Looking for Buried Treasure - By Canoe

by Lynn Honeysett

(October 1, 2003) Hidden from view behind the nether regions of the New Rochelle City Yard, Nelstad concrete, the Armory and a car lot, is a beautiful inlet off Echo Bay, accessible only by water.

Although I live nearby, visualizing Echo Bay from Main Street was difficult. What would the shoreline look like if the East End waterfront revitalization exposed it? I decided to explore with a seafaring neighbor, by canoe.

The hidden waterfront is bordered by Five Islands Park on one side and Sutton Manor off Pelham Road on the other. Echo Bay laps the edge of Main Street properties for a good half-mile, sight unseen.

We paddled over from our inlet behind Premium Point Park, around Five Islands. Entering the New Rochelle marina, we nosed by moored boats, their halyards chattering in the breeze, and floating docks stacked with lobster cages. As we explored the backwaters of the marina, a blue heron with an impressive wingspan took off from a small rock island. Snowy white egrets gazed at us solemnly. The canoe slid by Sutton Manor, past flowering backyards and squawking mallards, to the inlet bordering Post Road. We finally arrived at a buckling seawall behind the Nelstad concrete company. We’d reached the high backside of Main Street. We turned to see a New Rochelle treasure hiding in plain sight—a view that dazzled us.

The open harbor shimmered in the sun. Distant boats rocked on moorings. Sails plied the entrance to the Sound. Small islands dotted the blue water. This luminous vista of Echo Bay was at least as deep as the Post Road view to Mamaroneck Harbor, and far more interesting. An idyllic piece of New Rochelle waterfront, overgrown by an old tangle of commerce and utilities, was hidden from the public. Imagine if that view was open to all who strolled or drove by. Imagine the positive effect on the city.

There were further surprises along the Main Street waterfront. We followed a lush, narrow inlet until we dead-ended at a gaping concrete conduit, which crossed under Post Road to Stephenson Boulevard. The underground pipeline collects rainwater run-off from at least as far inland as the high school. Rumor has it that bootleggers once ran booze from their boats through the tunnels into the heart of New Rochelle…but that’s another story, for another time.

This article is courtesy of New Rochelle City Soundings, an email newsletter written and distributed by New Rochelle residents Phyllis Ross, Mitchell Tarnopal and Lynn Honeysett. To receive the newletter, email: citysoundings@optonline.net

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