Lake Ontario and Beyond

On Friday morning, June 24th, the weather was not exactly ideal for crossing Lake Ontario, but it was far better than what was being forecast for the next couple of days, so we went for it.  After considering various possible routes across the lake, we chose the one that would expose us to the prevailing SW wind and resulting waves for the least amount of time and shortest distance.  From Oswego we headed NE across the eastern end of Lake Ontario toward Stony Point (a three hour cruise), and then ducked  into Henderson Bay for somewhat less wind exposure, and on across the bay into Henderson Harbor (near Watertown, NY), where we would be protected on three sides.  There we dropped the hook (and secured it) in one of two available charted anchorages and comfortably sat out rain storms and high winds for two days.

On Sunday, June 26th, with the storms behind us and having decided it was safe to move on, we pulled up anchor and left our harbor of refuge.  It was overcast and cool, but the SW wind created only a moderate chop on the lake surface, with 1-2 ft. waves, which the boat handled well.  By 10:00 a.m., we were entering the St. Lawrence River, with the NY shoreline to starboard (right side) and the windmills on Wolfe Island in Ontario, Canada, visible to port (left side).

This portion of the St. Lawrence River (and for the next 50 miles) is referred to as The Thousand Islands, although there are actually 1,800 of them.  But, who's counting? Our destination that day was Clayton, NY, another 15 miles downstream (NE) on the St. Lawrence Seaway, and home of the Antique Boat Museum, about which we had heard wonderful things, all true. Our visit to this famous museum turned out to be well worth the $11.00 admission fee (for seniors like ourselves).  The exhibits, housed in several buildings along the waterfront, range from beautifully crafted wooden canoes and sailboats, to classic powerboats, one of which they allow visitors to actually sit in and get behind the wheel.

This waterfront town is very pleasant to stroll around, and we thoroughly enjoyed the two days we spent there, including the delicious dinner we had at Bella's Bistro, overlooking the St. Lawrence River.

Although, once again, we felt like this would be a great place to stay much longer, we were also anxious to explore more of the Thousand Islands area and head for the Canadian side of the river. So, we reluctantly left Clayton behind and continued on our journey, paying close attention to the all important channel markers in this area where many careless cruisers run aground on the unforgiving rocks lying just below the water's surface.

Every view along the way just cried out to be photographed, but we just snapped a few as a sampling of what this gorgeous area has to offer. Some of the islands are private, with summer homes on them.

Others are maintained by Parks Canada, with docks where boats can tie up for a day, overnight, or longer, for a reasonable fee.

Although we were tempted to stop and spend some time on one of the islands, we had now crossed the border into Canada and therefore needed to be cleared through Canadian Customs before we could legally stop anywhere. So we continued on to Gananoque, Ontario, to complete the task. This involved stopping at the municipal marina there and using a special telephone provided expressly for this purpose.  Only the captain is allowed ashore to complete the process, which took only about five minutes, after which we could take down the quarantine flag we were flying, replace it with a Canadian courtesy flag, and be on our way to Kingston, Ontario, our next destination.

The marina in Kingston is well situated in a municipal park setting, but right in the heart of the city's government and commercial district as well.

On our first day there, we wasted no time in locating a spot to sample some of the local brew.  We ended up at the Kingston Brewing Company just a block away from the waterfront and enjoyed a late lunch with a couple of glasses of ale.

The next morning, when we realized that we had left our VISA card there, we really sweated it out until they opened for the day and we were able to retrieve it.  As we strolled back to the park and our marina, a man saw our smiling faces and offered to take our picture. Don't we look happy?

Since this was a very windy day, we were also glad to be tied up securely to a dock in a protected marina.  We wanted to wait for the wind to subside again before leaving Kingston, since we would be exposed to the open waters of Lake Ontario again, this time on the northern shore. We had made reservations at a marina in Trenton, Ontario, for the upcoming holiday weekend, when Canadians would celebrate their national holiday on July 1st, which is much like July 4th for Americans. A few other "Looper" couples also had the same plan, so we all converged on the Fraser Park Marina in Trenton.

When we arrived, we could see someone setting up equipment for live entertainment in the adjoining municipal park, just a few feet from our boat.

Since the band was good, and they sang some of our favorite oldies but goodies, we really enjoyed it.  The next night, when we had happy hour with our new friends onshore next to our boat, we weren't so lucky.  The band that night was very loud and not so good.  Oh, well, at least they stopped early, after which the fireworks across the river from us took center stage, and it was quite a beautiful sight to behold.

On Saturday, all ten of us got together again, this time going out to dinner at Tomasso's Restaurant, right on the riverfront, and had an excellent meal.  Then on Sunday morning, we said farewell to the folks on the other four boats ("Reality Check," "Glory Days," "The Dudden Pilot," and "Great Escape"), while we remained behind on "Docker's Inn, " awaiting delivery of an important data chip for our Garmin GPS Chartplotter, which was supposed to arrive on Thursday, but which got hung up in Canadian Customs and then delayed due to the Canadian holiday weekend.  Oh, well, if one has to be stuck somewhere, this isn't a bad place to be.

