Our own Morgan Meis in The Smart Set:
Henry Hudson spent most of his time looking for the Northwest Passage. He wanted to get through all the pesky land and make it from one ocean (the Atlantic) to another (the Pacific). Such a passage doesn't really exist. To get around North America you've got to do just that — go up and around the thing altogether. But Henry didn't know that. He hoped the river was the ticket, west meets east. When you're looking for something that bad it screws your brain up. Some suspect that's what happened to Henry. The Northwest Passage drove him crazy. He pushed his crew too far. He couldn't stop and everyone else wanted to go home. Finally, the crew put Henry in a dingy with his son and a few others and set him loose in northern waters. It was mutiny. Real, honest-to-goodness mutiny. Nobody ever saw Henry Hudson again, at least that we know of. He died for the Northwest Passage and for being a stubborn bastard and for not knowing when it is time to go home.
The Hudson River is similarly possessed of an irresponsible flow. It doesn't know whether it is coming or going.
More here.
