June 25-28, 2015 Erie Canal - Days 4-7 - Winter Harbor/Pirates Cove

Day 4:  We left Aqua Vino at 7:40, leaving Spirit behind for a few days.  We went through locks 20-22 (one up and two down – our highest elevation was 420 ft above sea level).  We docked at Winter Harbor at 3:00.  We took on fuel, pumped out, and tied up to the dock.  We had had some electrical issues and were expecting a serviceman, but he never showed.  We took the courtesy car into town for dinner and then settled in for the night.  Sno Daz, CJ and Sea Moss were also there.  Day 5:  We ran into Ted and Sarah (Manatee) at the fuel dock first thing in the morning.  We hadn't seen them since Dog River so we had a nice visit.  We again waited for the serviceman, but he never showed and Jack was able to get the power running again.  We decided to leave at 9:40 and headed for Pirates Cove arriving at 11:15. We went through lock 23 (which was to be our last lock on the Erie Canal). Pirates Cove was a very nice marina, very quiet,  pretty and the owners were extremely friendly.  We were able to use their courtesy car to get lunch, hair cuts, and a pedicure!  We also made a visit to WalMart – probably the nicest WalMart we’ve ever seen.  We were really back in civilization again with a mall and many stores.  I did laundry and we ate our leftovers from Aqua Vino for dinner.  Day 6:  I got up and did more laundry while we wanted for Spirit to arrive.  They got in around noon and we all went into town for lunch.  The girls arrived around 3:30.  Since it was 99 degrees when they left Mobile, they were not impressed by the cold and rain in New York.  Day 7:  We woke up again to cold and rain.  We did some provisioning and then all the girls spent the afternoon at WalMart and Macy's!  We had some good vegetable soup on the back deck and a few games of Uno.

Beautiful, calm waters

Our first down lock

Waiting for the lock

Crossing Oneida Lake

Ted and Sarah on Manatee

View from the bridge

Another view from the bridge

Jack and Jack bought two pipes to use as fender boards -- good thing the courtesy car had a sun roof!

Dinner at the marina restaurant

Even the geese are cold and are heading south again

After dinner entertainment - game of Uno

June 23-24, 2015 - Erie Canal - Days 2 and 3 - St. Johnsville/Aqua Vino

Day 2: We left Schenectady Yacht Club at 8:40 and headed for locks 8 through 15 (going from 151’ to 383’ above sea level).   We had a light rain shower shortly after getting under way.  The scenery seems to be better and better with each day.  I thought we were in the Adirondack Mountains, but they are just a little north of us.  To someone from Texas, they look like mountains to us!  We docked at St. Johnsville Marina at 4:45.  It was a long day – the 7 locks were pretty tiring.  We had docktails with Sharon and Bob (Sno Daz), Curt and Julie (CJ), Jane and Jack (Spirit) and finished the evening with dinner on the back deck with Jane and Jack.  Day 3:  We walked into St. Johnsville and had a very good breakfast.  We also bought two dozen cookies to give to the lockmasters hoping it would speed our locking services.  After the first lock, the word spread and the lock masters were waiting for us!  We left at 9:40 and headed for locks 16-19 (going from 383' to 404' feet above sea level).  There are many places to tie up along the canal and we passed several other Loopers - Biscuit, Penny Pinchin, Sea Moss.  We docked at Aqua Vino docks (a restaurant) in Utica at 3:20.  Sno Daz and CJ were there so we all had dinner together.