UPS Canada has assured us that our GPS data chip will be delivered tomorrow, which will allow us to continue on into the Trent-Severn Waterway toward Georgian Bay in eastern Lake Huron.

Oh, gotta go; another "Looper" boat just arrived!

From the Erie Canal to Lake Ontario

Sunday morning, June 12th, it was chilly and threatening rain, but we were anxious to be on our way through the first several locks of the Erie Canal, so at 7:35 a.m. we untied the dock lines and headed for Lock #2. This time, Ken secured a line around a cable rather than a pipe as he had done in the Troy Lock.

This was the first of seven locks we would go through that day in 35 miles along the Erie Canal, raising us a total of 241 feet.  Inside each lock there was a sign with information about how many feet the water level would rise or fall (depending on which direction a boat was headed), plus how many miles we would travel along the canal to the next lock.

When we arrived at Lock #3, the dockmaster was holding it open for us.  The lockmasters communicate with each other, so he knew we were on our way even before we called him on our VHF radio. There were three other boats already entering the lock, so we took our place among them, and the gates closed behind us.

Locks # 2 - 6 are very close together, covering only a mile and a half total distance on the canal, so we traveled along the canal and through each of these locks with the same three other boats for the next couple of hours. In these locks, we had choices of how to secure the boat, looping a line around a fixed cable as we had been doing, or grabbing a line hanging down from the top of the lock.  After watching folks on the other boats grabging the hanging lines, we decided to try that as well.

At each of the locks there is a dam on the Mohawk River, often providing us with a beautiful waterfalls view from the lock.

Besides the locks, there are also other barriers, called Guard Gates, which we had to clear before moving on.  Some of them are normally open, but Guard Gate #2 opens only on request (and drips water on you as you pass under it). We asked one of the lockmasters what these gates were for, and he said they were for general water flow control when needed.

At 4:00 that afternoon, we arrived at the town of Amsterdam, NY. Tired, but satisfied with ourselves for our accomplishments that day, we tied up at Riverlink Park, where for a fee of $47.00 ($1.00 per foot), we had access to electricity, water, restrooms, and laundry facilities. 

The next day we moved on again, traveling another 23 miles (through three more locks), to the town of Canajoharie, NY. This town provides a free dock with electric hook-ups in a lovely setting at their Riverfront Park.

Although we had to contend with traffic noise from Rt. 90 on one side of the river, plus the railroad line on the other, this was a great stopover for us.  As so many cruisers report, "It's the people you meet along the way that make this trip so wonderful."  We have found this to be so true, especially in the little towns along the waterway, such as Canajoharie, most famous for being the home of Beechnut Foods, the interesting story of which is graphically illustrated in an exhibit at the local library and art gallery.  Even though the town is really hurting since Beechnut recently relocated 23 miles away,  local business owners go out of their way to be helpful to visitors. Since we were without a car while shopping, with only backpacks to carry our purchased goods back to the boat, merchants either delivered the goods, or in one case even drove us back to our boat.

According to our guidebook, "The Village of Canajoharie has, architecturally, the most original, intact Erie Canal commercial district on the Mohawk River."  Just a short walk from Riverfront Park, we were able to see this for ourselves.

We were amply rewarded for our efforts with a scrumptious lunch at the Elephant Bistro, which we wouldn't have discovered if we hadn't taken that little walk.

On June 15th, we continued our journey, not sure yet where we would stop at the end of the day. One thing we did know, however, was that we would encounter one rather challenging lock along the way.  Lock # 17, sometimes referred to as the "Guillotine Lock," not only is the largest single step lock on the Erie Canal (40 ft.), but the gate, instead of opening out like doors, is pulled up over the canal. Each boat has to enter under this gate, which is also dripping with river water.  Forewarned, Ken wore his rain gear.  When we arrived, the gate was down, so we pulled over to the wall to await its opening.  Pretty soon it opened and an eastbound boat emerged.

When the indicator light turned green, we entered the lock, and then the gate was lowered behind us.  With a total lift of 40 ft. ahead of us, it was somewhat like a dungeon inside the lock.

Slowly the water began to rise, and things brightened up a bit, until we came to a stop, still far from the top of the lock.  Then we began to decend again to the bottom.

One of the valves had gotten stuck, so water was entering the lock at one end and flowing back out at the other end.  Finally, after 45 minutes, all was well again, and we made it out of the lock from hell and back into the sunlight.

At around 1:00 p.m., after one more lock and a total journey of 50 miles for the day, we decided to stop at the Ilion Village Marina, which turned out to be another good choice. In a very pretty setting, this is a well cared for municipal marina and RV park, which charges $1.00 per ft. ($47.00 for us) for boats to tie up overnight, including electricity, water, toilets and showers, plus laundry facilities.

Since we hadn't eaten lunch yet, the onsite Dockside Cafe was also a welcome sight. Our meal was simple, tasty, and reasonably priced.  What more could you want?  Before we knew what was happening, that question was answered.  As an extra added treat for Loopers such as ourselves, fried Oreos are provided for dessert, free of charge.  Let me tell you, you haven't lived until you've had batter-dipped, deep-fried Oreos!

