Sleepless at Lock 13

Interesting night. The thunderstorms moved on, but the rain continued. We settled in... Joan made a great supper and we played some Yahtzee and cards. It was one of those rare occasions where I was winning... all the time.

The rain let up enough to get the log away from the back of the boat and put the motor down. In neutral, the motor surged as I powered up, then settled into a steady roar. May be some water in the fuel, but the filters seem clear. More to come on that later.

As the rain lightened, the temperature went up... and the humidity. We opened the center window and put a fan in it to keep some air moving through the boat. I turned on a small light so we could see to play cards... damn mosquito... and another... in seconds, we were embroiled in hand-to-hand combat with scores of those nasty critters. I've never seen them come on that fast! At first we were keeping score of our "kills", but the numbers grew fast and furious. We turned the fan around and put the light outside under the open center window to try to draw them out of the cabin. Izzy was in "hunter mode" as she did her part to eliminate the pests. Since I have asthma, I'm not crazy about spraying OFF, especially in a confined space... but, we were gaining on these little bastards; desperate times call for desperate measures.

If anyone had been outside watching, it must have looked like we were performing some odd tribal dance. In the end, good triumphed evil. Yes, I consider these skeeters evil... even these tiny NE versions... on the Gulf Coast, they're so big that we hit 'em with a club, then Joan takes the front legs, I take the back legs and we toss 'em overboard. But, I digress.

We closed up the front window, sprayed OFF on the screens we could keep cracked open and went to bed, exhausted. Between the clattering trains (which Joan loves) and the thumping noise of Izzy going after the last few survivors, there wasn't much sleep.

But, it's a new day. No rain for now, just a fog over the water and in the valley to the west. No sign of the buzzing, biting pests, but that may just be a retreat while they gather up for the next round. We both have some fresh "wounds", but we dispatched many of them... they brought it on by drawing first blood.

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In another vein, I am getting tired of having the same conversation over and over... "Great boat you have there. Love those Cape Dorys."

Me: "It's a C-Dory. Not the same thing as the Cape Dory boats."

Them: "Oh, I think they're made by the same company. Great boats."

Me: "Yeah, we were sailors. The Cape Dorys are nice sailboats; they even made a 28' trawler, but this boat is made in the Northwest. Not the same company. C not Cape. They've been around since the 70s."

Them: "Well, the name looks the same. Even the same logo. I'm pretty sure that's made by Cape Dory."

Me: "We went to the factory in Washington State when we ordered this boat. Definitely not the same company, but it sure is a great boat."

It goes on while we try to educate each other. I've had that same conversation several times a day since we came to this part of the country. Cape Dorys are part of the culture here, just like C-Dorys are in the PNW. But, you know that. I'm now taking a new tack...

Them: "Nice boat you have there. Love those Cape Dorys."

Me: "Thanks!"

Construction Zone...

Nice long showers, some breakfast, and then it was time to move on. This section of the canal could be best described as a construction zone; we passed quite a few state work boats... dredges, cranes, tugs, and more. There was also a lot of debris in the water. The canal intertwines with the Mohawk River in this area.

We covered 36 miles and went through 5 locks. We’re currently tied off just west of Lock 13. Our motor is mis-behaving... cutting out above 2500 RPM. Just before we got to the lock, I pushed the throttle forward to try to beat a thunderstorm that was sneaking up behind us. Yeah, that didn’t work. So, we tied off to the lock wall and we’ll spend the night here, amidst the lightning, thunder, rain, and wind. The lockmaster did come out to the boat to check on us and said that we could come into the pump house if the weather gets severe.

I checked over a few things before the rain really hit, but couldn’t find anything obviously wrong. While Joan and I hurried to get tied off before Mother Nature let loose on us, a half dozen Amish folks came over to admire our boat. They disappeared when the rain got heavier.
In the meantime, we do have an internet connection, so I’ve asked for some diagnostic help for the motor... we certainly have the time to research it. No TV reception (whoda thunk that in New York State?).

One of the locks we went through today (Lock 17) is different from all the rest... the door to this lock goes up and down, instead of opening from the middle; the door opens up and you go under it. It’s also the largest single step on the Erie, at 40 feet. It was impressive. Joan said she felt like she was in prison as we lowered into that tall lock.

On to Ilion

We really enjoyed our stay at the Lock 20 Park last night. It was about 8:30 when we shoved off... easy to do, since we were right at the lock - just call the lockmaster and let him know we are requesting passage... we didn't untie from the dock until he was opening the lock doors.


Another pretty morning. This section of the canal is relatively unpopulated; at least you don't see many houses from the water. There is a lengthy biking/jogging path that runs along some of this stretch...


