5/20 - 6/3/23 Troy, NY - Central Square, NY (Brewerton) (Erie Canal)

Sat, 5/20/23 - Lock #2, Waterford, NY to Vischer Ferry, NY (Lock 7) (12.7nm).  Moon Dance IV, was the first to leave and catch the first lock through.  We were monitoring channel 13, and discovered the Federal Lock was full, so we decided to wait for that batch to come through and then head over to Lock 2 and begin our Erie Canal adventure.

• The fork in the road forced a decision to go east on the Champlain Canal or West on the Erie Canal.
• We chose the Western route.
• The area around the Welcome Center was charming.  They were setting up for the annual Canal Festival.

• Erie Canal rises 566 feet from the Hudson River to Lake Erie through 35 locks, of which we will do 23. We already went through the first one in Troy on Thursday.
• Day 1 - Waterford Flight of 5 locks that are done sequentially + Lock 7 for another 11 miles:

• MM 0.63 - E2 Waterford, up 33.6

• MM 1.09 - E3 Waterford, up 34.5'
• MM 1.60 - E4 Waterford, up 34.5'
• MM 1.87 - E5 Waterford, up 33.3'
• MM 2.15 - E6 Crescent, up 33.0'
• MM 13.07 - E7 Vischer Ferry, up 27.0'

• 
  We had 7 boats with us all day, so it was pretty tight in the chambers.
• I preferred catching a cable at midship and using my trusty lock gadget to slide up.
• A few times, I had to catch a rope at the bow, and get it cinched around the cleat to keep control.  The ropes were full of clumps of mud that kept spraying out - ugh!
• The decorative boulders lining the entrance to the lock was a nice reminder of what lurks beneath.
• Around 2:30, we tied up to the free dock, immediately after exiting lock 7. No power, but it was a really cool spot.  We watched the last boats parade past us and walked over to the dam.
• John & Kim invited us to play cards aboard Kayak.
• A pretty wild storm kicked up overnight, we were glad to be secured to a dock.
• In the middle of the night, Captains Brian & John had to go out into the dark in their skivvies to adjust lines!

Sun, 5/21/23 - Vischer Ferry, NY (Erie Lock 7 to Amsterdam, NY (Erie Lock 11) (22.8 nm).  

• MM 24.04 - E8 Scotia, up 14.0'
• MM 29.07 - E9 Rotterdam, up 15.0'
• MM 35.02 - E10 Cranesville, up 15.0
• MM 39.29 - E11 Amsterdam, up 12.0’
• While the Erie canal is open to commercial vessels, they rarely use it, opting for the St. Lawrence Seaway.
• The State of New York has done a great job keeping recreational boaters on the canal from May - October.  Most of the locks have a free wall to tie up to, and many of them also have power pedestals - no charge.
• Our first free dock with power was immediately after exiting lock 11 in Amsterdam, NY.
• It was a great spot adjacent to a lovely park, but the town itself has clearly fallen on tough times.
• We did enjoy a great authentic Italian meal at nearby Russo's.

Mon, 5/22/23 - Amsterdam, NY to St. Johnsville, NY (St. Johnsville Municipal Marina) (26.2nm)  Another beautiful day cruising the Erie Canal through mountain ranges, waterfalls, and steep rock ledges - the camera can't capture the truly breathtaking landscape.

• MM 43.52 - E12 Tribes Hill, up 11.0'
• MM 53.12 - E13 Yosts, up 8.0’
• MM 60.95 - E14 Canajoharie, up 8.0’
• MM 64.30 - E15 Fort Plain, up 8.0’

• Around 2:00 p.m., we pulled into St. Johnsville Municipal Marina and camp ground.
• Similar to Amsterdam, St. Johnsville's downtown showed signs of a once thriving community.  The Masonic Temple sign, was symbolic of the state of affairs.

• St. Johnsville Marina & Campground:
• Because the canal is only open May - October, marinas cannot stay afloat, so most of the Erie Canal marinas are either City or State owned. St. Johnsville is run by the City.
• They have 1 wall that can accommodate about 5/6 boats.
• Their floating docks were destroyed by hurricane Irene in 2011, and they are still waiting on their pending claim with FEMA.
• Laundry, Fuel, Pump out
• Short walk to town, but not much to see.
• While we were having docktails, a team of cyclists came in to camp for the night.  They were biking the entire Erie Canal - Alany to Buffalo over a 1-week period.
• They were delightful, and we were equally interested in each other's adventure.
• They let us fly their drone around for a while - so much fun!
• They formed a line to make sure I subscribed to their individual You Tube Channels.

Tues, 5/23/23 - St. Johnsville, NY to Little Falls, NY (Little Falls Canal Harbor) (9.1nm).  A short cruise day with a great payoff.  We finally found one of the cute towns along the Erie Canal. We liked it so much we stayed an extra day.  But first, we had to go through 3 locks:

• MM 71.02 - E16 St. Johnsville, up 20.5’
• MM 78.99 - E17 Little Falls, up 40.5'
• Lock 17 is the highest lift on the Erie Canal; and
• 1 of 2 guillotine style lock door in North America.

• 
  The NY state-owned property is managed by the local Rotary Club.  The Harbor Master, Mark, was a great guy, and very eager to help us enjoy our stay.
• They had been open for less than a week, so some things were still getting up to speed, so no pump out or wifi, but the showers and boaters lounge were fantastic.
• We appreciated the convenience of the Taco Truck across the street!
  
• A right turn outside the marina took us to miles of picturesque, flat, paved bike trails.

• A left turn took us over the bridge to town. Similar to the past 2 towns we visited, much of the industry has abandoned the area.  Little Falls does seem to be making a comeback though.  There are several restaurants and shops.

