Canoeing the Gowanus Canal

Brooklyn's Gowanus Canal has long been a dumping ground for the city, taking waste water, chemicals, oil, garbage, and, supposedly, Mafia refuse. ("The only canal in the world that is 90 percent guns," according to Jonathan Lethem.) The past few years have seen it cleaned up significantly, though it still has a long way to go --- it's currently a candidate for Superfund designation. Much of its improvement is owed to the dedication of the Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club, which provides free boats to anyone who wishes to paddle the 2-mile stretch of "water."

Alone on the canal on a sunny Saturday, we saw an X-ray of New York, the industrial skeleton on which on the modern metropolis was built. It's a fascinating perspective on the city, even if the sights (and smells) are less than lovely. And yes, we asked: people have indeed fallen in while canoeing, but no, none of them emerged with super powers.