always have done) go right and then continue on the East River under the Tri-Borough Bridge, the Hell Gate Bridge, past Rikers Island, past LaGuardia Airport, under the Whitestone Bridge, under the Throggs Neck Bridge and then into western Long Island Sound.
Now, the confusing thing to me, and maybe to you? is when does one change from returning from sea to returning to sea in this maritime labyrinth?
Maybe if I were a tad bit enlightened I'd look at this labyrinth in a similar light as one of those old labyrinths often seen in church yards, or Block Island, and get into a meditative state so to speak. Actually, I do get into a meditative mindset sort of when navigating, but I digress.
For some strange reason I've had it in my thick head that Hell Gate would be where the channel markers would switch. Why Hell Gate? Maybe I've seen it as the hub of the whole waterway, a giant spoked bicycle wheel with Hell Gate as the hub and the Harlem River and East River as the spokes. Maybe I subconsciously think to over-hall the old Schwinn hub, take the thing apart and grease the bearings and races and then tweak the spokes and then it's like a brand new bike until some modern high tech superlight sealed bearings thing blasts past after the rider just barely taps the pedal.
The channel markers do not change at Hell Gate. The channel markers change somewhere around the Williamsburg Bridge I've very recently learned thanks to the internet. And knowing that the channel markers change around the Williamsburg Bridge tells me (and anyone else navigating the East River) that GREEN-RED-GREEN BIFURCATION BUOY south of Roosevelt Island makes sense! Why should I doubt the Coast Guard and question how they choose to arrange their buoys?
Ya see, back when I thought Hell Gate was where the markers changed, I'd think I was technically RETURNING FROM SEA! And with Green being the top color on the BIFURCATION BUOY south of Roosevelt Island I thought the PREFERRED would run East of Roosevelt Island, which, in the midst of riding the swift flood current up the East River and hearing a cacophony of chatter on VHF channels 13 and 16 (especially 13 where the big ships really talk to one another and occasionally us teeny tiny sailboats). Now, the channel east of Roosevelt Island wouldn't be too bad I reckon save for that one bridge after the Queens borough bridge with a vertical clearance of only 40 feet so the charts say. That's really close for me. And so during all this bewilderment I've gone into follow the leader mode and navigate the channel west of Roosevelt Island which also seems to have a straighter shot into Hellgate.
Ah, but now that I reckon I have the correct info (the channel markers changed back around the Williamsburg Bridge) and understand that when approaching the southern tip of Roosevelt Island I'm RETURNING TO SEA! And the PREFFERED CHANNEL really is the one east of Roosevelt Island, and that GREEN-RED-GREEN says so.
Here's a link to where I found the info on navigating the East River. VERY HELPFUL. http://www.offshoreblue.com/cruising/east-river.php
 |
| View of Manhattan and the Hudson River from the George Washington Bridge, late January, 2016. Photo by Captain Bill Podzon. Sailing Higher and Thither. |
Fair Winds
Captain Bill
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