[Announce] FLOAT PLAN: 5 Borough Harbor Ramble (as of Thursday night)

[Erik Baard]

Please note that press information and the final float plan should
highlight the PortSide NY event at Red Hook, though our stopover there
seems to have been shortened.


Inaugural 5 Borough "Ramble" Paddle Tour
Saturday, September 8, 2007

Sherman Creek Park, Harlem River to Bard Avenue, Staten Island.
Return to start provided by via van/ trailer courtesy of LIC Community
Boathouse and NY Water Taxi.

Radio:
VHF Ch. 68. 8 Marine radios amongst kayaks and Whitehall rowing gigs -
one marine radio per 4 boats.

Weather forecast:
Sunny, wind S 9mph; rain arriving in the evening
**To Watch: possible tropical development now forming off of Bermuda**

Tides:
Hellgate - current turns SW: 0730
Battery - high water 0643
Vz Narrows - ebb starts 0816; flood starts at 1442

Max participants:
25 kayaks and one Whitehall, totaling 40 participants. Note, Whitehall
Gig will leave the event at Red Hook and not transit the Upper Bay

Schedule

0800 Launch, Sherman Creek Park on the Harlem River, foot of Dyckman
Street. (Current SB, .9 knots; Distance to first stop: 3 nm)

Participants at start: 6 kayaks

0845 stopover at foot of Park Avenue, Bronx

0855 depart foot of Park Avenue, south bound. (Current SB, .9 knots,
increasing to 4.0 through Hell Gate, distance 2.8nm)

0900 meet Safety Boats (2) at Little Hell Gate Inlet including BIG G,
(ex-NYPD 53' Launch) and Urban Divers boat (insert vessel name and
length)

Additional participants joining the event - 3 additional kayaks; 1
Whitehall rowing gig

0930 Boats to muster south of 103rd street footbridge along Randalls
Island shore prior to Hell Gate crossing

0930 initiate Hell Gate crossing, paddling along the Randall's Island
shore around the southern tip bearing east towards the Red "14" buoy at
the southern tip of Randalls Island. Keeping safe distance from "14"
buoy, turning south towards Gr "15" buoy on Queens shore.
1000 stopover at Halletts Cove, Queens

Additional participants joining the event - 12 additional kayaks

1015 depart Halletts Cove westbound via east Channel of Roosevelt
Island. Kayaks will paddle along shoreline of Roosevelt Island to avoid
security zone around power plants. (Current 4 knot ebb; distance 6nm).
Paddlers should lookout for any caution buoys marking the Verdant
underwater turbine field (though they may all have been pulled from the
water). Queens Borough Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski, leader of NYC
Parks' effort to create the citywide Water Trail effort will be joining
us here or at Red Hook.

1045 Boats to Muster north off of Hunters Point prior to crossing
Newtown Creek entrance (current 2.2 knot)

1050 Continue Southbound, total participants at this point: 23 kayaks
and 1 Whitehall rowing gig

1125 Boats to Muster in Wallabout Bay, northern area of Navy Yard
(current 3.3 knot ebb)

1145 Continue Southbound along the Brooklyn Shore, mindful of security
zones around Red Hook Marine Terminal and other facilities.

1230 Arrive Valentino Pier, foot of Coffey Street, Red Hook

NOTE: THE EAST RIVER IN THE VICINITY OF THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE WILL BE
CLOSED TO ALL TRAFFIC BETWEEN 1300 and 1400. IF THE PADDLE TOUR HAS NOT
CLEARED THIS POINT BY THIS TIME IT MAY BE CANCELLED. THIS IS WHY
SCHEDULING IS SO IMPORTANT AND WHY WE NEED LEADERSHIP ON THE WATER TO
KEEP EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE TOGETHER.

1245 - small press conference and speaking program for Host and
Participating Groups. MC Roland Lewis, PA system courtesy of the
Waterfront Museum and Showboat Barge, extension cords and electricity
courtesy of Red Hook Boaters.

1330 Depart Valentino Pier for Upper NY Bay transit.
(Current .9 ebb)

Participants in this stage of the event: 15 kayaks (Whitehall will exit
event, returning at 1410 up East River to Harlem River)

Group will paddle west from Red Hook towards Global Marine Terminal,
Jersey City, passing north of the Red "28" buoy in the middle of the
harbor (as suggested by USCG VTS). Direction and speed of current will
cause some amount of drift, possibly to the south towards the Jersey
flats (wind may also be an issue depending on the emerging weather
pattern)

PRIOR TO CROSSING main channel boats will muster north of Green "11"
buoy at north end of anchorage, leaving a wide berth out of Red Hook for
any commercial traffic exiting the Buttermilk Channel. Once across the
channel boats should follow along west side of Jersey Flats towards MOT
peninsula but south of the Red "12" buoy at the entrance to MOTBY.

1415 Boats will muster at Green "1" buoy in the cove north of Constable
Hook, (a/k/a/ "Bayonne Bay."

1430 Boats will paddle south to cross the Kill van Kull at as close to
a 90 degree angle as possible heading over to the Staten Island shore
and proceeding west to Bard Ave. for welcome provided by North Shore
Waterfront Conservancy

EVENT END.

A Conference Call to discuss this route and any other issues will be
held Friday at 1145am. Please contact Carter Craft for phone
in-instructions.

###

Erik Baard

Erik Baard

LIC Community Boathouse
http://www.licboathouse.org

Nature Calendar
http://www.naturecalendar.com

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