I've got a mule; her name is Sal,
15 miles on the Erie Canal,
She's a good old worker and a good old pal,
15 miles on the Erie Canal
Song lyrics by Thomas Allen, 1905
When the canal first opened the barges were pulled normally by mules on the side of the canal called towpaths. Today the canal towpaths are used as trails. One can run, walk, or cycle from Albany to Buffalo. An excellent way to see and learn about American history in all the towns and villages along the canal.
Lock procedures for a successful "lock through".
We were rather nervous because the previous locks we passed through on Lake Okeechobee, the Dismal Swamp and Troy were elementary compared to this monstrosity. This is the first lock of the "The Flight of Five". What makes this series of locks special is by the end of the 5th lock our boats will have been lifted a total of 169 feet in 1.5 miles making it the highest lift in the shortest distance of any of series of locks in the world!
Made it through the first lock and now heading into the second one. Locks are like elevators for boats, lifting and lowering them as needed to travel along the waterway.
Boaters hang their fenders off the side of the boat to protect it from the lock wall. Some boats have fenders hanging on both sides just in case another boat looses their grip and their boat behaves like a bumper car.
It is best to keep the bow and stern of the boat against the wall. This is accomplished by using the weighted lines hanging down the wall. One person hangs on to a line from the bow of the boat and the other person grabs a separate line and is positioned on the stern. Water level in the lock chamber before it is filled and
after. Now we are level with the water we are heading into outside of the lock.
Enjoying the view.
Heading to Lock E-10 which was the last lock of the day for us.
Ahh, made it through the first 10 locks unscathed and unembarrassed! We tied up on the dock wall which has electricity and potable water in Riverlink Park. Gorgeous park setting where on summer weekends they usually have live music.
The head boat is TerrMar IV. Her name is Terry, his is Mark and they have 4 girls, hence the name. They had been stuck in a town between 2 earlier locks that had been closed for 4 weeks. After 2 weeks they decided to drive home and returned when there was word that the remaining locks would reopen. We all had the same goal for the next day. Get through locks E-11 through E-15 (these had been closed for 6 weeks for repair work to the locks from the damage they suffered from the flooding as well as clearing the canal of the debris that had been washed into the river) while the gettin' was good!
Larry and Cindy from Bucket List joined us for a docktails.
Got an early morning start so we could get to Lock E-11 by 8 am.
We lost out on being the first to go through the troubled lock that morning but we were next in line. Upon exiting we see "Mimi" who measures 100' sitting just outside of the lock. She draws 5.5' and was told to stay put for a few more hours until they had finished dredging the channel at which point she could proceed without running aground.
Here they are dredging the channel to make the depth navigatable.
And another barge dredging. It won't be too much longer Mimi!
To the left of the lock we are heading into are moveable dams. "Movable dams are designed to regulate water flow from the Mohawk River. While they look like bridges, only two carry roadways. The gates of the dam are lowered into the river to form navigable pools during the summer but are pulled out of the water in winter to clear the way for ice and debris-filled floodwaters."
Scenic view.
This is the first sign of activity heading east on the canal!
Ahh, a stampede of boats.
A pile of debris taken off the river. There was so much still floating we would call this a good start.
The above contraption is a Guard Gate. "This type of gate helps to isolate sections of the canal in case of emergency, such as a break in the canal wall, accident, or extreme high water. It diverts water into the adjoining river which in this case is the Mohawk River. They are also used when a section of the canal needs to be drained for maintenance or winter freeze protection."
A couple more scenic views.
Heading into another lock. Something I haven't discussed is the speed limit. There are signs posted with the speed limits. Locks E-2 to E-6: 5 mph, locks E-6 to E-12: 45 mph, so depending on what locks you are traveling through they will have specified speed limits.
This is a big catamaran beauty. Lots of space inside. We looked into getting one but even the used ones were way outside of our budget.
A double guard gate.
Heading to another lock. A couple locks back there were 2 wave runners that zipped by us in the canal. They happened to be 2 young sheriffs. Wow, what a gig. Zipping up and down the canal which was virtually dead except for us.
As we got closer to the lock above we saw 2 wave runners zipping from behind, pass us and stop 50 feet away. Surely, they weren't the same two we had seen a couple locks ago but they turned out to be one in the same. As we watched them depart in the same direction they came from we noticed a cruiser coming from behind us at a high rate of speed and kicking up quite a wake.
Sheriffs heading in the direction of the cruiser.
Looks like the cruiser is going to get a big fat ticket. Luckily, we didn't have to wait for the cruiser. The lock master had us motor right on in! Yeah!
Just passed through the last lock of today and heading around the bend to Mariners Harbor Marina in Sylvan Beach.
Straight ahead is Oneida Lake which we will be going across the next morning. The marina slips are located up the canal on the right hand side.
This is a resort community where it rock and rolls during the summer. Swim, cruise and fish during the day and party hardy at night. The houses are an elbow distance away from each other with the exception of these two homes. Can you see our little guy sitting in the canal?
Captain John's restaurant with a Caribbean twist caught our fancy. Of course, the 2 for 1 margaritas didn't hurt. We had fun talking to the bartender, Andy, who was also one of the owners as well as several other interesting patrons. We were invited to join them in Jamaica this coming January where a group of them are headed. Hmm, sounds like fun!
One way the restaurant promotes itself is by tooling around town in their 1930 Ford Model A antique car and honking it's "ahooga" horn. Can you see the ear to ear grin on Bill's face?
We decided to get an early morning start and get across the shallow Oneida Lake because the winds were picking up by midday.
Heading out of the canal.
and into the lake.
Say good morning sunshine!
There is a house in Sylvan Beach, they call it the rising sun. See her picking her head up?
Yes, we made it before the winds picked up. Open water in a shallow lake with easterly winds blowing 20 knots is never a good thing. I liked the western side of Oneida Lake much better. The water looked cleaner and the homes weren't on top of one another.
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