Great Day on the Hudson

Our field trip to The Hudson River this past week drastically altered the way I view the environment of the Hudson. For the entire semester I have read about the pollution and PCB problems with the Hudson as well as the surrounding communities. The readings do no justice for what the actually river is. Being on the water taxi looking at what we had read about for so long really allowed me to see the reality f what the river is. Passing Bannerman’s castle and looking up at Storm King Mountain was a spectacular view. This trip on the water put me right in a place with such rich history. Going down further and seeing West Point brought me back to when I was younger visiting my Uncle while he was a teacher there. I saw the field right off the river where I would hit golf balls and even tee some up into the river. While we were on the river I imagined what it looked like through the eyes of our first president George Washington. He came up with spreading the chain from one side of the river to the other in order to keep the British ships back. One aspect of the trip that moved me was the state of the city of Newburg. There is clearly a lack of jobs in the city since the industrial era is now gone. However, there is hope for this city after meeting with the city planner. The new SUNY lease will bring many college students to the area and hopefully revive the local economy. The waterfront there is also a bright part of the city and is bringing people back. The communities along the river have had some tough years lately with their lack of jobs but they are all have bright plans for the future to bring them back to thriving communities in one of the most important parts of the country.
The best part of the trip was going to see Kaaterskill Falls. It was hard to imagine Thomas Cole hiking up the mountain with all of his painting supplies to paint this beautiful landscape. The waterfall was nothing like the paintings. It was such a beautiful place that the paintings did no justice for what it actually was. It is easy to see why Thomas Cole would paint at this spot so much. His contributions to the Hudson River School were incredible and he found a perfect place at Kaaterskill. This class and trip has allowed me to no longer take the environment for granted. The Hudson River has a lot more than just problems with PCB’s. The river may not be what is once was with all of the industries along it but it is still a beautiful and very important place in this country. It also has a very promising plan for the future to bring it back to a place where people want to visit. In the years to come, it will be interesting to see what happens to the river and how much improvement the state of New York can do.