Life in the Slow Lane (The Pearl): Erie Canal

Showing posts with label Erie Canal. Show all posts

Aug. 25 – Thoroughbred Horse Racing

Baldwinsville Free Dock

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” ―Mother Teresa

Early Saturday morning our friends from Oneonta called...they raise horses at their Waterhill Farm. One of their babies was running in a race at the Finger Lakes Racetrack and they wanted to know if we'd like to join them. Of course we wanted to! They picked us up in Baldwinsville and off we went for a day of fun at the racetrack. Finger Lakes Racetrack isn't as fancy as the Saratoga Race Track that we visited last summer, but it sure was fun watching a horse run that our friends had raised.

Playin Disco is a three year old filly bred on Waterhill Farm and owned by Dr. Blum. This is her first year to race. She came in third today, but she won a race back in June. It was so exciting watching her run and of course being at the track with breeders meant we got access to places others didn't. We had a wonderful day watching the horses run and catching up with Maryann and George.

Playin Disco coming into the paddock

Getting ready in the paddock

Playin Disco heading to the track

Playin Disco came in third in her race

Enjoying the races with George and Maryann

After the races we went to the barns to visit Playin Disco

George and Maryann really love and miss their horse

Maryann talking to Playin Disco's trainer

We had dinner at the Lock 24 Restaurant.

Aug. 23-24 – Baldwinsville, NY

Baldwinsville Free Dock

“A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes

We woke up Thursday (8/23) and checked the weather reports for Lake Ontario...windy, but it looked doable and better than any day in the near future. We decided we'd take our chances...we really didn't want to wait in Cape Vincent for a week. Most of the way across the lake to Oswego was bouncy but not too uncomfortable. That all changed about four miles out...the wind and the waves picked up and it was one of the roughest rides we've ever had. We didn't bury the bow, but we came very close. We could see the inlet, but the only bearable way we could make any head way was to tack back and forth...it was a long, very uncomfortable ride and it felt amazing once we passed the lighthouse coming into the harbor. We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing on the wall at Lock 7 and picking up the mess in the cabin.

Our path coming into Owsego

We had quite a mess in the cabin...two broken wine glasses, one broken frame and the contents of every cabinet was out of place.

Some may think the canal is boring, but we really enjoyed the comfort of not rocking while we were in Oswego.

Friday morning we headed south to Baldwinsville to meet up with the crew of Magnolia, we hadn't seen them since Block Island two years ago. It felt nice to be back in the calm, peaceful, protected canal. Baldwinsville has a nice park next to Lock 24...it's a great place to spend a little time. Stan got a haircut and I did a little shopping before spending the evening with Anthony and Annette catching up on all their adventures.

We watched this Bald Eagle catch a fish and enjoy his breakfast. What a sight.

Blue Herons have always been one of my favorite birds to watch...this one was pruning his feathers.

The orange feet on these ducks caught my eye. We were entertained all the way to Baldwinsville by lots of birds.

The Pearl coming into Erie Canal Lock 24 in Baldwinsville. Thank you Anthony for the great pictures.

The visitor center at the free dock in Baldwinsville.

Our beautiful view from the boat

We enjoyed a wonderful visit with the crew of Magnolia at the Lock 24 Restaurant.

Annette, Anthony, Susie and Stan

Aug. 10 - The Oswego Canal

Minneto Free Dock

“Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today.” —James Dean

I’m not sure why we make plans...our relaxed take it easy trip has already been filled with two very long days. We found out diesel was .80 cheaper a gallon in Brewerton than the price on the lake, so we went to Baldwinsville last night. Long day, 70 miles...thinking we’d have a short day today. Go get diesel and then stop in Phoenix at lock one of the Oswego Canal. Nice plan, but there was no room at the inn...sort of speak. The lock had been down all morning and no one was moving. Luckily for us we only had to wait about 30 minutes on the blue line for the lock to begin operating. The only issue now was time. We wanted to get all the way to Oswego and miles wise it wasn't far, but we had six more locks we needed to do. Unfortunately they stop operating the locks at 5:00. We didn’t make Oswego...we got stuck in Minetto. No eating out tonight as planned...hopefully things will go smoother tomorrow.

