Sailing Off the Big Apple

Classic Harbor Line’s popular architecture boat tours, offered in collaboration with the AIANY (American Institute of Architects, New York Chapter), typically set sail at Chelsea Piers, continue south to New York Harbor, with a close swing by the Statue of Liberty, then pass underneath the bridges on the East and Harlem Rivers on its way north, travel through the Spuyten Duyvil Bridge at the top of Manhattan, and then sail back down the Hudson River to the home port at Chelsea Piers. Learning about the infrastructure of the city while enjoying light snacks and a beverage aboard a well-appointed yacht is an appealing way to spend an afternoon. The tour offers excellent views of the city's bridges and skyline. On the July 31 sail, the AIANY Bridge, Architecture & Infrastructure Tour, architectural historian John Kriskiewicz delivered the narration. He told stories of bridge builders and engineers, the history of the piers, the origins of the Port Authority, the importance ...

When Domino Park opened to the public this summer, the new park on the Brooklyn waterfront also revealed a long section of the shoreline that had been inaccessible to the public for the past 160 years. The waterfront at Domino Park, Williamsburg, Brooklyn On the banks of the East River in Williamsburg near Kent and South 4th streets, this area of the waterfront was from the early days easily accessible by ship, beginning with the first Dutch explorers. In 1856 F. C. Havemeyer selected the site for a refinery. View from the elevated walkway, Domino Park. Later known as Domino Sugar Refinery, the company employed thousands of European immigrants, and later Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, and African Americans. Converting sugar from a raw to a refined state involves hard labor, beginning with the work of the longshoremen who unloaded the ships. In 2014, the site served as an installation piece by artist Kara Walker whose massive sphinx with African features and nearby attendant...

Sailing Off the Big Apple explores New York City by water, discovering and rediscovering the city’s historic waterways, shoreline developments, and rich maritime culture. Where its sister site Walking Off the Big Apple strolls the streets on foot, this site wanders down to the shoreline and gets on a boat. A motorboat and a sailboat pass like ships in the night during sunny daylight in the East River.  At first, we’ll mostly travel by ferry. The city’s expanding and affordable ferry service is increasingly opening new ways to experience New York City both for residents and visitors. Riding the ferry is a great way to keep up with the transformation of the waterfront and explore unfamiliar neighborhoods. View of Midtown East from the NYC Ferry Over the past few years, many of the city’s old working piers and industrial waterfronts have been repurposed for recreational purposes, transformed into new parks and spaces for entertainment. Where once dockworkers a...