Onward to Oswego

Local antiques proprietress willing, er ... anxious to talk politics

ST JOHNSVILLE, NY    With an expected two-day wait, we soaked up the offerings of the town deemed to have the best drinking water - 19 years ago. We never would have known about it if it didn't have a municipal marina and campground. 

Bakery in St Johnsville - as good as it gets

Pump out: the dirty reality of boat life

Fortunately, someone realized the value of boaters, for needs and the necessities of life.

Leaving St Johnsville

By now we were veterans of managing the unexpected, and it came as no surprise when we received a notification from the canal authority that the locks west would be opening at noon - this day! We scurried back to the boats and cast off.

Traveling west we passed under one of the guard gates which had been closed during the heavy rains in order to help control the excess water and preserve the locks. Our experience in the last three days gave deeper appreciation of their importance. 

The canal is extremely well-maintained, with buoys marking the navigable channel, copious distance markers, canal boats with fresh paint, as are the buildings at the locks. Lawns are mowed and trimmed.  They welcome visitors, fishermen, picnickkers, and even campers in some locations. I There's even a 365 mile bike path running the entire length from Buffalo to Albany. It's a huge resource  for the State of New York, and was recently named a National Heritage Corridor. Today the canal is used primarily by recreational boaters, who pay a use fee. (Except this year it's free to mark the 200th anniversary.) Could those fees possibly cover the expenses? 

No. But its historic importance speaks for itself.

Approaching lock 17, boats enter via a lift gate instead of the usual swinging doors called mitre gates.



Lock 17 has a lift of 40.5 feet, the highest on the canal and one of the highest in the world.

This was the last lock of the day and we stopped in the town of Little Falls for the night. Little Falls is more populous and prosperous than St Johnsville. But the beautiful old mills no longer sound with the hum of machinery. They are apartments and antique centers. 

Masonic Hall 

Real estate prices tell the story. The Masonic Hall sold in May for $350,000.

And then there's the story of the blue house, shown on the left. This row of houses sits at the base of a limestone cliff, one of many found throughout this region (Read John McPhee's book: Basin and Range). Sound cozy? Hmm. One night a bit of the cliff gave way sending a large amount of rock crashing through the blue's roof and continuing right on down to the basement, killing an unsuspecting occupant who was sleeping at the time. Oops!



MOXIE MOMENT: She took a liking to this redneck pickup.


                                   Navigating the canal route on the scenic Mohawk River

Back on the water. Today's canal route is not that of the original Erie Canal completed in 1825. The first waterway was such a success on many fronts that the 40 feet wide x 4 feet deep dimensions couldn't accommodate the high demands of traffic, and the canal was enlarged several times. In 1903 it was determined that a barge canal would be built using watercourses along the route. Hence, the use of the Mohawk River from Troy to Rome.




From Rome to Oneida Lake, the canal follows the dug "landline" of the original Erie. The is where the digging of the canal began 200 years ago. Today, it's a long straight stretch.

 Once again, the canal route took advantage of Lake Oneida, a 20-mile long stretch. What a change! Waves of the freshwater variety.

Two more locks before we turned off the Erie onto the Oswego Canal. It was common to share a lock with other boats, many of which were undertaking the Great Loop, circumnavigating the eastern half of the United States. This venture takes an average of one year, and most boats were of substantial size to provide some of the creature comforts of home life. Some! We met this guy who was doing the loop in this inflatable. He'd come from Florida and so far, so good.

You meet a lot of interesting people. This couple, flanked by Jeanne and Allan, weren't doing the loop. That venture sounded rather tame compared to their cruising exploits. Larry and Bev Mosser sailed their 55 foot Teyana sailboat around the world for 15 years stopping in ports for months at a time. Why the lengthy stops? Bev explained that you can sail around the world and just see water. That's not seeing "the world." We all agreed.

We left the Erie Canal just before Syracuse and turned north up the Oswego River to Lake Ontario.

Sadly, we said goodbye to Tom Collins who headed back to Colorado to continue planning his dream to cross the US by water. He's done a lot of research, scouted the waterways, and hopes to convince his wife to join him. We were happy to allow him to put the Hudson River and part of the Erie Canal in the "Done" column.

   

                               The end of the Oswego Canal with Lake Ontario on the horizon.

And now for the reality check. Many of you already know that we had to make a temporary change of plans. Sally and Allan left Sally W in Oswego (for a week) and went home to Vermont to recover from a virus contracted early on the journey up the Hudson. Jeanne, Bob, and Moxie continued up into Canada.

                       Captain Bob and Jeanne preparing to explore Lake Ontario and beyond.

The good news is that Sally and Allan have since returned to their tug and plan to travel the Erie to the eastern terminus, and travel north through Lake Champlain to meet Salty Paws as she exits Canada back into the US. All is not lost. Stand by.

Erie Canal Part 3: Expect the Unexpected

Next day. The rain threatened forward progress due to high water as the river continued to rise. 

The guard gate west of us was closed to protect the lock from flooding. The added water would have caused overflow of the lock doors and walls. We had wanted to lock through #17 and tie up in Little Falls for the night ...

...but were stopped short below Lock 16. A notice to mariners advised closure of locks 8-20 at 1 PM.

Note the color of the water.

Everything stopped! (Even the rain, but the high water would take days to subside.)

And we waited and commiserated with anyone in a red jacket. Fortunately, an old Land Rover friend Fred Monsees and friend Valerie live nearby and paid us a visit. (Unfortunately, no one thought to snap a picture.) Fred was a welcome sight laden with pockets full of beer.

