Oswego, NY – Sackets Harbor, NY – June 30, 2008

Last night across from us was the Grand Mariner, a small cruise ship of the American Canadian Caribbean Line. This ship cruises where the big ships can’t. It cruises the canal systems, rivers and lesser known destinations. The Grand Mariner has 50 cabins and a maximum of 100 passengers. They docked and lowered their pilot house to be ready to go through the canal system this morning.

We left Oswego this morning at 6:45 and started across Lake Ontario. Our destination was Sackets Harbor to the northeast of Oswego. We are still in New York but very close to Canada.

We had become used to the smooth ride of the canal system and were soon reminded of the unstable, rolly ride of a boat in big water. After we got in deeper water the seas became more calm and we had a nice, 4 ½ hour crossing to Sackets Harbor. We arrived and docked at 11:30. There is a dock at the waterfront. It is a visitor dock with a limit of 4 hours and no overnight allowed. This is a beautiful town. The waterfront is very nice, with a gazebo, picnic tables, benches, flowers and many trees. It was nice just to sit on the benches and look around.

Margaret and Beth went out to explore (read: check out the quaint boutiques). There are many cute stores here as well as several restaurants. The town of Sackets Harbor has about 1800 residents with the number increasing greatly in the summer when visitors fill the cottages. Fort Drum is near here and is home to the 10th Mountain Division. We also discovered there is a large Menonite and Amish population in this three county area.

Darrell and Bob heard about a place here that brews its own beer, so they went off looking for it. They found the Sacket Brewing Company and, of course, needed to sample the local brew. It was a nice place and the beer was good.

We left after our 4 hour limit at the dock and anchored near the entrance to the harbor. We rafted with Bellissimo, discussed our next few day plans and had dinner together.

Brewerton, NY – Oswego, NY – June 29, 2008

Along with Bellissimo we got underway at 8 this morning. We traveled 9 miles and went through the last lock before leaving the Eastern section of the Erie Canal.

Our last few days on the Eastern Erie Canal was very beautiful and scenic. Many parks and picnic areas were dotted along the way and were beautifully maintained. There were many free tie-ups for boaters. The waters were calm and the reflection of the trees and bridges in the water was so pretty.

At mile 160 of the Erie Canal we turned north onto the Oswego Canal. The Oswego Canal opened in 1828 and connects Three Rivers to Lake Ontario. Three Rivers is where the Oneida and Senecca Rivers join to form the Oswego River. We dropped from 363 feet above sea level to 245 feet above sea level in 24 miles and 7 locks.

The 4 concrete bridge abutments in the water used to support the trolley bridge on the line from Oswego to Syracuse. The Oswego Canal is yet another very scenic area of New York.

There are many interesting stops along the way, but we decided to travel the entire canal in one day. We stopped for the day at Oswego, the end of the canal and on the shores of Lake Ontario. We ran into several other Loopers here at Oswego. We are getting together tonight for snacks.

8 locks today – total of 32.

The weather forecast sounds good for tomorrow. We plan to cross Lake Ontario to the St. Lawrence River, then into the area called 1000 Lakes.

After today we are not sure how often we will have internet access. We will be cruising in Canada for 4-5 weeks and will update our blog whenever possible.

Fuzzy and Wuzzy

When Nana and Papa visited Aunt Eileen and Uncle David, Fuzzy got to come along. Do you remember seeing Aunt Eileen and Uncle David at Great Papa’s birthday party?

Fuzzy was happy to get out of the boat for a little while and stay in a big house. He really like the long showers he could take and especially liked the good food Aunt Eileen cooked.

Fuzzy was surprised to find that he has another cousin! Wuzzy stays with Aunt Eileen and Uncle David. Fuzzy and Wuzzy played together and had such a good time. Nana took a picture of them.

Brewerton, NY - June 28, 2008

.
The weather forecast for today was rain so we decided to stay here another day. It is not fun going through locks in the rain. We used one of the courtesy cars at the marina to go shopping. We dropped Margaret off to do laundry, then Bob, Darrell and Beth went to West Marine, a grocery store and Wal-Mart before picking Margaret up and going back to the marina.

Storms and rain off and on all afternoon. Darrell took advantage of the rain and washed the boat. It stopped raining and the sun came out about 4. It started getting warm.

There is a flower planter just a little way from our boat that has a duck nesting on eggs. We’re told she has been there about 2 weeks so the eggs should be hatching in another 1-2 weeks. I got a picture of it. Can you see the duck? She blends in very well.

Herkimer, NY – Brewerton, NY, June 27, 2008

Today was pretty uneventful. We got underway at 7:30 with an overcast sky. It never rained and was a nice day for cruising. The sun started coming out around 2:30 this afternoon, but it was still quite nice, not very hot. Again, the scenery was very pretty. One picture shows a bridge just before the lock. There were a lot of private docks, many of them having table and chairs, ready for entertaining.

