Down at the Rip Van Winkle Bridge

As this blog evolves, I sometimes try to show what’s up in those hills, as seen from the hills like this one in March 2017, instead of

what you see in instances when then light is unfavorable.

Olana is the hilltop mansion above the Rip Van Winkle Bridge, built by an artist whose commercial success allowed him to travel, become inspired by the 19th century “near east,” and scrap his plans to engage architect Richard Morris Hunt and instead design and build a neo-Persian palace on the site where once he painted with his mentor Thomas Cole, whose home was just across the bridge in Catskill.

The photo below looks down the Hudson Valley toward the south.

This looks along the south side of the house facing west and the town of Catskill.  Kaaterskill Falls is lost somewhere below the front of the jet trail.

Looking out a south side window, there’s a northbound tug/barge just barely visible.

Directly behind me are these treasures.  Mark Twain–see his own house here— once stood on that stage and discoursed on all things wise, hilarious, exotic,  and jaundiced.

I used the word “treasure” above because here’s a closer-up of that unit approaching from the south–it’s Pearl Coast with a cement barge.

And now a more focused view along the south side and toward the Rip . . . Bridge, see the tug/barge there southbound?

 

It’s Treasure Coast, with another cement barge.  I know there’s a work of Church’s with a steam ship on it, but it’s so far eluded me.

Olana is just one place up on the hilly banks, and so other many places along the river I hope to visit . . . one of these months or years.

All photos by Will Van Dorp, who has posted Hudson Valley photos here and here, and in many other places as well.

As to seeing Olana from the river, here’s what morning light does,

and here below, late afternoon.

Go visit Olana some time in 2018, and while you’re there, visit the Cole home across the river..

 

Random Tugs 171

Continuing with a record of random towing vessels encountered along the “go west” route, let’s pick up with HR Pike, another low air draft tug formerly associated with the GE cleanup.

I’m not sure what the cargo here is, but this vessel lacks any hint of sheer.

Here’s what I believe is a fleet mate of HR Otter . . . Helen Laraway.

See how much has changed about the operation in Coeymans, if my claim of 18 months ago here was correct then.

Otter and Laraway both operate out of the port of Coeymans, a former brickyard that has become a booming hub for staging shipment of construction materials. Pun intended.

I’m guessing that it won’t be long before Otter gets painted to match Pike, its older sibling by one year.

Just north of the port of Coeymans Coral Coast is standing by at the loading facility for the quarries at Ravenna.

 

And in this Hudson River shoreline setting that bears resemblance to a jungle, south of Albany, it’s a USACE spud barge and

pushboat Sentinel II.  Sorry I don’t know any more about its project.

The banks up north of Catskill are magical, as seen here with morning fog and Olana, the Persian palace of Frederic Church.

 

 

All photos by Will Van Dorp, who hopes to get back this way again later this summer.

Sixth Boro Random Delights

aka RD.  Like Grande Marocco leaving port.

Guesses?

With its mixed cargo, the vessel has crossed over to West Africa and is nearing its return to the sixth boro.

Guesses?

Quenames was southbound for the Kills on Friday, and then

??

a few days later, not far from this hill,

Well, here’s one answer.

coming up this river valley along with the rain,

Quenames was headed up in the direction of Albany.

Guess the hill

or house

or builder?

Starting answer: Olana    . . .  on Church Hill . . . certainly one of the more unusual places sending water and silt down to the sixth boro.

All fotos by Will Van Dorp.

Unrelated:  If you’re free tomorrow evening, consider going to hear Carolina Salguero and Jessica DuLong speak on the mariners’ response to 9/11.