The Narrows

South Burlington, VT
NoLL

Approaching the Verrazano Narrows last May.

The Narrows, marked as it is by the giant bridge, is one of the more recognizable shoreline landmarks in the world. As we pass through it, I can't help being impressed by its size and significance. Each flood tide, it passes 270 billion cubic feet (7.7 billion cubic meters) of water. I also think of the cataclysmic event that formed it.

New York Harbor, as seen in a TERRA satellite image. The Narrows is shown in red, connecting Upper New York Bay to Lower New York Bay. At the end of the last ice age, the strait had not yet been formed.

What was the cataclysmic event 6,000 years ago? Below is a quote from Heartbeats in the muck: the history, sea life, and environment of New York, by John R. Waldman.

All I can say is wow. I sincerely wish that I could have been a fly on the wall to witness such cataclysmic event.