"Intrepid" stuck in the mud.

[Donn]

6 tugs were unable to pull her out this morning, as her prop screated too much drag in the mud.

Can you imagine the stench when gas bubbles from that mud hit the surface of the river?

link

[Hwyl]

I'm glad they chose a big tide, they'll probably need a big tide, rain in the Hudson Valley and a strong southwesterly. Should not be too many unusuall conditions.

[Thad]

She did move and stuck on the high tide. No higher tides this year, without aforesaid flood and wind.

[Joe ( Cold Spring on Hudson )]

Should have done it on that stack tide about a week ago.

[outofthenorm]

I wonder if they tried running from side to side and wiggling the tiller?

[Bob Adams]

It's a shame they can't light off the boilers and let her blow a hole in the silt. I don't imagine much was done to keep the boilers and turbines in running condition. Wouldn't that be neat though?

[Erasmus B Dragon]

Can you imagine the stench when gas bubbles from that mud hit the surface of the river?

[/URL]

Ya ah phigger itz abowt lyke bein down wyn o ewe on da greight sowth bay. Pea ewe.

[Greg Nolan]

The newspapers reported that her engines were removed a long time ago.

[Donn]

That's correct.

Local news, the other day, reported they'll try again during the next monthly high tide, and if that doesn't work, they'll restore her in place.

I wonder why they don't use some of those flotation bladders they use to bring up wrecks and such.

[Ken Hutchins]

I'm somewhat surprised that got stuck in the mud. Why didn't they check the depth before trying to move it?
When the battleship Massachusetts was moved for a major overhaul a few years ago, they pumped her tanks before the move and after pumping she was riding more than 3 feet high at high tide, she still sat on the bottom at low tide. Before the move they plotted the depths all around the ship and also the turning basin to be sure the move would happen without a hangup.

[rbgarr]

Reports say she was resting in 17 feet of mud (in places) regardless of the tide, so soundings were done. Water cannons were used to try to break the mud suction but it seems it didn't help as much as needed.

[Bob Adams]

The newspapers reported that her engines were removed a long time ago.

Oh no, they are there. I just suspect you couldn't find anyone brave enough to tend the boilers after they have been sittng this long. The newspapers don't know jack about ships.

[Donn]

Every news source I checked, including the major cable news sources, the New York Times, and other NY papers report the Intrepid no longer has her engines.

[Thorne]

I agree with Joe -- why not move her on the earlier highest tide of the season?

[Bob Adams]

I'll bet you, if you go into her belly, you will find boilers, turbines and reduction gears intact.

[Donn]

I tried, the last time I was there (2 years ago), but they wouldn't let me.

[Donn]

She's free and afloat! Headed out into the river.

[Mrleft8]

Bilge pumps working overtime?

[Donn]

They dredged almost 40,000 cubic yards of river bottom, 53 barge loads, to free her up.

Can you imagine what that stuff consists of? Talk about toxic waste!

[Phil Heffernan]

They dredged almost 40,000 cubic yards of river bottom, 53 barge loads, to free her up.

Can you imagine what that stuff consists of? Talk about toxic waste!

Actually, it's probably not that bad. The Hudson is a tidal river (a fjord, actually), and all along her length are estuaries. The tidal action has, as an attribute, an ability to re-distribute massive amounts of ocean and river silt quickly. It's probable that there was plenty of low tide clearance when the boat was first moored at the pier, but the fact she then became a 'land feature', caused silt depositing that obviously built up quickly...

The Hudson basin is remarkably clean, relative to the state she was in 30 years ago...

I even swim in it!

PH

[Donn]

Phil..I suggest you check out the bottom content of the lower Hudson, where Intrepid was. Tide and current both conspire to deposit the river's heavy wastes from Manhattan south. I expect you'll find more of GE's droppings there, than you will upriver.

[Phil Heffernan]

True enough, Manhattan and parts south are notoriously 'accident prone'...ooops, I didn't MEAN to spill that oil and have a very industrial influence on the river...I DON'T swim there

Anyway, I'm glad the Intrepid got loose for repairs...I like having her around

PH

[StevenBauer]

There was a piece in today's paper about the tug and crew from here in Portland that helped pull Intrepid out. Good work!

Steven

[qm]

When i think Husdson mud,I think of the estuaries along the Connecticut coast where I clammed as a kid---near waste deep in clean mud and a bushel of clams,each the size of an adult fist, in ten min. And then I think of one of the chief Dutch exports out of Brooklyn, including out of the now filled Wallabout and over into the Hudson, which was oysters up to 18"s long and then pickeled! QMBob

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

I think Donn's right about the sludge. The Hudson river was a dirty place 30 years ago... I did the NY state barge canal back then, and the boat had to be repainted the next spring... couldn't get the dirty stain above the waterline off.

[Phil Heffernan]

I think Donn's right about the sludge. The Hudson river was a dirty place 30 years ago... I did the NY state barge canal back then, and the boat had to be repainted the next spring... couldn't get the dirty stain above the waterline off.

The Hudson Estuary, from Manhattan to Troy NY, has undergone an amazing recovery in the last 30 years, PMJ, and it has been the result of organizations like Riverkeeper, and Scenic Hudson who kept THE HEAT ON, with eternal vigilance...It has paid off in spades, and is a model for river basins all over the US...

Yes, NY Harbor is still funky, but I don't really know the facts about below water pollution in that neck of the woods...It ain't great I'm sure...but the rest of the River sure is an example of the recovery possible when pollution is a crime, and enforced on a daily basis...

PH