Erie Canal to Lake Ontario

While we were waiting in Waterford, we met up with some sailing friends we first met in the Bahamas in 2007.  Kenny & Kathy Walker have a beautiful new 48' American Tug.  They treated us to hors d'oeuvres and drinks on their boat deck.  Their boat is also their home and is appropriately named No Zip Code. 

Moving ahead to Amsterdam, the NY State Canal Corp opened the canal one day earlier than predicted on Tuesday, June 16th.  We headed up the canal towards Little Falls, NY.  Many of you have probably seen the Erie Canal from the NY State Thruway.  Well here is the opposite view.

Other parts of the canal are completely removed from civilization.

As you approach the Little Falls lock, the highest on the Erie Canal at 40.5 ft, the first thing you notice is the "guillotine" gate on the east end.

We expected that the only excitement at this lock would be going up the 40 ft wall.  Under the heading of "No One Expects the Spanish Inquisition", as we reached the top of the lock and were preparing to cast off, a 35 mph gale and deluge blew through.  We could barely control the boat in the narrow lock and both of us got beat up...we did save the boat however.  We couldn't have been any wetter if we'd jumped into the canal.  We couldn't see the gale coming because we were rising from the bottom of a 40 ft hole.  The lock tender, at the top, could see and did nothing to warn us.  He is off our Xmas card list.

After the lock beating we rested for the night at the city marina.  The nice lady that runs the place picked up Susan in her car at the grocery store and saved her a long walk back.  Continuing westward, we stopped at both ends of Oneida Lake (see map previous post).  On the east end we had a great Eye-talian dinner and the on the west end we bought a new starting battery for our diesel generator.

After Oneida Lake, we turned north into the Oswego River for the final run to Lake Ontario.  The Oswego River & Canal was the section closed for a week due to high water.  If you look at the turbulence at the bottom of the dam,  you can tell water is still screaming over the dams on the river.  Last week, two guys in a kayak drowned getting too close to one of these dams.  I heard they won a Darwin Award.

We finally got to Oswego on Lake Ontario on Sunday, June 28th.  Too late for the family reunion and about 3 weeks behind schedule.  The weather gods just said no.  Susan & I walked around a bit and she took this shot from the bridge above our boat.  We are tied up in the canal between the last 2 locks.

Our plan is stay here for a few days to re-provision, do laundry, yada, yada and visit our favorite Italian restaurant...Canale's.  This is all made possible because my brother Mark lives here.  After that we head across Lake Ontario for Canada.

P.S.  Some of you may have noticed a theme running thru the trip...Italian restaurants.  It's all Susan's fault...she makes me go.