On Saturday, June 4, 2011, the sloop Clearwater will lead a flotilla departing from Poughkeepsie, NY and transiting to Kingston, NY in the afternoon as part of the 2011 River Day Celebration. Clearwater will arrive at Kingston around 5pm and sail into the Rondout and dock at the Hudson River Maritime Museum. 

River Day 2011, the third annual river-wide celebration, will bring together river communities to celebrate the Hudson’s rich history and the most important legacy of all, the ecosystem that is the Hudson River Estuary. In 2009, the first “River Day” was held as part of the region-wide Quadricentennial celebrations, and in 2010 several organizations from New York to Albany collaborated to make the event an annual tradition. This year, River Day continues to grow as a community -based event.

The public is invited to sail with Hudson heritage sloop Clearwater to celebrate America’s most famous and important waterway. All boats, including sailboats, canoes, kayaks, tall ships, and paddlers of all descriptions are invited to join the flotilla for a River Day Celebration Sail. The public is also invited to come down to the shore of the Hudson River and see Clearwater and the other beautiful vessels as the flotilla makes its way to Kingston, or meet the flotilla in Kingston and join the dockside celebration at the Hudson River Maritime Museum.

The Hudson River Maritime Museum will be open that day from 11:00 AM – 7:00 PM and offer deck tours on Half Moon, Perriauger Mercury Revolutionary Era presentations, Lark boat tours to Rondout Lighthouse, and the “Tugboat Mathilda Clothesline Art Competition,” as well as music and maritime themed children’s activities. Events taking place in the museum courtyard are free. Museum and some boat activities have fees associated. 

WHEN: Saturday, June 4, 2011 – the sloop Clearwater will lead a flotilla departing from Poughkeepsie at 1pm to arrive in Kingston around 5pm, where she will sail into the Rondout and dock at the Hudson River Maritime Museum. 

WHERE:  Hudson River and Kingston Waterfront – events to take place at the docks at Hudson River Maritime Museum.

River Day 2011 is sponsored by the NYSDEC Hudson River Estuary Program in cooperation with Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Hudson Valley Greenway, Riverkeeper, Scenic Hudson, Hudson River Boat and Yacht Club, Hudson River Maritime Museum and others. River Day 2011 offers a variety of events that span the length of the Hudson River.