Sun, Mon June 18-19 Whitehall to Westport

Sun, Mon  June 18-19  Whitehall to Westport  

After going thru the first and last lock of the day, we cruised on the canal and finally into Lake Champlain.  New York is on one side of the lake and Vermont is on the other.  There are many small fishing boats on this canal and river, so we slow down, then increase speed again as traffic dictates.  The Adirondack Mountains are beautiful and we enjoy the scenery.  We pass Fort Ticonderoga and the International Paper Co. factory.  Because of the southerly wind however, we smell the factory for many miles ahead.  As we finally arrive in the lake the southerly wind has produced a 1-2 ft wave.  The lake is large with coves and bays on both sides.  We go to Westport Marina for a few days as weather is predicted to get challenging.

The scenery as we boat up the canal. New York state to our left,
Vermont to the right

The Adirondack mountains

The rock that was cut to make the canal and as always,
the railroad tracks running along side the water way. You
wonder if the tracks are on the old mule paths that were
used to tow boats thru the canals?

Fort Ticonderoga over looking the lake

The bridge you go under as you enter the main body of Lake
Champlain. We had no problem getting under this bridge, thankfully.



Adirondack Park Monument

Our $ 1.00 T-Shirts after 11 locks. Actually we had heard how
slimy and disgusting the locks were but on the Champlain Canal
we didn't think they were any worst then the inland river system
locks. Maybe the Erie Canal is worst.

Sat, June 17 Fort Edwards to Whitehall

Sat, June 17  Fort Edwards to Whitehall  Tom grabbed a quick, cheap breakfast at the local diner in town, then we left the free wall and headed right into Lock 7.  The ride on the Champlain Canal was very similar to that of the Dismal Swamp in North Carolina with the exception of its width.  The canal has trees and shrubs on both sides, with rolling mountains ahead which all reflect back onto the waterway.  Today the sky is blue with whispy clouds, so it is a very pleasant, dry day to run. After 4 more locks and several very low bridges, which we made it under with 12 " to spare even with the radar arch laid down, we arrive at Whitehall.  Whitehall is the midpoint between New York City and Montreal.  Once again there is a free dock available with power and bathrooms.  There are also 2 other boats that join us for the evening.  The town of Whitehall has fallen on hard times, with many store fronts closed and many businesses are gone.  After walking around, however, we did find the local pizza place - Joe's -and ate NY style pizza (thin crust) on a picnic table in front of the business.  The calm evening was spent reading and working on the blog.

Skene Manor over looking the town of Whitehall. It was built by
a past Supreme Court judge. The most impressive building in
the whole town

Navigating thru the canal. Very much like the Dismal Swamp
but wider and deeper

More of the canal

Lots of bridges, low bridges

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Entgering Lock 12 on the Champlain Canal.

The last lock. There are actually only 11 locks

as they never but Lock 10 in but didn't bother to renumber

the Locks. Go figure,

 

Exiting the last lock and good bye, Whitehall. A sad tale of a
community but one of many along the canal route as industry
has left the area leaving vacant store fronts and loss of jobs.

 

Fri June 16 Waterford to Fort Edwards

Friday June 16  Waterford to Fort Edwards  Said a fond farewell to Bev and Bruce as their head west into the Erie Canal.  We pulled away and made a turn to head up the Champlain Canal. Many boaters head west into the Erie Canal but we till head north on the Champlain Canal.   At Lock 1, the rain started and continues for 4 long hours.  This means at every lock we put on our rain gear, pants and jacket for Colletta, head to the bow of the boat, grab lines and wait for the lock to raise our boat up as much as 19 feet.  Finally at Lock 5,the rain lets up and the skies become lighter.  Going thru locks, once you learned the skill, stays with you although there is always a little anxiety.  We want to be careful not to damage our boat, be aware of the other boaters in the locks, their skills or lack thereof, and always the safety of all.  Very often the lock master will speak to us, sometimes recording boat documentation information, sometimes talking about the weather and sometimes just smile and wave.  The canal is well marked, has homes with docks and pontoon boats moored, as well as farms and forest areas - very lush and green.  We finished lock 6 after 7 1/2 hours and head for a free town wall.  The wall has 30 amp power and a public bathroom and the best of all it is free - we like free.   We tie securely not concern with tides or currents on this canal and the only movement on the water is the small ripples made by the ducks and geese. We enjoy dinner with John and Pam aboard Greeks Folly and all sleep well.

