About Hudson Crossing
Natural Resources in and around Hudson Crossing Park
The Champlain Canal Byway corridor is intimately entwined with a major portion of the upper Hudson River, a National Heritage River with a rich and colorful history and environment. Originating in Lake Tear of the Clouds high in the Adirondacks near Mt. Marcy, the wondrous Hudson River, some 90 million years old, flows southerly some 300 miles through 14 New York State counties, 7 Locks of the NYS Barge Canal System and over 15 dams and 3 waterfalls before reaching New York Harbor! Over 25 islands grace the upper Hudson between Ft. Edward and Waterford, each with its own special ambiance from historic Roger's Island in Ft. Edward to Peebles Island State Park in Waterford. Some 64 miles of the Champlain Canal Byway from Waterford to Whitehall pass through Saratoga and Washington counties adjacent to some of the most spectacular riverine environment the magnificent Hudson has to offer!
Geologically nestled within the Hudson-Champlain lowlands which were formed from glacial lake deposition which occurred over 10,000 years ago, the Champlain Canal Byway corridor exhibits a number of unique geologic features. Highly deformed, over-thrusted shale formations from the east provide the setting for numerous bedrock outcrops known as the Rocky Tucks with their scenic bluffs and heights which overlook both shores of the upper Hudson River. One of the most notable, Stark's Knob, a pillow basalt prominence located on the western shore of the Hudson in Northumberland gained special historical significance when Colonial forces occupied the area to prevent a northerly retreat by General Burgoyne's Army during the American Revolutionary War. Stark's Knob represents 1 of only 2 such unique geologic formations in the eastern U. S and is an important destination for many students of geologic academia each year . To the south, Bemis Heights' scenic bluffs overlooking the Hudson in Stillwater provided the setting for the Battle of Saratoga, the single most significant and pivotal military engagement of the American Revolution. The Battle's location, and probably its outcome were determined by the location of the over-thrusted bedrock and resultant "heights" in close proximity to the Hudson River which afforded the American forces a strategic military advantage over the British army. This 2500 acre area with its breathtaking views of the Hudson River was acquired in 1938 by the National Park Service and now comprises the Saratoga National Historical Park which includes a 9 mile tour road which interprets "The Turning Point of the American Revolution".
The Hudson River lowlands, and surrounding bluffs and uplands of the Champlain Canal Byway corridor are located at the foothills of the Adirondacks and is still largely rural in nature. Land use within the corridor are largely agricultural and rural residential except for the historic riverside communities of Waterford, Mechanicville, Stillwater, Victory and Schuylerville. The birch, beech, maple northern hardwood forests of the corridor are accentuated by a "working" agricultural/ open space landscape. Soils of the area consist of clay, silt and sand deposits laid down by the waters of Lake Albany some 10,000 years ago.
The fish and wildlife resources of the upper Hudson Champlain Canal corridor are many. The upper Hudson River Corridor supports many species of cool water freshwater fish which include smallmouth and largemouth bass, chain pickerel, northern pike, brown bullhead, yellow perch and various pan fish. Between 1976 and 1995 the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation banned all fishing on the 40 mile section of the upper Hudson River between the Troy Dam and Hudson Falls due to PCB contamination. This fishing ban was lifted in 1995 and was replaced with a "catch and release only" fishing program for this area which has gained great popularity and has allowed this tremendous resource to be utilized for sport fishing. An abundance of wildlife is also found within the corridor area including white-tailed deer, fox, coyotes, cottontail rabbits, gray and red squirrels, chipmunks, wild turkeys, ruffed grouse, and even an occasional black bear! Of considerable note, is the use of the Champlain Canal corridor by various migratory bird species during the spring and fall. The Lake Champlain and Hudson River valleys provide a unique north/south migratory bird route from eastern Canada south along the eastern flyway of the United States for many species of waterfowl, songbirds, as well as migrating birds of prey. Regular sightings of American bald eagles and ospreys occur within the ri9ver corridor as do impressive migrational displays of thousands of Canada and snow geese each spring and fall. The corridor can truly be said to be a "birder's paradise"!
The upper Hudson River comprising the Champlain Canal corridor was an important native American transportation route from the south to the Lake George/Lake Champlain area and northward to Canada. The Saratoga Trail, as it was known, entered the Hudson River from Fish Creek at Schuylerville and headed north. There were two "carries" on this route, the "Little Carrying Place" at Fort Miller and the "Great Carrying Place" which started at Ft. Edward with one trail heading west to Lake George, while the eastern route led to Ft. Ann and northward to lake Champlain and on to Montreal. Interpretive signage of native American use of the corridor area would be of great interest to many!
Henry Hudson was the first white man to discover the Hudson River, giving it his name as he sailed up it in 1609 to an area he called Halfmoon Point place where "riffs" at the confluence of the Mohawk and Hudson Rivers ended his journey. There the establishment of Ft. Orange occurred, which later became known as Albany.
Historical water quality of the Hudson River was pristine. The upper Hudson River watershed north of Waterford consists of over 4500 square miles of mostly heavily forested drainage area with many tributaries. With the arrival of early European settlers in the early 1600's, the clearing of land for wood products and agricultural endeavors occurred which increased runoff and sedimentation to the Hudson River. Most of the early white settlers used waterways for communication and transportation, as few roads were available. Communities and mills were sited along the Hudson's banks and the water quality deteriorated. Several abandoned paper mills currently exist along the Champlain Canal which are prime candidates for commercial "Brownfield" re-development projects. Recognizing the importance of the Hudson River for transportation, New York State authorized the construction of the Champlain Canal in 1817, completing it in 1823.
The canal opened a water highway from the lower Hudson River northward from Waterford to lake Champlain and Montreal. It provides one of our nation's most important water transportation links between the Atlantic Ocean, the Great Lakes and Canada. Today, however, the Champlain Canal is in dire need of maintenance dredging to maintain its preeminence as a major commercial transportation route. During a 30-year period ending in 1977, it is estimated that up to 1.1 million pounds of PCBs were discharged into the Hudson River from two General Electric Company (GE) capacitor manufacturing plants located in Fort Edward and Hudson Falls. Discharged PCBs adhered to the sediments in the bottom of the river and accumulated in large areas behind the Fort Edward Dam. When the dam was removed in 1973 due to its deteriorating condition, PCB contaminated sediments were released downstream. The Hudson River from to Hudson Falls the New York Battery has been identified by the USEPA as a federal Superfund site and has been the subject of a remediation review by EPA in the early 1980's. More recently, a federal Superfund Reassessment has been conducted which has recommended the remedial dredging of 40 miles of PCB contaminated "hotspots" in the upper Hudson River.
Federal Water Pollution Control Act funding of the early 1970's which was made available to communities combined with more stringent industrial discharge permit standards have provided great improvements to the water quality of the upper Hudson and the nearby Champlain Canal Byway corridor. Today, except for PCB contamination, one might say that the water quality of the upper Hudson River is the best it has been in over 50 years!