Wild New York: Discovering Jamaica Bay
This was my first season as a member of the Sebago Canoe Club, and what a marvel it has been. The water, the sport, the camaraderie — all have been a joy. Most of all, I’ve been awed by the feeling of wild nature within the city limits of the largest metropolis in the United States. Paddling through quiet channels surrounded by birdsong and salt air, while the skyline of New York glimmers in the distance, feels nothing short of magical.
A City of Water and “Blue Therapy”
Years ago, after two decades in the city, I spent a weekend aboard a friend’s motor yacht, circling Manhattan and beyond. Seeing New York from the water was a revelation — this is a marine city as much as a concrete one. Around that time, I learned about “blue therapy,” the idea that proximity to water can calm the mind and reduce stress. Sebago has made that idea real for me. From its docks on Paerdegat Basin, a tributary of Jamaica Bay, the club gives hundreds of New Yorkers a way to reconnect with the natural world in its raw, aquatic form.
Jamaica Bay: An Urban Estuary
Jamaica Bay is one of the largest estuarine systems on the Atlantic Coast, encompassing more than 20,000 acres of open water, salt marsh, and islands. Much of it lies within the Gateway National Recreation Area, alongside Shirley Chisholm State Park and several protected wildlife refuges. It serves as a crucial stopover on the Atlantic Flyway, supporting more than 300 bird species — from ospreys, egrets, and herons to peregrine falcons and bald eagles.
Beneath the surface, the bay teems with marine life: blue crabs, horseshoe crabs, ribbed mussels, and countless fish that sustain its avian hunters. Even harbor seals are now regular winter visitors, often seen resting on sandbars or popping their heads above the water near paddlers.
Nature’s Power and the City’s Edge
Out on the bay, the wind, tide, and current quickly remind you Nature is in charge. Yet the setting is distinctly urban. The horizon frames Coney Island’s Ferris wheel, Rockaway Beach, and the flight paths of JFK Airport. Along the edges lie traces of history: reclaimed landfills turned parkland, remnants of industrial docks, and the evocatively named Dead Horse and Bottle Beaches.
Encounters with the Wild
My greatest pleasure this season has been the wildlife sightings: a pair of bald eagles perched on Canarsie Pol, a harbor seal basking on Russell Bar, and another seal’s head surfacing just yards from my kayak one late afternoon. Each encounter feels like a gift, a reminder that wild nature persists here, not in spite of the city but alongside it.
A Shared Experience
I didn’t carry a camera on my outings this summer, but many of my fellow Sebago members did. Their photographs capture the wonder of what we share out there, a living, breathing ecosystem at the edge of the city, a few paddle strokes away from the familiar and a world apart.
— Rick Bruner
photographs by Joshua Malbin