At capacity! We were lucky to be allowed through.

Late in the afternoon the lock master advised us that the water level had dropped just enough to allow us to lock through. But continuing to lock 17 would be impossible due to guard gate closure.

So we tied up with five other crafts and spent the night wondering what the next day would bring.

Bright skies, but a dismal forecast for boaters stating that it would be a minimum of 48 hours before westbound traffic could proceed. 

In true boating style, everyone made friends. And invented ways to pass the time.

Bob and Allan lubricated the pesky handles on the Bomar hatches.

At midday, Lock 16 opened for eastbounders and this westbounder chose to turn around and take refuge at the St. Johnsville Marina, two miles downriver. These two are professional captains delivering this boat to the owner in Lake St. Clair, east of Detroit. She, with her 500-ton license, is actually driving the boat with a tiny remote the size of a cell phone.

Note the pollen in the water from cottonwood and locust trees.

Ever the optimists, we chose to wait it out.

MOXIE MOMENT 

And Moxie decided to take a nap. She discovered that the headset storage bag doubled as a comfy throne to improve line-of-sight out the windows when underway.

Night #2 Above Lock 16

Toughing it out was getting long in the tooth. The guard gate west was still closed preventing forward progress. But the water level had subsided enough to allow operation of "our" lock. Word had it that the St. Johnsville Marina two miles back east had dock space for refugees and we decided to make the move.

This tiny burgh was very welcoming. With still no word from the canal authorities on reopening, we spent the rest of the day patronizing the bakery and ice cream shoppe.

Erie Canal Part Two: The Pitfalls of Rainfall

 Day Two: Steady rain ... and we pushed on.

The high water floated debris from the banks into the river ...

... adding another challenge to navigation.

Sally made corn chowder and we tied up on a lock wall to take sustenance ...

Puppy Paparazzi

... and make a photo op.

Moxie likes perches but had to work to keep from slipping off this one.

This lock had several tugs which work on the canal. They always appear freshly painted.

As the rain continued the river rose. We had planned to stop in Canajoharie, but learned that the docks had not been put in due to the pending high water. So we continued to Fort Plain and tied above lock 15.

Tom, Seth, Bob, Sally, Christina, Allan

What good fortune! Jeanne's friends, Seth and Christina, who she calls "the clowns" (for good reason, because they are professional clowns) are a husband/wife team. They stopped by for dinner on their way through from a weekend of performing in Toronto.

They label themselves "Acrobuffos". Check them out at www.acrobuffos.com.  One of their many acts is called "Airplay." www.airplayshows.com. Jeanne is proud to be associated with this incredibly talented team as their lighting designer.

We spent the night wondering what even more rain would bring tomorrow.

Erie Canal Part One: Learning the Ropes

First westbound Erie Canal lock at Waterford, NY

COROLLARY #1 to the first rule of boating: If you have the naive idea of making a plan when boating, be prepared to make changes.

Our western journey began on a sunny morning with crews in high spirits ready to experience the historic Erie Canal. We rose early in order to be the first boats into the lock when it opened at 7 AM.

The Salty Paws crew, Bob and Jeanne mans their lines while Moxie supervises.

The first flight of five locks quickly raised us 103 feet above the Hudson into the Mohawk River. The first 114 miles, through 19 locks will raise us a total of 420 feet above sea level.

Sally W's crew, Allan and Tom,  ready to let go with the lock now filled.

And onto the next lock.

Locking protocol requires that once the next lock is in sight, the captain must radio ahead and request passage.

Without exception, the lock masters are friendly and helpful.

The lock master replies that he will "prepare the chamber." [The gas chamber? The boudoir? Notify the local Chamber of Commerce?] LOL.  If the water level in the chamber won't permit opening doors on your end, one must wait until the water is drained, or filled, to your entry level.

As the boat enters the chamber the captain heads for the slimy lock wall with hanging ropes.

The first few minutes can feel like a carnival ride.

The crew grabs the ropes for bow and stern and the captain brings the boat to a stop. Gloves are preferred because the ropes are typically wet and dirty. Once all boats are in, the doors close and water begins to rush in from submerged gates on the sidewalls.

Salty Paws crew doing the Hokey Pokey

For the first few minutes, our proximity to the source of the rushing water poses a challenge to keep the boat from scraping the wall. It reminds us of a washing machine. The fenders do a good job, but take a beating. Those fenders lovingly covered in custom made fleece jackets eventually take on an appearance similar to that of the walls themselves - yucky.

Due to occasional low bridge clearances, we lowered our masts to provide 13 feet of clearance. It's an easy operation. 

Note the turbulence courtesy of the rushing water beneath us.

For sailboats, it's way more complicated. Masts and all the paraphernalia must be removed and secured. Kinda compromises the aesthetics of the boat's design and quality of the on-deck experience, but just temporarily.

The first day on the canal gave us more of a river experience ...

 ... with occasional reminders that we were also on the Erie Canal.

The Mohawk River threads a ribbon through the economic history of this region. Sadly, much of the industry is shuttered.

It was good to see that farms exist, although they may be struggling too.

The perfect moment. Allan captured this heron in flight snagging lunch. He/she is not walking on water.

And the ubiquitous wildlife exists in concert with man's machinations.

It started to rain late in the afternoon and we stopped in Amsterdam for the night, proud to have eight locks under our belts. Moxie found one of the more picturesque sites in town.