The cool waters of the Hudson River are calling some 250 swimmers who will jump in as part of the seventh annual Hudson River Swim scheduled for July 31. The swimmers will make the one-mile river crossing from the Newburgh waterfront to Beacon Harbor in a fundraising effort for the River Pool at Beacon, Inc., a partially submerged pool that is environmentally sensitive and floats up and down with the tides.
This is the River Pool for children that opened in 2008.
All swimmers have been asked to raise at least $100 each in sponsorship support toward the operation of the floating pool at Beacon. A fleet of volunteer kayakers will escort swimmers with support from the US Coast Guard Auxiliary and other officials.
Previous swims across the Hudson raised funds for the prototype pool that is now open to the public. The partially submerged pool creates a safe area for children to wade and swim in the river, protected from boaters, currents, and entanglement in river vegetation. With a permeable floor and sides that work as a below-water fence, the twenty-foot-diameter, thirty-inch deep pool allows river water to flow through it. Floating fiberglass seats in rainbow colors supports the entire structure.
Swimmers in the 2009 swim from Newburgh to Beacon.
The floating pool was originally proposed by folk music legend and River Pool cofounder Pete Seeger as a modern version of the floating pools used in New York City a century ago, which he’d read about. Funds raised from this year’s swim will support its operation as well as help fund the development of an adult pool.
Additional information about the July 31st swim including how to volunteer as a kayaker, can all be found at www.riverpool.org
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