All good things...

June 15, 2009

Like all the blogs I've read before...
Whose info I could not ignore,
I'm glad you read along,
You wanted to belong,
I hope it wasn't a bore.

To all the followers out there,
Who followed me with care,
I wish that it weren't true,
That I can't continue,
But that wouldn't be quite fair.

You wonder why I sing this song,
You wonder just what has gone wrong,
That's someplace I won't go,
It's on a need to know,
Let's just say it was time to bang the gong.

So all good things come to an end,
My best wishes I have to send,
Good luck to Zig and Eve,
My blessing you receive,
Without us you will have to fend.

OK, the trip is over for Alex and I. This blog will shut down in a few days. If you want more pics like the ones posted, contact me at davechesney@gmail.com.

So long, and thanks for all the fish.

Waterford

June 13, 2009

End of the Erie Canal, at last! Tomorrow we lock through the Federal Lock and we’re on the Hudson.

Tied up at the wall in Waterford. Nice place for boaters, although the showers could be hotter. Wore my NY Erie Canal Corporation t-shirt all day; only one lock attendant noticed, and he asked if I wanted free passage. I told him I bought the shirt in a thrift shop in Buffalo (didn’t want to get Chris in trouble). I asked if I got free beer with the shirt. That set him to laughing. All the other lock attendants were very officious – I suspect the lock operator network was at work. “Hey, one of Carmella’s stooges is on the Pleiades. Look sharp.”

Went into town (two blocks – whoopee) to an Irish pub for burgers and beer. Alex and I explored town while Ziggy and Eve went back to the boat. Wasn’t much to explore, but we saw a few bars and ended up back at the Irish pub because the rain was too intense to comfortably make the trek back to the boat. One beer later, we went to leave, only to be met at the door by Chris coming in looking for us (see previous post). He had been tracking our progress all day and knew we were tied up in Waterford. Figuring us to be the boozehounds we are, he went looking for us. (Side note: MS Word accepts “boozehounds” in its spellchecker.) So, back into the Irish pub where I bought a few rounds and we all made plans to meet up again on the return trip. Chris has promised an official Erie Canal cap for me and a sweatshirt for Alex.

Farmer’s market is on tomorrow where we’re tied up. Going to re-provision and then supplement with supermarket fare. Then we’ll be casting off for the run to Catskill on the Hudson, where we can step the mast and start looking like a sailboat once again.

Goin’ back to Russo’s, Russo’s, Russo’s

June 13, 2009

So, we did manage to make Amsterdam last night in time for the Wings game thanks to a favorable current and good weather. Got a hot tip from the operator in Lock 12 to tie up before Lock 11 in Amsterdam and hoof it over to Russo’s, a little bar and grill across the tracks from the tie-up wall. Alex and I got to the bar for the first intermission – not bad.

The place was like freakin’ Cheers. I flagged the barmaid down and asked if we could put the Wings game on one of her three TVs. She asked, “Which one would you like?” I picked the closest one, naturally. A couple of guys at the bar said “Are you boaters?” Then, “Hey, we got boaters!” One of the guys peels off the bar; I thought he was going to hug me at first. He introduced himself (Chris) as the self-appointed canal ambassador and actual lock attendant and asked how we were liking our trip so far. Somewhere it came up that we hadn’t received any of the voluminous pamphlets available to canal travelers at the locks and he went around the corner. Turns out he had a mini-office there in the bar with all this literature. We now have about five copies of each. He kept going back for more and bringing the same stuff. He was really put out that no one had offered us any of this stuff to this point; he wanted me to call Carmella M. (Director of Locks, NY Canal System) and complain.

I mentioned that we had been rating the hot wings at each bar we had stopped at and that currently Pony’s in Middleport was the best. Chris immediately turns to Barbara behind the bar and orders us 20 wings on him. Then Mike bought us a beer. Then I bought them a beer. Then…well, you know how that goes.

