Hudson River Sailing: Sailors Thrive in This Tidal Estuary

By Dennis Wild

The Hudson is More Then it Seems
Hudson River sailing is not as easy as it first seems. For one thing, the Hudson is not a true river at all, but a tidal estuary. Running from Albany to New York City, the Hudson River flows into the Atlantic Ocean like many other rivers, but because it is deeper than the body of water it empties into, the Hudson River exhibits the same tidal flow seen along Atlantic beaches. The average tidal range on the Hudson River is a four to six feet difference between low and high tides.

Water in the Hudson flows north toward Albany on an incoming tide at a little over one knot. For land lubbers, a knot is one nautical mile per hour. When the tide turns on the Hudson and begins to ebb, the current flows south a tenth or two of a knot faster than it flowed north. The Hudson River provides drainage for many creeks, rivers and streams so there's always more water heading south than north.

What this means for sailors, depending on wind for power, is that heading against the tide means subtracting about one knot from your forward motion. On a practical scale, a sailor headed south against the tide at a little over one knot in a light wind, will find himself making no progress at all. On the other hand, if he tacks and heads north on the same tide, the waters momentum will be added to his speed and he'll ghost along at a cozy two knots or so.

On the Hudson River, what really makes things interesting for sailors is the direction and force of the wind and how it reacts with the tide. Since sailboat cannot sail directly into the wind, they must always move at an angle to it. Because the Hudson runs north and south the easiest wind to deal with is out of the east of west - wind that blows across the river. Many times an east wind will bring rain with it, so when a good west wind blows on the Hudson River, sailors take full advantage of it, with an almost erotic fervor.

When tides move with the wind the surface is usually calm. When they oppose each other trouble may be brewing. Waves and chop are born when surface water, pushed along by relentless tidal forces, is attacked by powerful seasonal winds going the other way. On the Hudson River, the friction winds out of the north exert on tide from the south can be enormous. Shortly after the tide turns, a calm placid surface can develop into a tempest. Storm winds gusting out of the north for a few days turn the Hudson into a wild place, marked by ominous four-foot rolling, breaking waves.

So, the next time you're crossing the Hudson River on one of its many bridges, or picnicking along its shore, and spy a sailboat lazily cruising along, keep in mind all the forces acting on it to produce that beautiful little panorama.