Tips from Caroline Brosius
29 miles, 3 rivers and the Gates of Hell (Caroline's 2006 Mayor's Cup Experience)
Taking on the Three Rivers that surround Manhattan island is only one part of the experience of the Mayor's Cup. Obviously, putting in miles in your boat is part of the training. Figuring out how much food and water you will need is also important. I highly recommend finding as many wildly changing water conditions as possible to train in as the rivers give you the opportunity to experience extreme tidal flows, changing winds, sheer boredom from the flat sections and...Hell's Gate. In fact, if you took one of those mechanical bucking bulls and installed it in the nearest body of water you could find and practiced sitting on that while holding a paddle in your hand, you would be starting off well.
I used Google Earth to view the rivers as they circled they island. I had never realized there were so many bridges on the Harlem, though it makes sense, it being an island. Overall, I wasn't terribly concerned about the conditions or my ability to complete the circumnavigation. I had wanted to do it for years after hearing of some other east coast paddlers having done it. The one location that kept coming up in conversation with people who had paddled around the island before or who were familiar with the waterways was Hell's Gate, the confluence of the Harlem River and Long Island Sound where it forms the East River.
The tides are a critical factor in paddling around Manhattan. Several of us had the unique opportunity last fall to experience Hell's Gate at full flood. I learned that Hell's Gate is not really a singular location, but can be the gateway to a river possessed. An OC1 makes that particularly challenging. Not only was there three foot standing chop to deal with, but all the waves that pushed up to four feet plus were coming from the ama side (the ama provides stability to the OC1). This does not include extra challenges such as the cigar boat race, the tug and barge traffic and various water ferries that travel at high speed and produce large wakes. As an outrigger is a canoe and you paddle only on one side at a time, when your stability is being threatened you end up staying on one side. In this case, from Hell's Gate till pass the UN, I stayed on the left for all but about 6 strokes, taken hastily more to break up the monotony than anything else, a period of about 45 minutes. I came through upright and unscathed, better off than the top two paddlers ironically who were knocked off their boats at least once by the river demons.
The paddle ended with a nice surfing session as I passed under the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges, which is always an awesome experience with an excellent view of Lady Liberty. Rounding the end of Battery where the Staten Island Ferry terminal always inspires you to paddle a little harder. The race finished with a nice surf session as we paddled up the Hudson to finish at the Marina.
I developed a new sense of confidence in my ability to handle a variety of water conditions. I had never been as frightened in a boat as I was in the first few minutes of the Hell's Gate passage. There is a large, tall, metal retaining wall that at one point the waters seemed intent on pushing me into. I decided then that I wasn't going to allow anything to push me into “The Wall of Death” as I dubbed it and just set my mind and will to outwitting the river that seemed intent on bucking me off my boat.
I believe everyone who participates in the Mayor's cup will come away with a sense of awe and respect for the waters of the Hudson, the Harlem and the East River, three unique rivers that surround an island named Manhattan.
I look forward to outwitting the demons of the East River again this fall.
