Battery Park City offers residents unparalleled recreational activities on the waterfront

Four ways to celebrate the Hudson-and one for soaring above it

With its riverfront location and extensive public grounds, Battery Park City offers residents unparalleled recreational activities on the waterfront, including fishing, kayaking, and sailing. For those in search of an activity that’s more unexpected for the setting, the Trapeze School New York offers the chance to be completely airborne.

Amateur and accomplished anglers will find a home in Robert F. Wagner, Jr. Park, where the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy offers fishing lessons on select days. Further upstream, and closer to Riverhouse at Pier 46 , the Hudson River Park Trust’s “Big City Fishing” program provides lessons and all the necessary equipment Tuesday through Sunday in the summer. The program emphasizes fishing skills while also teaching participants about the ecology of the Hudson. It is open to adults as well as children.

Founded in 1995, the Manhattan Kayak Company is the city’s most established kayaking program, offering short, intermediate, and advanced tours, and paddling all the way to the Statue of Liberty. Based out of Pier 63 just north of Chelsea Piers, Manhattan Kayak also offers specialty excursios, such as the cardio fit tour and the “sushi tour” which ends at a sushi bar at the Mitsua Mall, a Japanese enclave in Edgewater, New Jersey.

If kayaks are too small for you, try the Manhattan Sailing Club, which was founded in 1987 to bring sailing back to New York Harbor after a 60-year absence. The affiliated Trapeze School New York is a good place to start. Offering four levels of classes, the school’s highly trained and motivated instructors and proven safety record can convince even the most grounded students to take a leap. Beware, however. Wearing tights is encouraged.

- Alan G. Brake