AUGUST 28-SEPTEMBER 2: LOCKS & MORE LOCKS

August 28:   With our gear shift fixed, a relieved Duddon Pilot crew left Brewerton to continue our journey down the Erie Canal.  The Captain is now a very happy camper as the gear shift on the bridge works as smooth as silk!

We traversed several locks to overnight at a free dock in Rome.  No Coliseums or visits to the Vatican...just a bunch of rowdy teenagers whose presence kept us from leaving our boat.  The Cops finally came around
 9:00 p.m. and chased them off.

August 29:  We were pleased to leave Rome and head for Little Falls.  What a difference in location.  The town has built a very nice marina with clean showers and friendly volunteers who are willing to drive boaters to local restaurants and shopping.  We went back to the Canal Inn restaurant and enjoyed a five star meal.  The restaurant has such a good reputation that it draws customers from a 30 mile radius.  It has been in business for over 30 years so it must be doing something right.

 Little Falls is situated in a low valley surrounded by hills.  A great stop!

 There was a vintage car rally the night that we were in Little Falls.  The Captain posed next to his choice of car-a 1957 Chevy.  He regrets selling his red and white 1955 Chevy two door Coupe. 

This guy was guarding the cars.  He looks fierce but was an absolute cream puff.

August 30-31:  A few more locks and a quiet night stop at a rural lock wall saw us up early to head for the Schenectady Yacht Club.  We were fortunate to arrive just before a major thunderstorm which kept us boat bound for the rest of the day.

This stretch of the Erie Canal follows the Mohawk River and is more scenic with the Adirondack Mountains in the distance.  I have purposely not blogged too much on this section of our journey as we covered this territory when we did the Great Loop.  Hardly to bore the troops too much!

September 1-2:  This is our last stretch on the Erie Canal.  We only have 16 miles to go today but have to traverse 6 locks.  All the locks since Rome have been bringing us down to sea level.  The 6 locks today will drop us over 170 feet.

Even though we have been through over 200 locks, each one is a little different and several in one day are a lot of work.  The ropes that boaters have to hang onto are also very slimy as are the lock walls.  We will be pleased when we are done with locks. A very tired crew pulled into Waterford and were lucky to get the last slot on the mooring wall. We will stay here for two nights.  Boat cleaning, laundry and food shopping will need a whole day.