New Netherlands Museum



	OPSAIL 2000

OP-Sail 2000 visited New York Harbor during the first week of July 2000, and the Half Moon was a full participant. Our elegantly restored ship received enormous press coverage, including front page and page three placement in the New York Post, and spectacular full page (page 4) and color centerfold (pages 32 & 33) in the NY Daily News' special supplement on OP-Sail. Perhaps it was our historical connection to the Hudson River and NY State or just competent photo editorial staff people, but no ship received greater photo coverage, measured by either number of images or total square inches of photographic coverage.

Half Moon passing 28th Street and Japan's "Kaiwo Maru" (King of the Sea) on its downriver leg.

According to OP-Sail officials, over 300 ships in total participated in some way. Over 50 Class A and Class B ships were featured in the "Parade of Sail." They started from below the Verrazano Bridge and made way through NY Harbor and up the Hudson to the George Washington Bridge, where they turned around and proceeded to their respective berths throughout NY harbor. Tidal and river flow conditions forced some ships to curtail their runs up the river, but the Half Moon made it all the way up to the Washington Bridge turnaround where we saluted the crowds with swivel gun and cannon fire.

On a mild, hazy, almost foggy day, The Half Moon traveled in position 14, with Uruguay's "Capitan Miranda." We berthed on the Hudson at the well-managed 23rd street Chelsea Piers complex, where crowds swelled to welcome us. Departing midday on July 5th, we made our way upriver to Yonkers and the Hudson River Museum to open their "Boats on the Hudson" exhibition which will run through the summer of 2000.

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