It is March 3. Time to start planning that summer cruise with the Hudson River Cruising Guide. Just about all the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy has been repaired. Marinas along the Hudson are open for business. Give any marina where you plan to stop a phone call to be sure they can take you.  The Hudson River forms a part of every Great Loop trip. For those who can’t spare the time for a Great Loop voyage, a popular substitute trip is up the Hudson to the Erie Canal. Then the Erie to the Oswego Canal, the Oswego to Lake Ontario to the Trent-Severn Waterway and the Trent-Severn to Georgian Bay in Lake Huron. Retrace your steps or cruise down Lake Huron to Lake Erie and re-enter the Erie Canal near Buffalo. Take a detour to the Finger Lakes. Or even rent a car and take the Wine Tour. The Fingerlakes wine tour, accessible from Lake Cayuga or Lake Seneca, will give you the best tasting experience east of Napa Valley and west of France.  This trip will give you just about every marine experience you can encounter but pirates, hurricanes, and salt water (except for the lower Hudson). This is one of the most popular cruises for short term guests. Most of the time you will be close to major transportation routes and within rowing distance of shore. A slightly shorter alternate trip, known locally as the Triangle Cruise, would take you up the Hudson to the Erie Canal. Then travel the Erie Canal to the Oswego Canal. From there turn east and travel to lovely Sackett’s Harbor and around Cape Vincent to the St. Lawrence River. Cruise amongst the Thousand Islands. Visit the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton, NY. Take a sharp right turn at Sorel and continue south to the Richelieu Canal and then to Lake Champlain. Then down the Champlain Canal and you are back in the Hudson. This "Triangle Cruise" contains many of the more interesting parts of the Great Loop. The Hudson River Guide includes a catalog of interesting places to visit, listings of riverside restaurants, marinas and fuel stops, and recommended anchorages. It also offers my personal opinion of the sights and tastes of a Hudson River cruise based on nearly 50 years of sailing the waterway. The Hudson River Guide gets updated annually. The latest edition of the Hudson River Guide is downloadable from Scribd (www.scribd.com). Just search for publications on Scribed by Lawrence Zeitlin.  There no charge if you have a Facebook or other social network account. If you don't just Google Scribed and you will find several free workarounds. If you find it difficult to download I will be happy to send you a PDF copy of the guide. It should be readable on any computer, tablet, or smartphone that supports PDF files. Here are the URLs to make it easier. HUDSON RIVER GUIDE 2014 (latest revision) http://www.scribd.com/doc/210312986-Hudson-River-Guide-2014 HUDSON RIVER GUIDE COMPLETE (2008 Illustrated Guide) http://www.scribd.com/doc/18683012/Huds ... e-Complete HUDSON RIVER CHARTS http://www.scribd.com/doc/18651678/Hudson-River-Charts HUDSON RIVER SCHOOL ART http://www.scribd.com/doc/18645609/Hudson-River-School-Art OTHER RELATED MATERIAL http://www.scribd.com/search?cat=google ... ce+Zeitlin Larry Z