Made the mistake of asking Mike what his job was. I was regaled with about two hours of intricate detail regarding the collection of back taxes in NY followed by a complete history of the NY State House, the major players, the power grabs, and a bunch of other arcane stuff. Now you have to picture Milton from the movie “Office Space.” Ziggy thought he looked like Wimpy from the old Popeye cartoons. Anyway, he followed me around most of the night providing yet more details about NY finances.

Meanwhile, back at the bar…Alex and Eve were sort of the center of attention. It didn’t help when they were dancing on the chairs to “Single Ladies (Put a ring on it).” Alex insists that standing on the chair rung is not the same as dancing on the chair. Whatever. Their songs were done and Chris put some Sinatra on. And then here came the Coach. Now the Coach looks a lot like Charlie Rich (Duane will understand). Maybe George Jones for the rest of you. Think smooth gray hair, sixty years old. Coach must have finally got enough booze in him to ask Alex to dance. They actually did pretty well; Alex must get her dancing talent from her mother. I wish I would have had the presence of mind to snap pics with the iPhone, but Mike was deep into the tax code by that time…

Sinatra gave way to Dean Martin on the ‘box. The song was “Houston”. If you remember the lyrics, the chorus goes: “Goin’ back to Houston, Houston, Houston.” We were all singing along and changed the lyric to “Russo’s”, Hence the title of this post.

Watched the last best hope for the Wings clang off the top bar. Found out from Tom that Phil, Mardo, and Adam were down at the Joe for the game. Tickets were $400. Too bad it didn’t have a different ending.

At the end of the night, well after the Wings game, Chris slipped a t-shirt into my hand. Turns out to be an official NY State Canal Corporation shirt, same as the lock operators wear. I’m wearing it today; hope it’s not illegal or something. Also got a business card from some guy who insisted that I call him if we needed anything for the trip. I mentioned offhand that our half-and-half had gone bad; they immediately went into a huddle (seriously) to debate where the closest grocery store was and how long it would take to get there and who could deliver half-and-half to the boat in the morning. I had to intervene and insist that we were capable of stopping at a store down the canal and assure them that they had been more than generous already.

Russo’s – my kind of place. A little bit goofy and the wings ain’t bad - second place behind Pony’s. I asked the girls for three words to describe the company last night: “creepy, old and creepy.” Overly harsh, I think.

Bye, bye, Baldwinsville

June 11, 2009

So, plans changed. We weren’t making as much progress as anticipated yesterday out of Newark, so I called Alex and re-routed her and Madeline to Baldwinsville. We had intended to stay at the marina there – even called ahead for a slip. Tying up was an issue, though. Pleiades bottomed out at the dock, the docking was very crowded, and getting out could be a real issue if the wind shifted onshore. It was a great place for the girls to find us, however; just a half-mile off the 690 freeway and with docks visible from the street. We actually only beat the girls by about a half-hour. After doing the pickup (and transfer of goodies – thanx, Vicki) we bade farewell to Madeline and shoved off.

The next lock was less than a mile away, and after waiting for them to open for a few minutes, we decided to bag it and tie up at the town wall overnight. Drank beer and got to the closest restaurant just after they closed the kitchen, so back to the boat for spaghetti and vino (Captain’s Choice, from Trader Joes!!). I made the spag and even got a compliment from Alex. Didn’t have any appropriate meat, so I cut up a bunch of dried sausages (like Slim Jims, just not as spicy) and threw them in. Pretty good, I’d say.

Got up early and were on the canal by 8:30. Hit a bit of a rainstorm crossing Oneida Lake. I was helming and saw what looked to be two piles of sticks in the middle of the lake. Got closer, and saw a bow wave (!). Turns out these were two replica ships like the Nina and Pinta with their masts down for canal passage. Sure looked strange head on, though. Talked to a couple of guys at Lock 20 who were canoeing the canal. They confirmed Pinta (or was it Nina?) and said that it had actually been the ship seen in the movie “1492”. Apparently, they had talked to the crews in the lock.

