The Hudson River is awe-inspiring as it flows from high in the Adirondack Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean. The Catskill Mountains lay a breathtaking backdrop that draw attention to local history, biological diversity, and geologic uniqueness of this river. Our commitment to the Hudson River ecology and the surrounding communities drives us to inspire others to experience, fall in love with, and care for our waters. The river is our passion, sailing is our way.
Cheryl Demuth, met and befriended longtime mariners, Nick Rogers and Maija Niemisto. The trio took turns leading each other on informal Hudson River expeditions on sailboats, powerboats, canoes, and kayaks to many different beaches, lighthouses, and islands. Cheryl, Maija, and Nick hatched a plan to bring others on these adventures with them.
With their combined experience in teaching and boating, and a deep love for the Hudson River, they started collecting boats and making grand plans to introduce more people to the river…. and Adventure Boat Club began!
Meet the Crew
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With childhood summers spent on a lake in Ontario, Canada, Cheryl developed a fun-loving, adventurous spirit and an enduring love for life on the water. At 13, she drove her family’s aluminum fishing boat to town for groceries. At 14, she took a small wooden speedboat to the local dairy for ice cream. And at 15, she found and explored deserted islands, watched the stars emerge from the sky while lying in a small fishing boat in the middle of the lake, and made life-long friendships with other people living on the water.
As an adult, Cheryl turned the love of the outdoors and her own magical childhood into a small preschool program called Livingston Street Early Childhood Community located in Kingston. While working in early childhood education, she grew to understand the art of experiential adventure and open-ended play, blending curated fun and exciting experiences with special attention given to the relationship with other people, the environment, and the Hudson River Valley.
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Nick has decades of experience working on various vessels, tall ships, and boats. He loves spending days on the water sailing, repairing, troubleshooting, and restoring boats with people dedicated to science, environmentalism, and conservation. As crew on a research vessel, he enjoyed Atlantic Ocean fisheries surveys and caught skate, shark, and squid off the shore of the Atlantic Ocean.
Nick was the longest running captain of the Sloop Clearwater, with an enduring commitment to the mission and principles of Hudson River Sloop Clearwater organization. Some of his biggest accomplishments include training hundreds of people as sailing crew, rebuilding (most) of the historic wooden ship, and showing thousands of kids the beauty and excitement of sailing on the Hudson River.
As a Hudson River steward, Nick uses sailing as a teaching point for environmental action, social justice, education, and youth empowerment. His commitment to helping youth find ways to tackle, adapt, pivot, and re-imagine climate change is as important to him as the act of sailing.
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Maija grew up exploring the creek behind her house in Minnesota. Almost every day, she set out on an adventure of her own making in the wandering little stream while catching crawfish and frogs.
Feelings of freedom and the thrill of unexpected escapades were always to be found during days of exploring in the creek, and are foundational to who Maija has become as an adult. After attending High School and College in the Midwest, Finland, and Lebanon, she ran away to the real ocean in a 28-foot sailboat.
Exploring the eastern seaboard while living aboard the boat, she learned to operate, navigate, maintain, and adore sailing vessels. This led her to a job aboard the historic wood ship, the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, where she sailed and taught environmental science for over 10 years.
The Hudson River Valley caught her heart and has been home ever since. She completed a Masters of Marine Science from Stony Brook University, focusing on fish and plankton ecology of the Hudson Estuary. In 2021, she co-authored The Hudson - An Illustrated Guide to the Living River.
Maija continues to fulfill her childhood dream of embarking on thrilling expeditions on the water, occasionally seeking unusual animals, and sharing it all with others through the Adventure Boat Club.