A cloudy start to our day but still very pretty





Our first lock of the day



Second lock

More views from the bridge of the surrounding countryside

More homes tucked into the hills

Another view from the bridge

Wow - a McDonald's!  (no dock so we couldn't go in)

A panoramic view



Docktails with Bob, Sharon, Jane, Marcel (the harbormaster), Jack, Julie and Curt

Our home for the night

Nearly Perfect and Spirit tied up on the wall

A nice, sunny start to our day

More views from the bridge

Little Falls, New York

More views

June 22, 2015 - Erie Canal - Day 1 - Schenectady Yacht Club

We left Waterford at 8:55 for our first day on the Erie Canal.  We traveled through 6 locks; starting at 15’ above sea level and ending at 151’ above sea level.  The scenery along the canal was beautiful.  We spotted Llenroc (Cornell spelled backwards) overlooking Mohawk River, a 30,000 sq. ft. private residence with 10 bathrooms, 15 fireplaces, an indoor pool and bar.  We tied up at the Schenectady Yacht Club at 1:00.  This is not really a yacht club and is not near Schenectady, but the scenery is very pretty and there was a lot of history connected with the clubhouse.   The original Erie Canal runs through here and horses and mules were kept in what is now the clubhouse.  There are still signs of the original canal on the property.   We walked around the grounds, relaxed a little, and then had a nice dinner aboard Spirit.  Two other Loopers (Ivory Lady and Next Chapter) pulled in late afternoon.  We had met them in Cape May.

Entering our first lock of the day - E2

Second lock - E3



Holding the line waiting for the canal to fill

Beautiful scenery behind us

View from the bridge along the Canal

The last lock of the day - complete with waterfall

More beautiful scenery

Llenroc Mansion

Clubhouse for the yacht club

Part of the original Erie Canal on the property

June 20-21, 2015 - Waterford, NY

We left Shady Harbor at 8:15 (after fueling and pumping out) and traveled north on the Hudson River.  We had a flotilla of about 5 boats heading to Waterford.  It was a nice trip up.  We passed Albany and Troy and then went through our first lock - the Federal Lock.  We arrived at 12:15 and got a place on the wall with water and electricity at the Waterford Welcome Center.  Waterford is the start of the locks on the Erie Canal and is a very cute little water side town that caters to boaters.  We walked into town for lunch and then had dinner with Jack and Jane on our boat.  Sunday started with a little rain but the sun came out late morning.  Jack and Jack walked into town to breakfast.  There was a farmers market today which brought out all the boaters and the towns people.  There was some music and a lot of fresh fruits, vegetables and baked goods.  We walked into town for a good dinner with Jack and Jane.  Then it was back to the boat to begin preparations for leaving tomorrow. 

Good bye Shady Harbor (marina owner's 70 ft Hatteras on the left)

Albany, New York

Town Hall

Waterford lock

Old lock (looking up) - barges were pulled through by mules

Old lock (looking down)

Jack and Jack repositioning Spirit - pulling it like the old mules used to

Boat entering Waterford 2 E lock

Now he's ready to leave the lock

Main street in Waterford

An old church

View of Waterford city dock



June 19, 2015 - Shady Harbor Marina, New Baltimore

After checking all our sources for the status of the flooding in the Erie Canal, the decision was made to leave tomorrow morning to head to Waterford.  Martha (Field Trip), Sue (Irish Lady Too), Jane (Spirit) and I got a ride to the grocery store for provisions and for our Looper meal in the evening.  The owner and staff at Shady Harbor Marina were great and were willing to do anything for us.  There is a pool, great laundry facilities (which I also used today), and a nice picnic area with gas grills.  We all bought something to cook on the grill and something to pass around for dinner.  We had quite a group -- Martha and Bob (Field Trip); Kurt and Sue (Irish Lady Too), Gerry and Judie (R Island), Dave and Jane (Biscuit), Gary and Ingrid (Bucket List), and Jack and Jane (Spirit).  It was a typical Looper dinner - lots of food, lots of wine, and lots of laughs.

Groceries stacked among the lumber

View of the marina from the top of the hill (Nearly Perfect is the first one on the left)

Looper dinner - Jack, Judie, Gerry, Bob, Jack and Jane

Ingrid, Dave, Martha, Bob, Gary

Nice picnic area under the tent

Bath house (on the left), pool and service building

The picnic area

Chloe - the marina dog (Brian, the owner, wouldn't let us feed her though)