The other pic is of one of the last remaining sections of aqueduct left on the Erie Canal.

Spent the night just outside Lock 19, since it was rainy and getting dark. Ziggy was on the bow with a flashlight to watch for buoys and flotsam. Currently in Ilion, NY, which is the headquarters of Remington arms manufacturing. Probably will stop on the way back and take the tour.

Wifi getting real spotty (go figure – we’re getting closer to NYC!!). Even the AT&T drops out once in awhile. As a consequence, the daily updates may turn to every other day or something. It’s not because I’m tired of typing…

Newark, redux

June 9, 2009

Beautiful day for sailing, if we were sailing. We’re tied up at the wall in Newark, killing a day doing some needed stuff. Ziggy and Eve took both their laptops and are hoofing it down the road a ways to a computer repair place. I’m sitting on a swing with Arlene. (Wish it was Aaaarr-Lene from the Galley.) (Vicki – you didn’t read that.) Made Pillsbury cinnamon rolls for breakfast this am and only burned the bottoms a little. (Again, the crew survived all his attempts to poison them and take the treasure for himself and Aaaarr-Lene).

We have to do some soldering of a new GPS coax today, and will take advantage of the free laundry. I’m taking advantage of the down time to clean up my email and pictures folders.

Found out the local library had a $3 per bag book sale; all the books you could pack into a plastic shopping bag for $3. I restrained myself – only bought one bag’s worth. I was wondering where I would be able to replenish my supply of boat books – those throw-away novels that I would never, under other circumstances, consider reading. I think I’m set for the trip, now.

Watched the Wings lose with a bunch of guys at a bar. Yuengling is pronounced “Ying-ling”, much to my consternation.

We pick up Alex tomorrow evening, at Brewerton (North of Syracuse; West end of Oneida Lake).

Fairport

OK, another out-of-sequence post, but I just had to submit another post about bridges. No, we’re out of Tonawanda County, so no more mental images of libidinous steel structures.

This is the famous (on the canal, at least) slanting lift bride in Fairport. As you can see from the pics, it sits at an angle over the canal to match differing street heights on either side. When it lifts up, the north side lifts more than the south, producing a level bridge when fully raised.

Fairport looked like a real neat town; too many boats to count when we went through. Looked like it had a lot of history and activity. Hope we get a chance to stop there on the way back. (Yes, Vicki, Marta and Marty – I do remember Munising).

Newark

Monday, June 8, 2009

“Gee, Tony, ‘ya ‘tink I should go whack dose guys?”

“Sal, if I told ‘ya once I tol’ you a ‘tousan times, we don’t ‘whack’ anymore – dat’s so old school.”

OK, we’re in Newark, and not the one that readily comes to mind from the opening credits of The Sopranos. This place just spruced up its canal frontage and sports a brand-new tie-up wall, free wifi, showers, laundry, etc. By far the best facilities we have encountered to date – and possibly the friendliest chamber of commerce representative who gave us the grand tour of the facilities. The down side is the town has nothing going for it. It’s a bland, white bread, inbred redneck town. Even the chain stores and motels are the second-rate ones. It does have, apparently, a top-notch ambulance service; the sirens have been going off every hour since we tied up. Maybe the lack of excitement finally pushed someone to go postal. Sirens and horns went off again as I type. As Eve notes, “Something is seriously wrong with this town.”

It didn’t help that we had a meal at this place that was recommended to us. The food matched the town and was way overpriced besides. Tony Soprano would not stand for this…

I miss the wings at Pony’s in Middleport.

Maybe pics tomorrow.

Tow Paths

Between Lockport and Spencerport, a lot of the historical tow path remains. These are the level areas on either side of the canal that the mules would walk, with long lines attached to the barges. The original canal was only four feet deep and as the canal was modernized, many of the original channels were abandoned. However, it is still possible to see the tow paths in some areas.

