Ferries, Tugs and Tall Ships / Along the Western Shore

Ferries, Tugs and Tall Ships, also, Along the Western Shore. . , Left: , Ferries, Tugs and Tall Ships , Not so long ago, New Yorkers travelling overseas left from passenger terminals located on Manhattan’s west side piers. Steamship lines owned their own terminals, and the arrivals and departures of great ships were occasions for celebration. Although passenger ship traffic through the Port of New York has dwindled to a trickle since its heyday, the city’s waters still play host to a colorful parade of vessels, from stately tall ships to powerful tugboats towing strings of barges laden with everything from gasoline to garbage. Ferries ply back and forth between Manhattan and Liberty, Ellis and Staten Island; Circle Line excursion boats carry cargos of sight-seeing tourists and gleaming cruise liners come and go with staterooms full of vacationers; and fleets of sleek pleasure craft take to the water in warm weather., Right: , Along the Western Shore , Once a gritty, industrial landscape, New Jersey’s Hudson River shoreline has been transformed in recent years. The development of Liberty State Park in Jersey City (home to the Liberty Science Center, directly across from Battery Park City) and several new high-rise office towers has dramatically reshaped the skyline. Most of the new buildings are office complexes, giving the region a corporate character. Others are residential developments with breath-taking views of Manhattan. One lingering legacy of the area’s manufacturing past is the enormous Colgate clock, 50 ft. in diameter with its minute hand alone weighing 2,200 lbs. The clock is all that remains of a once-bustling plant, but long-time New Yorkers still recall the smell of soap wafting across the river.