Reopening After the COVID-19 Shutdown

[Updated: 06/05/20] The New York Media Boat team is excited that New York Governor Cuomo and New Jersey Governor Murphy allows ‘For-Hire’ vessels to start operating again on June 8th! We will be running tours for single groups, and full compliance with Covid-19 precautions is in effect.

In order to limit potential exposure to our crew and passengers, we are currently only taking single-party bookings. That means every tour will be a private charter at our temporary special rate structure [subject to change at any time]. Call us to check for availability and to make your booking!

Private Charter up to 4 passengers: $480
Private Charter up to 6 passengers: $600
Private Charter up to 9 passengers: $950

IMPORTANT:

• When at the dock, we ask that you stay 6-feet apart from other people at all times.

• Your captain will give instructions on the boarding procedure.

• All high-touch areas on the boats are sanitized before and after each charter.

• We have disinfectant hand-wipes available for your use and encourage everyone to use them.

• You must bring your own jacket. We are not allowed to provide any equipment.

NEWS RELEASE

TRENTON – Governor Phil Murphy today signed Executive Order No. 146, which allows charter fishing services and for-hire vessel activities, as well as watercraft rental businesses, to open with required social distancing measures. These businesses can open on Sunday, May 17 at 6 am.

“Reopening charter fishing services and watercraft rental businesses restores an extremely important component of our Shore economy.” said Governor Murphy. “The social distancing measures that we are putting in place will ensure that these businesses can sustain themselves while still adhering to public health guidance.”

Charter fishing services and for-hire vessels will be allowed to reopen to the public so long as they adopt policies that include:

• reduced capacity to no more than 10 people on a vessel at any one time;

• electronic or telephone reservation and payment systems;

• no make-up or open boat trips;

• social distancing measures on the vessels and in waiting and boarding areas, including demarcation and signage;

• prohibiting sharing of fishing equipment, bait, and gear;

• limiting the use of nets or gaffs to the crew;

• infection control and hygiene practices;

• providing sanitization materials to passengers and crew;

• frequent sanitization of vessel and high-touch areas;

• The crew and passengers must wear a mask while aboard the vessel;

• prohibiting food and beverage service; and

• briefing all passengers prior to embarking on social distancing, capacity limits, and hygiene requirements.

Watercraft rental businesses will be allowed to reopen so long as they adopt policies consistent with the “curb-side pickup” restrictions that apply to retail establishments pursuant to Executive Order No. 142.

Crane Delivery: Shanghai to New York

It was an impressive sight, as the four giant ship-to-shore cranes appeared on the Horizon.

On April 20th, the Heavy Load Carrier 'Zhen Hua 20' arrived in New York. She had departed Shanghai on February 15th -- that's 66 days at sea -- traveling at an average speed of just 8 knots. 

The four cranes on deck were built by ZPMC in China for the Maersk Terminal at Port Elizabeth in New Jersey.

Many modern heavy load carriers are constructed with the wheelhouse forward of the cargo area for unobstructed views. On this ship, a box is mounted on the bow for the the look-out.

A clearview screen ensures a good view in any weather. This rotary wiper is installed in the window and houses an electric motor mounted in the center, which spins a glass disk inside the circular metal frame at high speed. Rain, sleet, and sea spray get dispersed immediately upon contact by centrifugal force.

Anchor was dropped in Gravesend Bay to reconfigure the total height in order to transit under the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and the Bayonne Bridge.

With the booms lowered the total height was 213 feet. Three Moran tugboats assisted as she sailed through the Narrows into New York Harbor.

The iconic Manhattan skyline always makes for a nice backdrop!

One World Trade Center is currently the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.

Stability calculations had to be exact in order to extend the booms this far from her port side.

The recently raised Bayonne Bridge was transited at low tide, allowing some extra room to pass underneath. 

Tight quarters, but she made it!

NOAA's Take on the Hudson Humpback

The humpback whale that’s been cruising the Hudson River likely got lost after chasing baitfish, according to NOAA experts.

There’s probably not enough food upriver, and chances are the whale is ‘lost,’ said Jennifer Goebel, a spokesperson for NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region.

It doesn’t appear to be in danger, so NOAA doesn’t plan to intervene at this time.  

But that could change if the health of the animal declines, or if the location ends up posing a danger, Goebel said, acknowledging that the whale is certainly a hazard to navigation in busy New York Harbor.

The whale is likely a juvenile or a young adult, and concerns about it ‘missing its migration’ are unfounded, Goebel said.

While adult animals move to tropical breeding grounds in the winter, younger whales don’t always make the entire journey because they’re not reproductively active, and there’s less for them to eat down there.

Indeed, there’s some evidence that a number of juveniles overwinter in the mid-Atlantic, where they continue to feed and grow, Goebel said.

Even adult humpbacks have been reported to migrate later in the season, remaining off New York and New Jersey into late fall, and overwintering in the mid-Atlantic, she added.

There are 14 subtypes of humpback, and it’s not clear which one this whale belongs to. Four subpopulations are endangered, and one is threatened, but none of these live in the coastal waters off North America.

While the North Atlantic humpback population was estimated to bottom-out at 700 animals between 1865 and 1980, today NOAA estimates that there are 12,000 humpbacks swimming through its waters at any given time.

Many New Yorkers will be anxiously waiting to see if this animal finds his way back to his flourishing population.

Humpback Whale in New York Harbor

Passengers aboard our Adventure Sightseeing Tour got to see the newest attraction in New York Harbor! A whale made its way up the Hudson and was spotted off the Statue of Liberty.

We watched the whale for several hours, providing a safety zone and communicating with commercial vessels to avoid potential collision.

Encountering whales is not uncommon this time of year out in the Atlantic Ocean, but rarely does one swim into the harbor.

The whale surfaced within feet of the boat, allowing us to take truly unique photos.

It's a Humpback whale and we are searching the national database to learn more about this specific animal.

For more photos and videos check out the Day 2 and Day 3 blog posts.

ACL's Atlantic Star Arrives U.S.

The 'Atlantic Star' is the worlds largest Roll-On Roll-Off (RORO)/Container ship.

On January 9th, she arrived the U.S. on her inaugural voyage sailing under the Verrazano Bridge into New York Harbor.

Built in China in 2015, this is the first of five G4 ships commissioned by Atlantic Container Line (ACL).

With an overall length of 971 feet, she's rated at 3,800TEU + 28,900 sqm RORO + 1,300 vehicles with a crew of 16.

She will move cargo between Europe and North America with port calls in Hamburg, Goteburg, Antwerp, Liverpool, Halifax, New York, Baltimore and Norfolk.

After clearing the Bayonne Bridge she docked next to ACL's G3 'Atlantic Concert' in Port Newark.