The canal is not very wide – maybe three times Pleiades, which would make it about 90 feet. It looks to be about the distance between bases in baseball. I have held conversations with people on the bank as we go by. One of the hazards is fishing lines – not a mile goes by without somebody having a line in the water. Must be the cheap thrill in this neck of the woods.

Some of these shots are from Middleport – I’m trying to show the level of the land north of the canal. I mentioned in a previous post how the canal was higher than the surrounding land and how the canal authorities checked for leaks daily. It’s hard to get a picture that reproduces what the eye sees.

Oh, and somewhere around Middleport we passed over a road. That’s right – there is one road (called Culvert Road for obvious reasons) that goes underneath the Erie Canal. That’s a strange feeling, believe me.

Bridges of Tonawanda County, Ch. 2

“I want to meet your mother,” he said to the swinger.

“I don’t know if I’m ready for that,” she said. “Why?”

They say that you should always look at the mother to see what the girl will look like in twenty years. He couldn’t say that, of course. He had to be more discreet.

“I want to know if she’ll approve of me,” he said. Ah, the old approval trick.

So he met Mom. She had been a swinger too, back in her day. Now all she did was watch them pass her by and dream of her younger days, when she could swing with the best of them.

He politely said his good-byes. “Hey – don’t let the lock gate hit you on the stern when you leave,” the swinger said derisively.

It didn’t take long for his next encounter. She was strongly built, with a huge mass. “Hell,” he thought, “I need something different – something with some junk in the trunk.”

He took a chance: “Are you the erection that I’ve been looking for?”

“Funny thing, sweetie, I was going to ask you the same thing”, she shot back flirtatiously. “And if you like mass, baby, you are going to like me.”

He did like her. She was ready to swing her mass any time he wanted. But again, that pervading feeling of wanderlust caused him to move on.

He was entranced when he found her. She was sleek, and young. She seemed made of a whole different substance. Again he found himself floating blissfully beneath her, gazing up at the private, secret underneath that few had seen.

“They call it a ‘Brazilian’”, she answered his unspoken question. “Just the bare girders and nothing else.”

“I like it,” he sighed, contentedly, even as the county line approached…

Lockport

June 7, 2009

OK, this post is a bit late – we left Lockport a few days ago. I’ve been meaning to put it together, but somehow I've been preoccupied dreaming up new encounters for Clint and Meryl. Lockport is the first big step down in elevation on the canal. There are two locks that together drop the water level about 50 ft. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, herewith are some pics of our first lock experience. You can see Eve and Ziggy relative to the top of the lock. It takes a few minutes to drop the water level and you don’t really feel it unless you’re watching the wall of the lock.

Lots of old funky storefronts in Lockport; maybe we’ll get to explore more on the trip back.

Spencerport

June 7, 2009

Words fail me.

Middleport

June 7, 2009

Nice little wayside (see the anchor above E34/35 on the map). Found an Irish Pub named Pony’s on Main St. Best chicken wings ever! Ziggy and I split an order of 20. We had too many Yeunglings to count while watching the Red Wings demolish the Pens. Sat next to a crazy woman at the bar who insisted on showing me pictures of her new pool liner on her Blackberry. And some story about being her current boyfriend’s baby sitter many years ago. Pure small town bar goofiness. Eve mimicked the Red Wings by demolishing Ziggy in bubble hockey. The bartended even bought Eve and I a beer at the end of the night.

Retired to the boat for scotch and Ziggy’s cigar.

Even I can appreciate the civil engineering that went into the canal. Imagine a highway cut into the side of a hill. Now fill the highway with water. That’s the Erie Canal. You actually look down on the countryside to the north (toward Lake Ontario) as you go by on this last stretch. Very strange feeling. Plenty of houses and some farms on the down slope; it would make me nervous as hell to have that canal above me like that. Images of the Johnstown flood come to mind.

The stretch from Lockport to Middleport had a lot of the old tow paths left. You can easily imagine the teams of horses pulling barges along the canal. The tow paths have largely been turned into multipurpose trails, and we have seen hikers, bikers, people fishing, etc. along the way.