Margaret called us this morning to tell us they were going to Winter Harbor Marina for the night. They had called and there was a very good boat rate as well as very reasonable diesel, with a discount for cash. It was quite a haul for us but we were going to try to make it.

We only went through 4 locks today, and were held up at all of them. One was already locking through a boat going west and had one waiting to go east. That was about a 20 minute wait. We’re not sure what was going on with the second lock, but we had to wait about 15 minutes for it to open. The 3rd lock waited for a boat that was quite a ways behind us and was going very slowly. The 4th lock took extra time because the boat mentioned at the previous lock didn’t have a permit and had to buy one.

The 3rd and 4th lock were ‘down’ locks. We went down 25 feet in each lock, so ended up today at an elevation of 369’.

We went through Oneida Lake, the largest body of water on the Erie Canal.

We made Winter Haven Marina just before 5 this afternoon. Winter Haven is located in Brewerton and is very close to Syracuse. We were in time to fuel up and pump out. We took on 163.9 gallons of diesel. We hope that will take us on all our travels in Canada because the cost of diesel is higher there.

Total locks 24.

Fonda, NY – Herkimer, NY - June 26, 2008

When Darrell started the engines this morning one didn’t sound right. So, he went down to the engine room to check. A new alternator belt Darrell had installed had stretched a little. He fixed it and we were off.

It was raining this morning. Not good weather for going through locks. We were going to get wet. We could only hope it would quit raining soon. It did stop while we went through the first three locks, but started again at 11:30 with three locks to go before our intended stop. There were showers off and on the rest of the day.

The Erie Canal locks use one of three methods to allow you to hold your boat in position on the wall as the lock floods or drains. One has several pipes running down both sides of the lock. You pull up next to one of the pipes amidships and run a line around the pipe. You secure one end of the rope to a cleat, then loosely loop the end of the same line around the cleat. As the boat raises or lowers, the line slides up or down the pipe and holds the boat in place. This is the easiest type of lock.

The second type uses rubber coated steel cables anchored top and bottom along the sides of the lock walls. You use the same procedure as above.

The third method simply has ropes hanging down the lock wall in several places on both sides of the lock. This is the most common type of lock we see in the New York Canal System. You bring your boat in between two of these ropes. One takes a forward rope and one holds an aft rope. You really need gloves for this because the ropes are wet, dirty and slimy. You simply hold on to the rope to hold the boat in place. This can get difficult if the wind or the current in the lock is significant. There is current depending on where the flood or drain gates are located in the lock.

We went through lock 17 today. Not only is this the highest lift lock on the Erie Canal, it is believed to be one of only two locks in North America where the entrance gate is lifted above the boater instead of opening with swinging doors. The other is in Ottawa River in Canada. Lock 17 is also the largest single step lock on the Erie Canal, going up 40 feet.

The gate of lock 17 made very ominous sounds when closing. There was clanging and echoing as the gate very slowly lowered. It sounded much like an iron gate in a castle or prison slamming shut.

In addition to several marinas, the canal system offers complimentary tie-up spaces at most locks and towns along the way. Almost all of them are very nice and some even provide electricity. Our stay at Fonda last night was next to a park with picnic tables and a grill. It was a gated area and the park gates closed at 3:30 p.m. There was a sign there that said Welcome Boaters. We forgot to mention in yesterdays posting that the Henry Fonda clan is from Fonda, NY.

We were able to stop for the day earlier than yesterday. We are at Herkimer, NY at a complimentary dock. We tied up at 3:30. There is new building next to the dock which houses a restaurant on one end and a very nice upscale gift shop in the rest of it. There are products from over 50 vendors. Darrell rode the bike to a nearby store to buy oil. He wants to change the oil before we cross Lake Ontario.

In the pictures, look at how smooth and glassy the water is. You could see the reflection of the bridge and the trees in the water. It was beautiful.

Today we went through 6 locks, for a total of 20 locks. We are at an elevation of 383 feet above sea level.

Waterford, NY – Fonda, NY - June 25, 2008

We were into the Erie Canal Lock #2 at 7:45 this morning. (Lock #1 is at Troy, and is not considered part of the Erie Canal). The first 5 locks of the Erie Canal, lock #2-6, raised us a total of 151 feet over 1.5 miles. We got through lock #6 at 9:20 a.m. and were then able to cruise awhile before the next lock(s).

The Erie Canal was the dream of New York State Governor DeWitt Clinton. It opened October 26, 1825 and was 4’ deep and 40’ wide. It was over 340 miles long and connected Troy, NY on the Hudson River to Buffalo NY on Lake Erie. It was a great success and settlers went westward, sawmills and other industries sprang up and prosperous towns were established. The Erie Canal has been enlarged and modified since then and is still the mainstay of the New York Canal System. We were on the Mohawk River most of the day, not a dredged part of the canal.

