Summer Kayaking at the Abandoned Ship Graveyard in the Arthur Kill

Pictures don't do this place justice.

The Staten Island Boat Graveyard, a marine scrapyard with over a hundred sunken or partially submerged civilian and military ships, sits in the Arthur Kill*, a vital 13-mile tidal straight between NY and NJ that's a vital feeding and nesting area for rare birds on the East Coast** - including a pair of bald eagles we saw this morning!

As far back as the 1960s, mercury from LPL chemicals*** (currently undergoing a Superfund cleanup), a massive Exxon oil spill (that killed hundreds of birds) and other raw sewage has made its way into the Arthur Kill. And every time they screw it up, nature fixes it.

Today, rare birds have returned to nest and feed. Fish, turtles and mollusks have returned. The chemicals that once impacted them have largely left the area. And on a clear morning, this place reminds that no matter how many times you and our city gets beat down, we're stronger and more beautiful than everything trying to put us down.

Shout out to fam who came out and made this trip special.

Also, shout out to the guy driving his lambourghini in the water. Yeah, there's video.

GALLERY

DID YOU GO?