Talked with the bridge operator at Middleport. She informed me that the state of NY actually hires walkers to walk this section of the canal on a daily basis to listen for leaks. The walker in this section has to walk from the Middleport bridge to the Gasport bridge - a distance of five miles. She takes lunch and then walks back on the other tow path. In fact, she caught one that was repaired just a week or so ago.

The Bridges of Tonawanda County

June 6, 2009

She offered herself, arched against the sky, sturdy legs spread wide in invitation. He approached slowly, cautiously, wondering if his mast was short enough. He had dreamed of lying beneath her, hearing her creaking and groaning. His sheets were cleaned and ready in anticipation of their date. His bow pulpit thrust out, hard as stainless steel.

“You’re not the biggest I’ve ever seen”, she said.

“And you’re not the youngest,” he replied. “But we’re here in this place. Some river of karma brought us together.”

“Yes”, she said softly. “Just yes.”

But theirs was only to be a fleeting encounter, destined to be parted by the currents of time.  

Soon he encountered another. She had been a beauty once, painted depression-era black. Now her beauty was a faded memory, but she still carried herself proudly. And she was available.

“How about opening up for me?” he inquired.

“Give me a few minutes to spruce up”, she said. “I have to clear my decks.”

“Take your time, beautiful,” he said with a practiced air.

She opened to him slowly, seductively, a study of grace in motion, despite her bulk. Wide open, she signaled to him, beckoning him on. It was a satisfying relationship, but again he felt that compelling need to move on. He was looking for something…some new level of excitement in a vain attempt to re-live the glory years of his youth.

  At last he came upon her.

“You’re a swinger, aren’t you?” he said.

“Better believe it, lover”, she boasted. “I’ve swung for them all. I’ve had the best: Chris-Craft – now he had a body. Beneteau – he could go all night. What are you?”

“Lord Nelson” he replied.

“Ooo, I don’t think I’ve ever had royalty before. Well, your Lordship, time is money…”

We now break for a Conway Twitty interlude (Family Guy reference, for those of you who don’t know…)

Tonawanda

June 5, 2009

Right above Niagara Falls

Well, eight miles up, but that’s close enough for me. We took the federal lock route from Buffalo. Good thing; the river channel drops about five feet in a mile. It was a bit disconcerting to be floating five feet up watching the water rush by just the other side of a breakwall. So, through a lock, under a couple of bridges and we end up at the same point as the river, just more gently. Lots of fishermen on the shore. One guy yelled out as we went by “What’s the propeller for?” I yelled back that it was for electricity. He turned to his buds and said, triumphantly “See? I told ya!”

Wardell’s Marina is a charming little place. Reminds me of Julio’s on a small scale. No hot water in the toilets; no friggin’ lights, either. Junk boats scattered around. What it does have is a crane large enough to step our mast. This is a strange part of town. On the end of the canal, you would expect some development. Indeed, across the canal are fancy condos. On this side, however, are these old shantys. I mean these are real dumps; built over the water and probably haven’t changed in fifty years. Wardell’s has docks that can’t be more than 16 inches wide. Compared to yesterday, it’s like stepping back in time. Wardell’s has slips available for rent; you, too, can join the blue-haired geriatric set in your dream boat on the water. And slip off your 16-inch wide dock on the way back to dry land to the toilet black hole. Danger, Will Robinson, Danger, Danger…

So we prepped the boat today for unstepping. Took the mainsail off, took the boom off and stowed it on the deck, etc. Tomorrow we will lift up the mast, tie all the stays to it and move it to a horizontal position. Then we are ready to do the canal.