History Lesson:
The original Oswego Canal opened in 1828, three years after the Erie Canal was completed. It's 23.7 miles long and connects the Erie Canal to Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence Seaway. The modern canal basically follows the route of the Oswego River, equipped with 7 locks that lower boats 118' to the lake. The Oswego Canal officially begins at the "Three Rivers" confluence of the Oneida, Seneca and Oswego rivers near Phoenix, NY and ends in Oswego, NY on the shore of Lake Ontario. This is the only route from the Atlantic/Hudson River system to Lake Ontario fully within the US. Along the Oswego River a few canal towns occupy the banks. These include Phoenix, Fulton, Minetto and the port city of Oswego, each has its own personality.

The original 1825 Erie Canal bypassed Lake Ontario with the aim of securing an economic stranglehold on the western Great Lakes. It was quickly realized that a connection to Lake Ontario would be beneficial for trade with northern New York and Canada. When the canal opened it consisted of 15 locks and was 38 miles long. The Oswego Canal was one of the few canals built that was economically successful, largely because it allowed trade between the Atlantic Coast and and the raw-material-rich Canada.

Two locks along the Oswego Canal are a little unique...Lock O1 has two unique lift bridges, one inside the chamber, which is obsolete and remains open, and one just a few feet downstream of the lock which opens with the lower gate. The second is Lock O2, which has a swing bridge right across the center of the lock that provides access to the hydroelectric dam.

Lock O1 in Pheonix

Lock O2 in Fulton

This is the remnants of one of the original Oswego locks

The original canal can be seen along the river for several miles

Some of the sights we saw today.

May 24 - Last Day on the Erie Canal

Baldwinsville Free Town Dock

“It is not so much for its beauty that the sea makes a claim upon men's hearts, as for that subtle something, that quality of air, that emanation from the waves, that so wonderfully renews a weary spirit." —Unknown

Brewerton, NY

We left Sylvan Beach this morning. The first 20 miles were across Oneida Lake. It was a smooth trip although the wind did pick up a little. We went through Brewerton, where we spent a few weeks on our first trip up the Erie Canal in 2012. That year we rented a car to do a little sightseeing before we headed home for the birth of our first Grandwonder. Today we cruised straight by remembering our time here.

We went through our last two locks on the Erie and docked in Baldwinsville at their beautiful free town dock. The whole town is pretty and the canal runs right through downtown with lots of restaurants and shops along the bank. We arrived in time to have a late lunch and do a little browsing in a few of the shops. We thought we might be the only cruisers going this way, but three other boats joined us this evening. Baldwinsville is a nice relaxing stop and could be a nice place to stay for awhile, but we are only two days away from Ithaca, so we'll move on tomorrow.

Aerial view of Lock 24, the free dock and part of Baldwinsville. We had lunch at the blue building on the left above the bridge

Typical scenery today...there were homes along the river in some areas

Looking across Lock 24 at the town dock

Our view at lunch. The river is flowing very fast, there is a lot of water up stream

Lunch in town...the view was nice and the beer was cold. The rest wasn't much.

A street in Baldwinsville along the canal

Looking across the Seneca River from our boat

Looking east to Lock 24 and Baldwinsville

Our home for the night

May 23 - Sylvan Beach

Sylvan Beach Free Dock

"Tourists don’t know where they’ve been, travelers don’t know where they’re going.” ―Paul Theroux

Today was a much better day on the water, lots of sunshine and warmer by this afternoon, but still cold this morning. We enjoyed having the heater on as we ate breakfast. The past two days our travel on the Erie Canal was mainly in the Mohawk River, lots of bends and meandering...today's travel was in a man made canal. Mostly a straight shot from Ilion to Sylvan Beach and we only had four locks. Two lifted us up and two brought us down to the elevation of Oneida Lake.

Morning mist on the water

Lock 19...my favorite lot on the Erie Canal

We spotted a lot of birds today...we even saw an eagle several times, but I didn't get a blog worthy picture

Our first lock down on the Erie Canal (Lock 21)

Waiting to lock down, the canal in front of us is 25' lower

Our typical view today

We got to Sylvan Beach in good time and it looked like a reunion…almost all the boats from Waterford are here. Water levels in Lake Ontario are still high so most are waiting a few more days before heading that way. We found a nice little restaurant on the beach to enjoy happy hour; we even got to visit with another couple that has been going through the locks with us the past few days. Then we enjoyed spending a little more time with our new friends Shelley and Kevin from Mrs. P. It was nice having the down time after three long days.

Sylvan Beach...looking back at Harpoon Eddie's where we had happy hour