Stats for June 25, 2019

Origin: Albany Anchorage

Destination: Waterford Free Wall

Distance: 8.3 miles

Speed: 6.3 mph

Time on the Move: 1 hour and 18 minutes

A few weeks ago we set dates and made plans to have my mom, Kathy, fly in to Albany on 6/25 and out of Burlington, Vermont on 6/29. Of course setting a schedule and making plans when boating is always a gamble, but so far we’ve been pretty spot on, and this time turned out to be no different!! Still, it was a relief to know we had just a short run today to make it to our meeting spot.

Happy to meet a deadline, however, not quite mentally prepared for some of the excitement the short trip would bring us. First of all, there was a lock!! We weren’t 100% aware that there was a lock, so we were kind of surprised to see it up ahead and even more surprised to realize we were back into locking territory. We’ve had 7 1/2 months with no locks, so it was a scramble to remember our roles and remember what kind of communication was necessary to get us through. Regardless, we did pretty well.

In the lock, however, the lockmaster asked us about our route and we told him we were taking the Champlain straight north to the St. Lawrence Seaway. Most loopers turn west at Waterford and take the Erie. Our plan has always been to continue north and take the old historical canals through Canada. The lockmaster said no, we actually weren’t. He was pretty sure we couldn’t clear some of the bridges heading north considering the high water, and I’ll be honest, he probably had a much better idea of what he was talking about than we did. We’ve gotten a tad lackadaisical in our planning (ahem…considering this lock surprised us).

We were quite taken off guard and had a moment of panic. We tried to ask as many questions as we could to gather information and knew we would have a day or so to do more research to make our decision. However, our minds were set on heading north, and my mom was flying out of Burlington, to the north, so we definitely had some planning to do.

See those rain clouds in that picture of the dam? That was our next adventure. It was supposed to pour buckets any minute, and we had about a 7 minute ride to the free wall. The free wall that is known to be overcrowded and packed with boaters, all arriving on a first come, first served basis. Oh boy. Would we get wet? Would there be room for us? What would we do if there was no space? What would we do if we couldn’t take the Champlain? So many uncertainties!

With the help of Nebo, a boat tracking app, we were able to communicate with other boats already on the free wall. They relayed that there were about 3 open spots. Our buddies on Parrot Bay out of Bay City, MI came to help catch our lines (they must not have wanted me to precariously dangle off the side of the boat to dock ourselves). The rain was just starting to come down in huge drops. For ease of docking, we pulled behind the last boat on the wall which put us right under a bridge. I’m not sure if it was a genius plan to keep us partly shielded from the rain or crazy because we had to listen to the car noise, but it was the easiest spot. Several other boats nearby came to make sure we were all set, even in the pouring rain. Boaters are the best and of course, we return the favor, helping others dock and sharing info on Nebo with others headed that way.

Later that morning we helped 3 other boats in to the dock in the pouring rain and waded through puddles along the sidewalk each time. It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t a picture perfect boating day. But what can ya do?! Keep your foul weather gear close, I guess. Everyone was just thankful to have space on the wall. We did have to do some space shuffling to have enough room for everyone. And there was a near miss of 2 boats that almost collided right in front of us, but it turned out all good.

We hunkered down and hid from the rain for the rest of the morning hours. Mike also did some research and made some phone calls, and it sounded like we could clear the lowest bridges on the Champlain by mere inches. It would be close, but we could do it. We called a few other lockmasters, just to make sure they were all in agreement. Champlain was a go for the next day.

Shortly after my mom arrived in the early afternoon, the rain cleared and the sun came out. It was HUMID! (Funny how we don’t think to take pics of the nasty, rainy days, but get the camera right back out when it’s sunny?!) We headed out and about to check out Erie Canal Lock 2, right in front of the free wall. This is the first lock most loopers head through on the Erie and construction started in 1907. This lock is also the 1st in a flight of 5 which means back to back locks to cover steep elevation changes in a short amount of time. Nobody wants to go over the rapids seen here, so they built a flight of locks instead.

After walking past the locks, we walked through downtown and browsed an antique/pawn shop (don’t touch, look with your eyes, hands to yourself….ya know, lots of fun!!). We were hot and hungry, but nothing in town seemed like a perfect fit, so we went back to the boat and ordered pizza. Let me tell you, pizza delivery to the boat is always a great idea!! While we waited, the kids fished and we had cocktail hour.

This was our beautiful reward for the ups and downs of the day. Another great day on the water, despite all the obstacles to overcome.

Thanks for reading and following along!! More adventures to come!!