Tuesday we were up before dawn to head up the East River. Although we would have loved to sleep in a bit, the tide waits for no man. The currents in the East River, that change direction about every 6 hours, top out at over 4 knots – which can make a big difference aboard a 7 knot boat! We left in time to catch a sleigh ride through the aptly named ‘Hell Gate’ and hit a top speed of over 12 knots. ROBES was flying!
The early morning sky was amazing as we made our way up the East River. This is where we both had so many memories of our days living here, Julie in Brooklyn, just a few miles across the Brooklyn Bridge, and Bob on the Upper East Side for medical school at Cornell. It was fun to see again, but as is with everything in life, much has changed. So many taller buildings sprinkle the skyline and make it such a different view than either of us remembers, the most notable of course is the absence of the World Trade Center. It’s an eerie haunting feeling to see the skyline without those two twins, the tallest way back then. Here are some pics of our ride north through Hell Gate and into Long Island Sound.
Medical College
Medical College
Swirls and twirls in Hell Gate!
At last in salt water, yayyyy! We found our way to beautiful Manhasset Bay. So dreamy here we decided to stay two nights tied to a mooring ball. Bob rowed our dinghy “Snap” into the dock so we all (including George) could take walks. They also have a wonderful water taxi service that comes right to the boat to get us and bring us back or into town, it was so convenient. Tuesday evening we took the water taxi to Louie’s to meet a college friend Bob Epstein. Louie’s has been around since 1905 and there is a reason why, the food, the views, the service, all top notch perfection. Manhasset Bay was one of those “pinch me, am I dreaming” kind of spots. For those of you who enjoyed F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, you will recognize this Bay, it is where the fictional West Egg and East Egg are set. See the map below. Bob has drawn in where Robes was happily resting in the “courtesy bay”. We will be back here one day, for sure!