The neat thing about working on the boat today were the people that were going by. You have to realize that when I say “going by” I mean spitting distance. There was a guy trolling who practically hit our boat. One of the police boats patrolling asked us where we were headed. When Ziggy told him “Bermuda”, the guy laughed and said “Right.” One guy saw us from the bridge and rode his bicycle down to talk to us. He had a daysailer and was interested in tips for cruising. He said he was going to retire in a few years and was planning on getting a bigger boat then. Both Ziggy and I told him not to wait or he wouldn’t do it. I told him about my dad, who never got to do all the big traveling he had saved for because of his lungs. Guy’s name was Tom. I hope he takes our advice. Actually, we’ve been telling everyone we see that we’re Bermuda bound. The universal response (with the exception of the cop above) was “cool, wish I could do it.”

Vicki sent me a web site about cruising the Erie Canal. Link is here. Maybe we can add to his data base.

Addendum:

Friday June 5, 2009

This is a plaque placed overlooking the harbor. It commemorates the peace between the Native American tribes of the Erie Basin and the American Colonials. What I got a kick out of is the wording regarding the process whereby tribal chiefs were chosen. You should be able to read from the pics. Maybe this is something the US should try…

Erie Basin Marina

Friday, June 5, 2009

Calm, not too warm. We go searching for a marina that can drop the mast today. I don’t like the term “unstep”. ‘Course, I don’t like the term “dismasted” either. Completely different contexts. In days of Old Rome, it was tradition when you “stepped” (installed) a mast that you placed coins under the mast for good luck and as a remembrance of deceased sailors and to help them pay their way in the afterworld. Somehow I don’t think the cans of beer are going to survive under the mast when we step in Albany.

This is a tony marina. They have four security guards working the premises at night and the city police drive by on a regular basis. There are two on-site eateries. I guess if I had to live in Buffalo, this would be the place, but I’m not all that impressed with the sailing grounds here. Ok, it’s a BF lake, but still not very interesting.

The yurt-looking thing is a water intake for the city of Buffalo. http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=299

The blockhouse tower is a lookout that is accessible to the public. On top is a square light that serves to mark the marina entrance. Beer store at the base. Now, this was designed well!!

BTW, if you look carefully at the lower pic of the marina, there is a group of four sailboats in the foreground. Pleiades is the second from the right.

Shout out to Linda and Carl. Thanks for writing. Now if your daughter and her husband would learn by example...

Buffalo

June 5, 2009 1 am

Sitting on the back of Pleiades in the Erie Harbor Marina in Buffalo. Finally have wifi again. You might note the last five posts or so have all come in the last hour. Can't sit IN the cabin because the signal strength is not sufficient.

Nice harbor. Expensive. $1.90/ft to tie up for the night. Pleiades is 35 feet, not counting the bowsprit. Do the math. I'll take H&Y Marina any day.

Tomorrow we take down the mast and get ready for the Erie Canal. Alex called, wants to sing at least one chorus of "15 miles on the Erie Canal" when she joins us.

Must go. Tired and cold.

Shuffle off...shuffle off...shuffle off to Buffalo...

June 3, 2009

Ziggy decided that the weather window was such that we needed to depart for Buffalo already this afternoon. So, at 4:30 pm or thereabouts, we're off on the Iron Genoa (wind on our nose AGAIN) for the long (30 hour) haul down the lake. I went to call Vicki to tell her and found that I had no service (I could get it from Canada for a fee); sorry, Vicki, I'll call you from Buffalo.

Put-In-Bay

June 3, 2009

Apparently this is the Key West of the Great Lakes. Big tourist trap (they haven't seen Da Yoopers in Ishpeming) and magnet for the noveau riche. Of course, there are fewer noveau riche these days with the economy, but that still doesn't explain why we were one of only two boats on the mooring buoys. Probably the weather and the fact that it was Wednesday noon when we woke up. Made scrambled eggs and coffee for the crew (and they are still alive once again!); Ziggy found some pickled onions to add for flavoring.

The monument is supposedly the third-tallest in the country and commemorates Admiral Perry's victory over the Brits in Lake Erie (sorry, Paul).

Oh, hell, just go to this site. He has much better pics.