Two boat clubs and a marina currently operate along the isolated road. They count among their neighbors the Meadowlands Sports Complex and the Williams natural gas facility. A quick drive takes one along a road worn down to bleached cobble stones surrounded by high reeds, and then along lots packed with wood and fiberglass watercraft. Boaters flock here from Bergen and Hudson counties. Some retirees spend hours each day working on their craft. Others choose to drive down after work and unwind by taking the cabin cruiser out for a spin or swapping stories with buddies over a beer.

"That’s the beauty of having a boat up in this area, is that you can go out after work instead of driving all the way down the shore or someplace else," said Bayonne resident Bruce Lamparello, treasurer of the Majestic Boat Club. The Majestic is the oldest boat club on the Hackensack. The 15-year club member got his first boat at age 10. He described the allure of boating as a release from everyday stresses.

"For me, it’s that you have time away, and that you can get your boat in shape, and you’re commanding a vessel," he said. "You can take care of things, and it’s just a mental release."

Sid Winand, commodore of the Snipe Boat Club, said a lot of his members enjoy making the hour-long trip out to New York harbor for fishing and sightseeing. Sandy Hook is about an hour and a half away by boat, about the same time one would spend in the car. A boat ride, though, offers better views.

"It’s just relaxing," the East Rutherford resident said. "It gets in your blood."

On the Hackensack these days, the maritime spirit might be the only thing to get in your blood. It wasn’t, however, always so. Majestic club president Frank D’Allesandro has been boating on the Hackensack for more than 40 years. The Jersey City resident said decades ago, the river was more polluted and choked with debris.

"In those days, the ships in the harbor, they would dump all the oil," he said. "I remember the minute you put the boat in the water, you had a second waterline. All that black oil, and God forbid should your lines be a little saggy, you’d get it all over your boat."

Winand, a 20-year Snipe member, agreed the water quality is improving, adding ducks, crabs and fish are making a comeback.

"During the winter we have breakfast once a month that’s open to the public, and people can’t believe it," he said. "They say, ‘Wow, this is Carlstadt?’ I say, ‘Yeah, you’d almost think you were down on the Jersey Shore if you didn’t look the other way.’"

However, these boaters are aware of another change in the winds. The Barge Club, a notorious local bar and restaurant, closed and was recently demolished. The New Jersey Meadowlands Commission (NJMC), which purchased the property, hopes to build a park there and maybe a public marina.

On the other end of the stretch sits the Meadowlands Golf Center and Marina, a jaunty-looking complex featuring a restaurant, golf driving range, boat ramp and slips. Though well-loved by many amateur mariners, the property owner, Tomu Corp., hopes to build an 840-unit apartment complex in its place. While its suit is pending, with East Rutherford over affordable housing, though, the business and its patrons soldier on.

Its docks, which business owner Jim Winand reportedly rents out at a lower rate than other slips on the Hackensack, are lined with an array of craft in vastly different condition. New powerboats float comfortably at the far end of the dock. Nearer to shore, several large, old wooden craft slowly rot away, coming to rest daily in the pungent mud of the riverbed at low tide. There’s also a houseboat or two. A 50-foot catamaran is being restored by its owner who plans to sail it to Bermuda some day.

Along with the now-defunct Barge Club, the marina has been a popular nightspot for the boating crowd, hosting live bands or a DJ several nights a week.

"It’s busy down here," said James Winand, Jim’s son, who works at the restaurant. "We’re not as famous as the Barge, but we’ve got a lot of the barge’s clientele now."

Tomu’s plans, though, have caused the Winands to give up on long-term plans for the site. Dreams of an improved driving range are now on the back burner.

"It’s affected us big time," James said. "The morale around here, everybody’s worried about how long they’re going to have a job here."

James added the family has no idea what is going on with Tomu.

"He tries to get as much information as he can, but it’s very difficult," he said of his father. "We’d hate to see this place gone."

For the two private boat clubs sandwiched between the future park and the marina, the changes are a little unsettling.

The Majestic Boat Club, which has called Carlstadt home since 1916, is wary of the proposed 900 plus apartments, but unwilling to give up its longtime spot.

"We’re going to be doing what we have been doing," D’Allesandro said. "The Meadowlands Commission claims that we’re going to be part of their park, so we’re happy with that. I think it’s a good move what they did, to keep housing away from the river."

D’Allesandro added the club had been approached by Tomu in the past about selling, but refused.

Next door, the Snipe Boat Club, which moved to Carlstadt from Secaucus in 1965, was skeptical about Tomu’s prospects.

"I’ll believe it when I see it," said Snipe commodore Winand. "I really don’t know if it’s going to be finished or not, but considering the traffic is going to be lots worse because of Xanadu, I think it’s going to be small peanuts compared to that."

James Winand worries public boating opportunities could dry up if the Tomu towers go up and the marina comes down.

River Barge Park is slated to include terraced waterfront promenades, public boat ramps, and slips with 50 spots for motorized and non-motorized boats, but he noted it would be much smaller than the restaurant’s facilities.

"There’ll be two docks there compared to six or seven docks here, and (boating is) going to go down big time," he said.

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