Where do they go?
Sunken lightship 84 in Erie Basin.
Some of the areas included are the west side of Manhattan's new working waterfront, the Battery, container ports at Atlantic Basin, the new Passenger Ship Terminal at Red Hook, Robbins Reef Lighthouse, Military Ocean and Global Marine Terminals, the National Lighthouse Museum Staten Island, tug years in Kill Van Kull and Erie Basin, the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Atlantic Basin and more. The picture at the right is but one example.
Currently we have three main tours:
North River (AKA Hudson River) from the Statue of Liberty to the Passenger Ship Terminals, including the only working dry-dock facility on the river (Union Drydock), NY Waterway's home port, and the "new" working waterfront of dinner and excursion boats, megayacht marinas and passenger ferries.
Brooklyn Waterfront - Includes the container and break bulk ports at Atlantic Basin, the new Passenger Ship Terminal at Red Hook, the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Atlantic Basin and Erie Basin. You see graving docks, a sunken lightship, and much more - including the place where most of the area's big fireworks shows are installed on barges.
The Staten Island and New Jersey tour goes by Military Ocean and Global Marine Terminals, with another large graving dock and the place where ro-ro ships unload cars from the Eastern Rim. This tour also visits Robbins Reef Lighthouse, tug years in Kill Van Kull and the home port for the Staten Island Ferry.
However, sometimes we combine parts of two or more tours together during the summer season. Future tours being considered include:
Up the Creeks (Newtown Creek, Gownaus Canal and the Morris Canal turning basin).
Rails to Water (where rails meet the waterfront - and continue on barges over the water).
Harbor Lighthouses (and you may be surprised to know there are many! Did you know the Statue of Liberty was once an active lighthouse?)
These tours as well as others will require faster boats as well as (in some cases) smaller boats - so they will cost a bit more - but they will be worth every penny!
We may also consider tours for special events such as the Annual Tugboat Race and Pushing Contest, now in Staten Island hosted by the National Lighthouse Museum and similar tours.