• Rock climbing and Herkimer diamond mining (actually more related to the quartz family).
• Potholes - huge circles carved into the rock by the wind.

• We had a lovely dinner at Canal Side Inn to celebrate Kim's Birthday.

Thurs, 5/25/23 - Little Falls, NY to Sylvan Beach, NY (42.7nm).  Early start on a frigid morning - 35 degrees!  Lock 18 opened at 7:00 a.m., we were tied up by 7:15, along with 5 other boats.

• MM 83.19 - E18 Jacksonburg, up 20’
• At Lock 18, the charts indicate Erie Canal, and separated from the Mohawk River, which remained a separate body of water on our starboard side, until Lock 19 when it switched to our port.
• MM 95.04 - E19 Frankfort, up 21’
• MM 105.32 - E20 Whitesboro, up 16’ - Highest level of the Erie Canal, 420 feet, and now we go back down 50' . . .
• MM 123.42 - E21 New London, DOWN 25.0’ - (Couldn't fit in chamber, had to take the next one down).
• MM 124.74 - E22 New London, DOWN 25.1’ (solo ride down).
• At 3:00 p.m., we were tied up to the Sylvan Beach Free City Dock, and immediately noticed that this town is doing much better than the others we visited along the Erie Canal.
• It is a lively town that seems to be a weekend destination.  Folks leave the marinas and tie up to the free city wall and set up their generators for the weekend to be closer to the bars.  I guess Loopers are taking up their spots.  They were tolerant but not welcoming.

• Lots of Loopers were already tied up to the dock and invited us for drinks and appetizers aboard Big Enough, along with Boatniks, L'Attitude Adjustment, Out of the Blue, Kayak, Summer Wind II.  Jane (Boatniks) was serving up Little Beers!
• Other Loopers also came and went.

Fri, 5/26/23:

• Brian spent the morning cleaning up all of the fenders that have been smashed against grimy lock walls for the past 5 days.  They were pretty gnarly.
• Between the great buff job performed by Brett Brown and Springbrook Marina, and Brian's consistent applications of ceramic coating, Port-A-Gee is holding her shine!  She looks really good after 10 months and 3,700 nautical miles!
• A walk around town revealed that we were still ahead of "season", as many shops weren't open yet.
• The small beach town was a walk back in time, the little cottages were reminiscent of my childhood.
• There were some new rentals that come with a pontoon boat.

• 
  While enjoying Looper Docktails with Steels Aweigh, Waterview and Kayak, this gentleman and his 2 dogs stopped by.  He had quite the story about his 1-of-a-kind breed of dogs (which he never really explained), and how they were invited on Good Morning American, until his ex-wife killed his other dog by bringing her to the vet!  It was an intriguing encounter with the local flavor.

Sat, 5/27/23 - Sylvan Beach, NY to Brewerton, NY (Winter Harbor Marina) (19.5nm).

• The locals were glad to see all but 1 cruiser shove off their wall by 9:30 a.m. - LOL.  Oneida Lake was tame on this gorgeous, sunny day.  We thoroughly enjoyed our last voyage before taking a little break at home.

Kayak on Oneida Lake

• Port-A-Gee and Kayak arrived at Winter Harbor Marina (actually in Central Square, NY) and were secured to their slip where they will remain for the next month.
• We feel very comfortable leaving the boat at this family-owned full-service marina.

5/28 - 6/3/23 - Brewerton, NY - Winter Harbor Marina:

Sun - Wed:  We observed Memorial Day, attended to chores, cruised around in the dinghy, docktailed with Little Buddy, Picnic Boat, and of course, Kayak.

• Brewerton is a modest lake house community, reminiscent of our childhood. It is flanked by Lake Oneida and Erie Lock 23.
• Several docks had vintage boats/motors that clearly are still the choice for weekend fishing. We were impressed with the 1956 Montgomery Ward model!

• Farewell dinner at Wild Horse Grill with John and Kim, them accompanied them to SRY airport - 
• they were going back to Duluth for their son's wedding, and I was picking up a rental car for some sightseeing.
• We met John & Kim on Kayak in Elizabeth City, NC on my birthday (4/19). 
• We partnered up to navigate the Dismal Swamp, and stuck together through, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and New York.  We really enjoyed their company and hope they catch up to us when they return to NY couple weeks after us.

Thurs - We drove 2 hours to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.  Of course, we were especially interested in all things Cubbies, but also took in all of the history and stats our brains could absorb.

• Other Cooperstown attractions include:
• Abner Doubleday Field - where many big leaguers played tournaments in their youth.
• Farmers Living History Museum.
• Otesaga Hotel - 1 weekend, every July, the Otesaga hosts 50 MLB Hall of Famers.

Fri - We drove 3 hours to Niagara Falls. It was AMAZING! The "touristy circus" aside, it was fascinating to experience the Falls on the Maid of the Mist boat - especially when we were under the falls.  We also visited the Cave Winds - a series of staircases built into the rocks took us up front and personal under the Fall - it was wild! It was an exhilarating finale before a much-needed trip home.

CAVE WINDS

Sat, 6/3/23 - We had been on the boat since 1/2/23, and while every stop has been phenomenal, living in 34' for 6 months has its challenges.  Plus, we really, really, really miss our family. 

• We'll come back to NW New York on 6/27 to navigate the Great Lakes into Canada before closing our Loop on Lake Michigan!

Leg Stats:  

Miles: (133) 12.7, 22.8, 26.2, 9.1, 42.7, 19.5

Marinas:(3) St. Johnsville, Little Falls, Winter Harbor

Free Walls: (3) Lock 7, Lock 11, Sylvan Beach

Locks: (21)