Trudy
Member
One last summer-like overnight on the river: that's what I was thinking when it was so balmy and humid on Monday.
It was late when I launched from the Hudson boat launch, 5:45 pm. I worked my way north along the east shore of Middle Ground Flats. By the time I reached the northern tip of the island it was dark. I was able to pick out the high tide line and pitched my tent above it.
The view north up the river was expansive. The Hudson is nearly a mile wide here. It felt like a hot July night. Two screech owls dueled nearby. The river was perfectly still and despite being a holiday, there was no traffic of any kind. I sat on a log for a long time before turning in.
Some background information: Middle Ground Flats, one of the largest islands in the Hudson River, has long been a place of contention. It is thickly settled with squatters, who have passed down their properties for generations. Most of the camps have shacks on them, a few have seasonal tents. All of them have garbage dumps. Any exploration of this island (in the off-season only; the owners dislike intruders) will make an environmentalist despair.
They packed it in; they never packed it out. It is trashed.
All that is about to change. New York State recently acquired clear title to the island and wants to open it to everyone, with trails and a camping area.
I knew a front was coming in overnight, but wasn't concerned. But at 2 am a gale blew up from the north and nearly flattened my tent. I was very exposed. Rain pelted the tent. Whipped by the wind, waves crashed as if the Hudson were the ocean. It was the kind of wind in which you hear high-pitched whistling and screeching.
Warm and dry, I enjoyed it. At some point I thought, "Those waves sound close." I unzipped the tent and looked out into an incoming wall of water. The river was two feet away.
Due to the winds, the water was pushed well above tide line.
My Eureka Spitfire tent isn't free-standing but I did manage to drag it up the shore about 20 feet. I lost a peg in the process. Finding a spare (a twig) was surprisingly difficult in the dark. Finally, tripping over gargage dumps, I found one.
It was still wild in the morning, but with a north wind an an ebb tide in my favor I made it back to Hudson OK. In record time, in fact.
It was late when I launched from the Hudson boat launch, 5:45 pm. I worked my way north along the east shore of Middle Ground Flats. By the time I reached the northern tip of the island it was dark. I was able to pick out the high tide line and pitched my tent above it.
The view north up the river was expansive. The Hudson is nearly a mile wide here. It felt like a hot July night. Two screech owls dueled nearby. The river was perfectly still and despite being a holiday, there was no traffic of any kind. I sat on a log for a long time before turning in.
Some background information: Middle Ground Flats, one of the largest islands in the Hudson River, has long been a place of contention. It is thickly settled with squatters, who have passed down their properties for generations. Most of the camps have shacks on them, a few have seasonal tents. All of them have garbage dumps. Any exploration of this island (in the off-season only; the owners dislike intruders) will make an environmentalist despair.
They packed it in; they never packed it out. It is trashed.
All that is about to change. New York State recently acquired clear title to the island and wants to open it to everyone, with trails and a camping area.
I knew a front was coming in overnight, but wasn't concerned. But at 2 am a gale blew up from the north and nearly flattened my tent. I was very exposed. Rain pelted the tent. Whipped by the wind, waves crashed as if the Hudson were the ocean. It was the kind of wind in which you hear high-pitched whistling and screeching.
Warm and dry, I enjoyed it. At some point I thought, "Those waves sound close." I unzipped the tent and looked out into an incoming wall of water. The river was two feet away.
Due to the winds, the water was pushed well above tide line.
My Eureka Spitfire tent isn't free-standing but I did manage to drag it up the shore about 20 feet. I lost a peg in the process. Finding a spare (a twig) was surprisingly difficult in the dark. Finally, tripping over gargage dumps, I found one.
It was still wild in the morning, but with a north wind an an ebb tide in my favor I made it back to Hudson OK. In record time, in fact.