We aren’t going to Lake Erie so will be on the Erie Canal only until we reach Three Rivers. We will then go north on the Oswego Canal, which will take us to Lake Ontario.

The scenery is very pretty. The land alongside of the canal appears sparsely populated and undeveloped, with natural woodlands. There are a few homes and a marina every once in awhile. Most of these are where towns are close by.

We had a long day today. We stopped at a free dock in Fonda, N.Y. and were tied up by 5:45. On the water 10 hours and only went 48.4 miles. That is because of the time it takes to go through the locks.

We will now start keeping track of the number of locks we go through. As of yesterday there had been 3. Two locks in the Dismal Swamp, one at the start and one at the end, and one lock at Troy. Today, we went through 11 locks, 286’ vertically, for a total of 14 locks.

Waterford, NY – June 24, 2008

The marina at Waterford is located just before the first lock on the Erie Canal. It is operated by the city and staffed by volunteers. Volunteer Jimmy was quite taken with Margaret and said she was a very good captain. (Margaret had docked the boat). There is free electricity, showers and WiFi, and as we mentioned previously, free dockage for the first two nights. After that dockage is a $10.00 per night donation. There is no limit to how long you can stay. There are many restaurants within a couple blocks of the marina and post office, grocery store, and laundry very close. The people are all very nice and friendly.


On Sunday we met Bill and Sherry. They were traveling on a sailboat and had left from Chicago. They were going the “wrong way” and were going to travel around Long Island Sound and end up at Annapolis for the boat show. The six of us went to dinner together. One of the nice benefits from this trip is meeting people.


Bob and Margaret left this morning. We are staying another day, yet more boat projects to get done. We will catch up with them again.











Waterford is the oldest unincorporated village in New York. Three of the original locks are still here, located next to the newer lock. These locks are still used as overflow for water in the canal. They were very narrow, only about 20 feet wide.



Today was a beautiful day. The sun was out, there was a little breeze and it was a little cool. Just right. Darrell needed something at the hardware store, so we took our bicycles and rode about 2 ½ miles along the Old Champlain Canal Trail to the store. It was a very scenic ride. While Darrell was looking for the items he needed Beth discovered the sky was getting very dark. We hurried back to the boat but it never did rain.

Waterford, NY – June 23, 2008

This morning we went out for breakfast with Bob and Margaret. Since they had been here for a few more days than we, they had checked out many café’s and restaurants. There is one café here which serves 2 eggs, toast and coffee for $1.75. That’s where we had breakfast. Darrell added fried potatoes to his order and our total bill, including tip was $6.50.

Darrell spent most of today working on the boat. He was fixing, adjusting and replacing. He worked very hard and still has more to do. Beth took care of paper work and bill paying.

We went out for dinner tonight with Bob and Margaret. We went to an “upscale” Irish restaurant that had been recommended by a couple of locals. We all enjoyed our food.

Kingston, NY – Waterford, NY - June 22, 2008

Last night we were treated to a concert in the park right beside our boat. A small orchestra played big band music for 2 hours. This is a weekly event in the summer and many townspeople came down to listen to it. They were very good and we enjoyed it. It reminded Beth of the band concerts which were held on Friday nights in Postville.

We were up at 5 this morning and underway at 5:30. We had a long way to go today, 65 miles. The tide would be against us most of the time, so we wanted to get an early start. It’s amazing that the ocean tide can effect the current in the Hudson River all the way up to the lock at Troy which is 150 miles north of New York City. The adverse current caused an average loss of 1 mile per hour over the course of 9 hours. We arrived at 2:30 pm. If we had left at 1pm we would have had an average gain of a little more than 1 mile per hour but we wouldn’t have arrived until about 8 this evening.

The sunrise was beautiful and there were fishermen already up and out. We passed a tug pulling a barge and met several more going down river.

What started as a beautiful morning quickly turned to overcast skies with thunder and lightening in the distance. The weather station called for thunderstorms in the morning with an occasional severe storm. We didn’t run into any thunderstorms or severe weather, but had rain for several hours.

The rain stopped shortly before we reached Albany. We passed Albany on the way to our final destination of Waterford, which is just after the first lock at Troy.

A few miles past the first lock is Waterford, NY. Just before Waterford the Hudson River splits and there is a sign telling you to go left for the Erie Canal and right for the Champlain Canal.

The Waterford Harbor Visitor Center offers a two-day free tie-up, then $10 a day if you stay longer. They have complimentary electric, water and showers. It is quite a deal and many boaters take advantage of it. We plan to stay here a few days to complete boat projects. All the spaces were filled when we arrived at 2:30, but luckily Bob and Margaret were here and let us raft up with them.

