Today, with the support of Parky 1, Parky 2 and Parky 3, I swam across the Hudson River from the city of Newburgh to the town of Beacon. Newburgh and Beacon are not quite halfway up the Hudson River if you’re traveling from New York City to Albany, the state capital. The river is a mile wide there, and it flows in both directions, because the Hudson River is a tidal estuary. The swimming officials scheduled the event so that when we dove off the docks on the Newburgh side, the current was headed south, downstream. But by the time we got over to the Beacon side, the current was flowing north, as the tide was pushing back in.
I swam this event as part of my summer fund raiser for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. If you’d like to donate (and I hope you will!), click here:
So here’s the story in pictures!
Rrrrrrrring! goes the alarm at 8:00 a.m. Unlike all my other open water events, which take place at dawn, today’s swim will be in the middle of the day, because that’s when the tide changes the direction the river is flowing in. We won’t have to worry about being swept out to sea!
As usual, the three Parkys are already up and ready for an outing! And as usual, my Parkinson’s meds haven’t completely kicked in, so I’m as blurry as this picture!
Here the three Parkys and I are sitting on the shore on the Newburgh side. Yes, I’ll swim all the way across the river to Beacon!
The event officials tell everyone that once they get in the water, they should swim towards the church steeple on the Beacon side. Once we get over there, we’ll see a tiny harbor with a dock marked by a large yellow flag. That’s the finish line.
Spoiler alert: Once you get in the water the church steeple disappears from view. People start swimming in all directions.
Fortunately, a flotilla of kayaks accompanies us and herds wayward swimmers (e.g., me) to switch direction and head for the finish line.
The river is full of water fowl, too. I added this picture because I swallowed a lot of water during the swim and it tasted foul.
A little stretching to loosen up my shoulder, which I injured during a previous race in July.
For today’s event, the official swim caps are just a riot of colors!
We head out onto the docks. You can see that I’m carrying styrofoam pull buoys, which I can use since this is not an official race, and because I think it will make my stroke smoother and not aggravate my shoulder. It means, however, that I won’t be able to kick at all – just use my arms.
Here are my pull buoys. You hold them between your thighs.
Everyone – kayak escorts and swimmers alike – waits by or on the docks for the event officials to verify that the outgoing current is finally slowing down. And then…we jump in the water and swim like mad!
Here I am on the Beacon side! It was a delightful swim, even though at one point I swam way off course and one of the kayakers had to stop me and make me adjust the direction I was swimming in!
With so many dripping wet swimmers milling around the finish area, the ground gets rather muddy…
But the Parkys and I find a grassy spot and discuss where we’ll have lunch.
Our favorite place in Beacon is the Beacon Falls Cafe. Their iced coffee is superb!
On the way home, we stop at a scenic overlook in the Hudson Valley. Henry Hudson actually sailed his ship up to Newburgh in 1609, and the town held an important role during the Revolutionary War, when it served for about a year and a half as the headquarters for the Continental Army.
Today, most of the Hudson Valley remains bucolic and scenic…and a great place to swim an open water mile!
Reminder! If you’d like to contribute to my Team Fox page, click here!
And if you’d like to buy your very own Parky the Raccoon, click here! All profits go directly to the World Parkinson Congress Travel Grants Fund, which helps bring junior researchers, junior clinicians and people living with Parkinson’s to the Congress.
And how did I end up with three Parkys? Click here!
Congratulations on your swim events!! The scenery where you live is beautiful!