These two boats, Greek's Folly and Short Vacation go north to the
Champlain

Our friends, Bruce and Bev head up the Erie Canal, see you on the
waterways

We are in the Champlain Canal the other body of water is the
Hudson River. They dug the canal to get around the dam

This was some kind of gate on the canal whose purpose
escapes us

We were actually getting ready to pass this boat. I think that
it might be a first in some 6000 miles

The lovely crew at the free dock in Fort Edward

I told you some of the bridges were low.

Simple enough. Great stay unfortunately the town
was really in bad shape. I did have breakfast at the
Ye Old Diner. A real throw back but the food was good
and cheap. 75 cent coffee and $1.00 toast. I had a
Big Johns Breakfast (3eggs, any kind of meat, American fried
potatoes, toast and  coffee) $5.50 I took Colletta a
short stack of pancakes and sausage and the bill was
$11.00

 

 

Wed, Thurs June 14-15 Shady Harbor to Waterford

Wed, Thurs June 14-15  Shady Harbor to Waterford    After fueling all three boats, we finally pulled away from the dock and headed to Waterford.  Waterford is just past Albany NY and is where the boaters decide which route to take - west on the Erie Canal or north on the Champlain Canal.  Waterford has a free dock and most boaters stop there to reprovision before they start traveling thru the locks.  Tom and I got the bikes off the boat and explored the area.  We enjoyed docktails aboard a catamaran, Gypsies Palace, along with 20 other people.  The 6 of us shared dinner at the picnic table by the Welcome Center as well as a few bottles of wine. 

This morning Tom and I took off early on our bikes to ride up to Lock 3 and 4 and watch our friends lock thru.  We arrived at Lock 4 as they were riding the lock up.  We watched all 6 boats exit and pull into a waiting area to starboard as a barge exited Lock 5.  The pleasure craft then headed into Lock 5 and the barge into Lock 4.  It was interesting to watch the exchange.  Once back at the docks we rode to the t-shirt store and grocery store.  At the t-shirt shop we purchased black t-shirts for $1 each to cover our fenders while traveling thru the locks.  This is done in an attempt to keep the fenders clean as the locks are slimy, dirty and nasty.  Grabbed groceries, then back to the boat.  Ate dinner at a local bar - the Angry Pelican.  Small nice place.  A private poker game was going on and we were the only eating customers.  Strolled back to the boats and prepped for departure tomorrow.

 

Downtown Albany, NY

The lock master told us to tie up to this wall to wait for the
tow boat to exit the lock. Notice the wonderful state of repair
of the wall. We tied up very carefully

While you are in the lock in this case coming up you see the
dam that the lock gets you around.

We have locked up and are on our way 11 feet higher
then when we went in the lock

Here is the sign that greets you at Waterford. We took the road less
traveled and headed to the Champlain Canal. Most looper boats
choose the Erie Canal because it is shorter and gets them into
the Great Lakes quicker. We plan on storing the boat in
Brewerton, NY this winter so we are not in any hurry. We plan on
exploring Canada and the St. Lawrence Seaway this summer

Boats lined up on the free dock in Waterford. $10.00 for electricity
for as long as you stay. Showers and bathrooms such a deal.
Great people and a nice town

Out biking around the town



This is what a lock looks like from inside when they
drain the water out

This is the support we built to lower our radar arch to get under
the low bridges we would encounter on the Champlain Canal

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These are the Looper boats in Lock 4. The power cat
in the front is Gypsies Palace where we had docktails

Upon exiting Lock 4 the flotilla encountered this tow, so crafty
maneuvering was in order to get around him and into lock 5

 

 

Sun, Mon, Tues June 11-13 Shady Harbor Marina

Sunday June 11 Anchorage to Shady Harbor Marina

Slow day on the river today.  Yesterday we had a push with the current and averaged 10 mph.  Today, we are traveling at 7 mph.  Things seem to be moving very slowly.  There is also lot of debris in the river so the captain in keeping a watchful eye.  Upon arrival, we noticed a big party and pig roast going on; about 20 Looper boats,, some old and some new friends, as well as their local yacht club all enjoying food, music and of course drinks.  Later in the evening, we also celebrated two birthdays with birthday cake and  a wine tasting party - courtesy of Bruce and Bev.

