From the source: Hudson Swim 2023

by niki@hvny.info

On August 13, 2023, Lewis Pugh began swimming the entire length of the Hudson River from its source – Lake Tear of the Clouds in Keene, NY – to where the river meets the Atlantic Ocean in New York City.

“If we want healthy oceans, we also need healthy rivers, it’s that simple,” Pugh said of his quest. 

Pugh’s four-week trek to illustrate the river as a lifeline will take him 315-miles down the Hudson, passing through the mid-Hudson Valley later this week (see schedule below). 

But his journey has not been without its obstacles: In the beginning of the swim near Black Toe Falls, dense forest terrain, turbulent rapids and patches of shallow water forced Pugh to get out of the water and run alongside the riverbank. Then, on day 10, Pugh swam until he reached the Spier Falls Dam, ran around the dam, and then swam to the Queensbury Water Department to get a tour of the plant, which processes river water into residential drinking water. 

Photo: Pugh traversed the river via an old railway track that runs along the Hudson where parts of the river were too shallow to swim near the entrance of the Hudson Gorge Wilderness.

In order to navigate the river’s channels, and avoid rocks and other debris, a safety kayaker monitors the route alongside Pugh. On the trip so far, the team has encountered black bears, a feisty garter snake, and the impact of restrictive invasive aquatic plants in his path.

On Sunday, when Pugh reached the halfway point of his swim in Mechanicsville, before jumping in the river, the crew spent time cleaning up litter on the riverbank, and noted “it was here that the river’s color shifted markedly … topped with a layer of scum.” Signs in the area instructed fishermen to catch and release any fish due to high levels of PCBs in the water. 

“The human impact on the river has started to reveal itself,” Pugh added. 

Halfway through his swim, Pugh says he is tired and even more sore, but never ready to quit.

Pugh will finish his swim on September 13 near the United Nations Headquarters in Manhattan during the 2023 Climate Week, the UN General Assembly Week and the UN Secretary General’s Climate Ambition Summit. 

Hudson Swim 2023 Schedule (subject to change)

• August 28: Troy

• August 29: Albany

• August 31: Coxsackie

• September 1-2: Catskill

• September 4: Kingston

• September 5-6: Poughkeepsie

• September 6-7: Newburgh

• September 7-8: West Point 

• September 9-10: Peekskill

• September 10-11: Hastings

• September 11-12: George Washington Bridge

• September 13: Battery Park

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