We did 16 miles and passed through two locks. Only saw two boats going the other direction. While there is great historical significance to the Erie Canal, it certainly can't be cost effective in its operation. I have no doubt that many of the small towns along the canal are dependent on it for bringing tourists in. Very wooded, we also saw many logs and branches floating in the water today.


We stopped for the day in Ilion. We were needed a laundromat and groceries... and the city marina has a small laundry and the grocery store is only a three-minute walk away. We had lunch at the restaurant at the marina and thoroughly enjoyed the food AND the air conditioning. Then laundry. We sat in the shade of some big trees while letting the machines do their job. Off to the grocery store, then another 4 blocks to another store to get the stuff the first one didn't have. We walked Izzy, but she wasn't much interested in exercise today... musta been the heat.

Here's a shot of one of the very few boats that went by this afternoon...

It looks to be purposefully built for running on the canals: short enough to get under the fixed bridges. A passenger boat, it looks like it has cabins for overnight trips.

The amenities here at Ilion are decent: 30/50 amp electrical, water, cable TV, wifi, shower, and the previously mentioned laundry. The only drawback for us is the height of the wall... we have to climb up to get off the boat. Not a big deal.

On to Lock 20

An absolutely gorgeous day today on the Erie Canal. The temps were in the upper 70s, almost no wind, and a beautiful blue sky. Wild Blue moved along the glassy canal like a magic carpet...


3 locks and 25 miles today. We stopped for the day outside of Lock 20. There is a pretty park alongside the lock, a place to tie off, and 15 amp power...



Izzy got to go for a nice long walk in the grass; we all enjoyed some time in the shade. It was peaceful and quiet until late afternoon, when a group of young kids discovered the dock. They ran back and forth on it... one young girl would see something in the water at one end and they'd all run to see. Than another kid would see something at the other end of the dock and they'd all run past us again. Nice kids, just a LOT of energy. We fielded some questions and explained that the boat is our "home" while we're traveling on the water.


It was after sunset before we had the dock to ourselves again... and blissful peace and quiet.

Locking Through...

The following is a pictorial of how this whole lock situation works. Our friend, Dave, shot the photos as we went through Lock 24 today, heading east.


First, the lock master opens the doors and you drive in. That’s Wild Blue on the left in the photo above.



Then, you pick a spot on the lock wall and get yourself tied to a line or a cable that is connected to the lock wall. That’s what we’re doing in the photos above. Our technique is to get the bow of the boat close so Joan can grab the line with a boat pole. She then wraps a line around that line or cable. Then I put the boat in reverse and swing the stern in towards the wall and go back to the cockpit of the boat and do the same thing with another line.


When the lock master can see that all the boats are secured, he closes the doors and starts letting water out or in. In this case, we were going down. You can see in this photo how much lower Wild Blue is on the lock wall than the photos above.


When the water matches the level outside the lock, the lock master opens the doors, we shove off, and motor out of the lock. In this case, we went down about 15 feet.

The water is moved in and out hydraulically and the process is generally smooth. Wind can make a real difference, as can the different types of attachment to the lock walls. So far, the locks we’ve been through here have been pretty nice.

My thanks to Dave for these photos!

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We are down for the night in Sylvan Beach, on the east shore of Lake Oneida. Heading east across the lake, we checked weather - no marine warnings. By the time we were half way across the lake, the radio erupted with a weather alert... severe thunderstorm warnings in our area. We got to Sylvan Beach and tied off to the wall before the storms moved in. Nothing severe for us (some wind, rain, and lightning); talked to Dave, who is about 60 miles west, and they had some BIG winds with that line of storms.

We were "rocked" to sleep.

Concert

The concert with the Jimmy Buffett tribute band (Parrots of the Caribbean) was the reason we stayed an extra couple days. Mother Nature threatened to rain on the event, but it got started just after 6:00. The opening band was good, but not a lot of excitement. Just before the POTC were to start, it began to sprinkle... they quickly covered the PA equipment with blue tarps. Unfortunately, that didn't help the sound quality much when they did get going.


The band was good, but not an "event" like a real Jimmy Buffett concert. But, the price was right and we had a good vantage point across the canal, away from the crowd. We sat with our new friends for a while, but came back to the boat to get out of the rain. It sprinkled on and off the rest of the evening, and then just before the band was to finish, it POURED. The band had worked hard for the crowd, and the crowd was now running out. Too bad... instead of a big finish, it just fizzled out.


On the bright side, the rain also quieted the noisy people on the boats behind us. We were expecting a loud all-night party from them, and it got real quiet real fast.

Play Date...

OK, nothing to do with cruising, but too darn cute to not pass on. Izzy and Snack had a play date today...



Yeah, we all get along fine.


Izzy isn't used to seeing a dog smaller than she is.

Time to go watch the concert.