Long Island Sound Hurricane debris

[tommays]

We had a great sail today out to mid sound off Stanford and got to see the start of the 2011 Vineyard distance race and hold crap there is a tree trunk or section of broken up dock every 27 feet and I am 100% serious


The vessel Whitehawk at 105 feet Under sail and at full speed was a sight to behold

[CalebD]

Tom,
Since you saw the debris in the Sound then you would believe the amount of debris that was in the Hudson last Weds. when I was out there - nucking futs.
Any mariners transiting coastal areas of New England/NY/NJ should be warned to keep a good lookout or keep well clear.

[RhythmDoctor]

Lots of big stuff floating by my marina in the Delaware River, too. Unfortunately it floats back upriver on flood tide. Plus the water is extremely turbid from all the silt washed in. Ulladh told me a powerboat damaged his water pumps on Tuesday from sucking the muck into his cooling system.

I hope to get out of the slip this weekend, but don't want to risk holing the boat on a refrigerator or other large obstacle just beneath the surface. Going to have to wait and see.

[JimsCAL]

Debris in the Sound must be working East. Saw lots when I was out Wednesday. Much less Thursday and very little Friday. That was between Hempstead Harbor and New Rochelle/Larchmont/Mamaronnect.

[smurphny]

When this kind of flooding takes place, dead trees and anything else that's not attached float out of entire watersheds. My place in the Adirondacks is a couple of miles from the Hudson but the little creek that normally trickles down the side of the mountain became a wide, raging torrent, dragging stuff that has sat for 100 years off the mountainside and downriver (across my backyard!) on its way to NYC.
This spring, the Hudson itself with hefty snow melt from an old fashioned winter and record rain, broke all records for river height, also clearing out hundreds of years of debris. We watched many huge trees float on by. The locks in the Champlain Canal were inundated with tangles of brush and trunks.
The Hudson holds onto debris for a long time, being a tidal estuary with 4' tides and changing current all the way up to Albany. The Connecticut River must have cleared plenty of stuff heading into LIS, judging from the damage in Vt. There are plenty of hull-holing tree trunks and assorted floating man-made objects to avoid this summer.

The only positive is that 100 year flooding happens only once every 100 years so next year there should be a lot less debris available to wash downriver.

[jppp]

Originally Posted by CalebD

Tom,
Since you saw the debris in the Sound then you would believe the amount of debris that was in the Hudson last Weds. when I was out there - nucking futs.

While out with mine and another family (new to sailing Boat partner) sailing the Hudson off Haverstraw on monday, friend at the helm asked when to tack. I replied, "see that 200 foot long line of trees and debris ahead"? Yes, he said. "Well, tack before we get there".

[WanderingStar]

I was out on friday and saw only small pieces. But there were several calls to CG reporting large items off Bridgeport. I don't think I'll sail at night for a while.

[Ulladh]

Day sail on the Delaware River today out of Essington; the water is less silty but still some scattered small and large pieces of debris. Constant SW 5 to 10kt breeze provided for a relaxing sail with only a few clunks against the hull.

Each tide change shifts slip trapped debris to opposite side of the fairway, but a lot less than earlier in the week.

[MobiusALilBitTwisted]

Originally Posted by smurphny

The only positive is that 100 year flooding happens only once every 100 years so next year there should be a lot less debris available to wash downriver.

Know this "NEXT year", is the start of the Next 100 years, so be careful

[RhythmDoctor]

Originally Posted by Ulladh

...Each tide change shifts slip trapped debris to opposite side of the fairway, but a lot less than earlier in the week.

We've actually had less debris in our fairway than we had after the April 17 rain storm. The tidal Delaware crested at an 11' high tide in Philly then, but we only got to 10' this time.

I also checked the historical data for Marcus Hook, Newbold, Tacony, and Burlington, and although their maximum high tides were different than Philly, they were all about a foot less than the crest they had on April 17.

I'm looking forward to heading out tomorrow. I know we'll have to keep a good watch out, but it will be nice to finally get back on the water after a 6 week layoff caused by travel (last 2 weeks of July), vacation (first two weeks of August), and nightly thunderstorms/hurricane (almost every evening since then). No wonder our bottom is so dirty!

See you out there tomorrow!