This stopover not only provided an opportunity to catch up on laundry, but also to restock with groceries fron Aldi Supermarket just a block away. And to top off our visit to Ilion, where we spent two days, we visited the Remington Arms Factory, which has a very interesting and informative museum, providing an historical overview of the development of famous Remington firearms, from Colonial days to the present.

While we were at Ilion, two of the boats we had locked through with on our first day on the Erie Canal also turned up at our same marina.  The two couples on "Merried with Her" and "Lady Jayne" are fellow Loopers traveling together as buddy boats, at least for part of their trip.

As we prepared to head out again on June 17th, both of these boats were readying to leave as well.  So, for another day, the three of us went through a few more locks together. And at the end of the day, we were all tied up at the free dock at Sylvan Beach, NY, on the eastern shore of Oneida Lake.

Sylvan Beach is sort of a mini version of Wildewood, NJ, with an amusement park, restaurants, and a beach, all within an easy walk of the canal and lake.

As an extra bonus, it is very well positioned for absolutely beautiful sunset views over the 20 mile long lake.

We planned our arrival on Friday so that we could snag a good spot to tie up our boat before the Father's Day weekend crowds would arrive on Saturday.

And it's a good thing we did, because the crowds arrived as expected, and if we hadn't arrived early, we would have been out of luck trying to find a place to tie up.

After a pleasant two days "at the beach," on Sunday, June 19th, we crossed 20 mile wide Oneida Lake, arriving at Ess-Kay Yards, a marina in Brewerton, NY, where we planned to stay for a few days catching up on boat maintenance.  We were so comfortable in this lovely setting that we looked at each other and said, "I could live here."

This was a scheduled, planned stop, where our mail could be sent to "hold for arrival," the engine oil could be changed, and some needed repairs could be done on the vinyl strataglass panels on our flying bridge, one of which had shattered and was letting in rain.

Once again, an added bonus of this spot was the vantage point from which to view lovely sunsets. We had no idea that this section of the Erie Canal would be quite so beautiful.

While at our marina in Brewerton, we met more fellow Loopers, some of whom were stopping here for maintentance like ourselves, and some who had more serious issues to deal with, such as bent propellers from hitting logs floating down the canal. These folks, luckily, had a spare pair of props onboad, so all they had to do was haul out and change them.

On June 23rd, with our own maintenance tasks complete, we prepared to move on again.  The weather was iffy, but the sky began to clear after early morning rain showers, so at 9:30 a.m. we headed out toward the Three Rivers Junction, where we would leave the Erie Canal and head north on the Oswego Canal, which would take us to Lake Ontario.  The water was smooth and glassy, reflecting the rows of trees lining both banks of the canal.

Shortly after making the turnoff onto the Oswego Canal, we approached Lock #1 at Phoenix, NY.  We had heard such nice things about this town and the friendliness of the people toward cruisers that we were tempted to stop.  But it was only mile number 2.7, so we decided to continue on through the lock.

Right after this lock was a lift bridge with 12' vertical clearance, so we had to ask the lockmaster to raise it for us (we require about 18' clearance) before we exited the lock.

That wasn't as tricky as Lock #2, which had a steel bridge with 5' vertical clearance right in the middle of the lock!  As we entered that lock, we were confronted with a stop sign on that bridge.  We had to stay south of the bridge until the lock lowered 18', which would allow 23' vertical clearance for the bridge.

The next few locks on the Oswego Canal were no problem, but we were notified that there might be a delay at Lock #7.  When we arrived, another boat was already inside and we were directed to move inside as well.  The lockmaster explained that they were having some trouble with slight movement of the concrete walls which was creating problems with the gates, and that they were going on a reduced schedule of lock openings until this issue could be resolved.  Luckily, we were right on time for the next scheduled opening and could lock through immediately.  Those who came after us were not so lucky and had to wait hours.

Since the weather forecast was not good, we decided to tie up on the free wall between Lock #7 and Lock #8 at Oswego, NY, just shy of the end of the Oswego Canal.  This would provide more protection in nasty weather than on the north side of the last lock which is more exposed to Lake Ontario. 

Shortly after we tied up, we heard a siren and a loadspeaker warning people that the water was rising rapidly in the river and that they should seek higher ground immediately.  We were confused and anxious about whether this included us.  The river was running furiously just on the other side of a wall from us.  Anyway, we walked back to Lock #7 and checked with the lockmaster who assured us that this would not influence water levels in the canal itself.  What a relief! 

So, we walked down a canalside path toward town to check things out and stopped for an early dinner at Patz on the waterfront, where we had a good view of the entrance to Lake Ontario, making it back to the boat just before the rain storm hit. We figured we could do more exploring the next day. 

Listening to weather forecasts for the next few days, however, made us change our plans.  On Friday, June 24th, the wind was predicted to be light, whereas on Saturday, the wind was supposed to pick up, creating 3-4 ft. waves on Lake Ontario. So we left Oswego the next morning instead of staying on for another day to do sightseeing.  Out past the lighthouse guarding the entrance to the Oswego Inlet and on to Lake Ontario we went.  This would be our first experience with a Great Lake!