The Wind Gods Again; Oh, Those Wind Gods

It makes sense that when the winds are really light, one breaks out the SUP board and paddles around. That's exactly what I did yesterday. Winds were very light, hardly worth it even for a light-wind sail. So, I borrowed Kirsten's SUP board and off I went, taking pictures of the sights.

There's going to be a carnival at the riverfront this Memorial Day weekend. Here's a waterside view. A good place to bring a certain six year-old.

The Hudson River Line, the same tracks as the classic New York Central Line, are very close to the water. This happens every few minutes.

I didn't have enough time to paddle to Iona Island but I enjoyed the beautiful afternoon. There's something about the Hudson Valley which is just gorgeous. I think it's technically a fjord, which means the mountains come right down to the river. This gives a certain rugged, rocky look to the area.

I saw some new water chestnut plants floating in the water. They don't grow right here at Peekskill because the water's too brackish, but just above the narrows at Bear Mountain the water is fresh enough for the plants. These are an invasive species and have changed the ecosystem of the river.

One of the worst parts of these water chestnuts are their evil children, the pods, also known as “devil's horns”. These things detach from the plants and float about, hoping to find a new place to live. Note the long spines. This is one reason why Hudson River sailors have to wear thick booties, even in the summer. I've had one of these things puncture a 5mm bootie and go right into my foot.

The funny thing about these pods is that if you pick up the water chestnut plants while they're growing naturally, their covered with fresh green pods. Each green pod can be split open to reveal a tasty nut. I once spent about ten minutes grazing on these from a canoe in Constitution Marsh. They're not bad.

I planned the trip so I'd have to fight the light winds on the way out, then on the way back I'd have the winds mostly at my back. Unfortunately the wind gods had other evil ideas. The wind direction changed 90º to ESE, which meant I had to fight it on the way back. Then it kept picking up, and picking up and picking up. By the time I was half-way back, there were whitecaps! If only I was actually windsurfing! It was a tough paddle back. I kept close to the shore where the winds were lighter, but it was still some effort.

I certainly got my exercise for the day. It's a heck of a lot better than being stuck inside at the gym.