Monday was a work day.  The guys made a run into the hardware store for various items.  Colleta was not feeling well so she took advantage of a few short naps in between the cleaning and boat chores.  Tom enjoyed a dip in the pool before 20 of us met for a dinner at the Boathouse.  Food was good and socializing just goes on and on.

The windlass motor has arrived but it is the wrong one.  Tom spent time on the phone with the factory and the machine shop trying to work things out.  We also walked to the post office in town - straight uphill - both ways.  After dinner, Tom enjoyed Toasted Carmel Whiskey with Bruce and John and the night turned "ugly".

The boats at Shady Harbor

Notie the houses on the rise behind the marina. We climbed up there
and up another hill to the post office.

When you go up either the Erie or Champlain Canals you have
to be prepared to get under low bridges. Most boats build stands
so they can drop their masts or radar arches until they get
thru the canals. Greek's Folly dropped our radar arch so we are
only 16' 1" high to get under some bridges that are barely 17 ' high 

Although there is not a lot of commercial traffic on the Hudson
River there was some. Notice the cutout in the rear of the barge
so the tow boat fits right in. On most inland rivers the barge is
just flat across the stern so more then one barge can be pushed.
On the Hudson River the tow boats only push one barge at a time/

 

Sat, June 10 - Half Moon Bay to Kingston Anchorage

Sat, June 10 - Half Moon Bay to Kingston Anchorage

Left the marina with Simpatico and her crew.  It was nice to be traveling with Connie again.  It was a nice ride on the river.  On both sides of the river were railroad tracks which ran parallel to the river.  On the east, it was the Amtrak train with occasional stops at towns along the way.  On the west side, the tracks carried freight trains, very long freight trains (one had 117 cars).  It was fun to image where they were going, where they had come from and where their final destination might be.  We saw the CIA by water as well as looked for other points of interest high up on the cliffs.  We anchored right outside of Kingston and settled in for the night.  Sunset to the west and a full moon rise to the east.  Pretty.

Simpatico and Greek's Folly cruising together again

The passenger train running down the eastern bank of the Hudson
River back and forth to New York City

Scenery along the Hudson River as you go north

Short Vacation in the lead, Simpatico, Greek's Folly and Sequest
who is not pictured

CIA ( Culinary Institute of America) from the

Hudson River as we pass by

 

 

Sunset on the Hudson anchored off Kingston, NY

(Picture provided by Bev Kness)

 

Fri, June 9 - Half Moon Bay

Fri, June 9 - Half Moon Bay

Homemade donuts from the local bakery is a great way to start the day.  We rented a car to get out to the CIA for dinner tonight, so we made good use of it during the day.  We drove to the train station to pick up Connie and her crew - 2 grandsons Connor and Aiden, did grocery shopping, and did laundry at the Laundromat all in preparation for traveling again tomorrow.  We drove up to Hyde Park, about 60 miles north to the Culinary Institute of America for dinner.  This was a thing on Tom's "list".  The food prep, wait service and customer service is all provided by the students.  Our server Kelly, was in her 2nd year and was eventually going to study restaurant management. We asked her a lot of questions and she was very open and honest about the schools goals.  Not all students want to be chefs but they all get background in the many areas of the food industry.  The students all looked very young - which they were.  The restaurant was full.  The food was OK, the menu was eclectic, trying to appeal to all.  It was an interesting experience.

Entering those hallowed halls of gastronomic delights

Our server Kelly who was from Maine discussing restaurant
matters

Capt. Connie on Simpatico with her two grandsons passing
by West Point Military Academy

Simpatico with some od the scenery along the river

John and Pam had some friends from their old marina join them
for a few day cruise, Mike and Sandy from Iowa

Far from the crowds of New York City we run into a
Sailing Regatta on the Hudson River