Fuzzy as a Pirate

Fuzzy got to go shopping in a pirate store and got an eyepatch, a pirate telescope and some pirate treasure. He also learned how to talk like a pirate.

Arrgh……Ahoy matey, look at me booty! Aye, I’m a buccaneer, yo-ho-ho and I has a lot of swag. I likes to eat grub and drink grog with me hearties.

Shiver me timbers! Thar’s a scallywag! He’s a lubber! Avast!

Fuzzy thought you should have some more pirate things. Fuzzy sent some buccaneer swag for you.


Here's the key:

Ahoy: Hey!
Arrrrrr: A general expression of glee
Avast: Stop!
Aye: Yes
Booty: treasure
Buccanneer: a pirate
Grog: A pirate's favorite drink.
Grub: food
Landlubber or just lubber: A non-sailor
Matey: a friend
Me hearty: a friend or shipmate.
Me: My.
Scallywag: A bad person. A scoundrel.
Shiver me timbers!: an exclamation of surprise, to be shouted most loud.
Swag: Loot.
Thar: The opposite of "here."
Yo-ho-ho: Pirate laughter

Kingston, NY – June 21, 2008

We’re back on the boat after two days visiting Darrell’s sister Eileen and her husband David. We had a wonderful time. Eileen took us shopping and we stocked our larders. She also cooked wonderful meals for us. We enjoyed sitting on their patio watching the squirrels steal food from the birdfeeder. It was nice to leave the boat for a day or two.


This morning they brought us back to the boat. We went for a short boat ride, then went out for lunch. After David and Eileen left we spent the rest of the day putting everything away.

Kingston, NY – June 19, 2008

Kingston is located on Rondout Creek. There is a lighthouse to mark the entrance. The ride up Rondout Creek was very picturesque with an old-fashioned charm about it.

The town marina is next to the Hudson River Maritime Center Museum and the restored historical waterfront district. There are several restaurants close to the docks.

Kingston was the original capital of New York. In 1777 it was burned to the ground by the British, whose ships had managed to get up the river.

Darrell’s sister Eileen and her husband David live in Connecticut. We will be visiting them for a couple of days. Back to the blog in a day or two.

Newburgh, NY – Kingston, NY - June 18, 2008

This morning before we left Margaret and Beth took a walk along the riverfront in Newburgh. Newburgh is on a hillside with the riverfront separated from the rest of the town by a large retaining wall. The riverfront has many restaurants and some marinas.

A portion of the retaining wall has been made into a mural. It is entitled “Archways” and was organized by a Community through Arts organization. It was hand painted by one man and was completed just recently, 11-3-07. Five scenes depict the history of Newburgh; Washington’s Headquarters, Broadway Corridor, Downing Park, Dutch Reformed Church and The Crawford House. It is very well done and is a wonderful way to beautify an area.

We got underway at 8:45 and continued up the Hudson River. We passed many small river towns, marinas and beautiful scenery. There is a railroad right along the edge of the river, carved from the rock. We passed many power plants and we also met a tug towing a barge full of junked cars.

Beth captained the boat for a while today while Darrell got the last little bit of non-skid applied. A 2nd coat tomorrow and it will be all done.

We passed the Esopus Lighthouse on the way.

We were in Kingston and docked at 12:30.

New York City, NY – Newburgh, NY - June 17, 2008

Last night there were some dark, menacing clouds in the sky. There had been a chance of severe storms but we just got some rain. The photos don’t really convey the way the sky looked. The more severe weather went north.

We were underway at 7:00 this morning, starting our trip up the Hudson River. The ferry boat traffic between New Jersey and New York City was much heavier than over the weekend.

We went under the George Washington Bridge. The bridge was built in 1931. 30 years later a lower deck was added. Semi-trucks go on the top deck and cars on the lower. With all the traffic, they could probably use a third deck.

As we got further north the tall buildings and wall-to-wall concrete give way to more greenery and trees. The area became less populated and had more of a ‘country’ look. It’s hard to believe that New York City was less than 20 miles away. Maggie had told us that parts of the Hudson resemble Lake Pepin and we can see that. The cliffs here are higher than those around Lake Pepin, but the look and the feel of it is the same.

We left New Jersey behind and now had New York on both sides of the Hudson. The river widened some and we saw more recreational boats.

We passed Tarrytown. The name derived from the complaining of Dutch wives that their husbands tarried too long at the village taverns! We also went past West Point. West Point is the United States Military Academy and was opened in 1802. We had not realized that it was built right next to the water, almost into a cliff and looks like a fortress.

We needed to keep an eye out for debris. There was a 30’ log in the river, along with smaller branches. It was probably due to the storms last night. A riverboat captain in a boat ahead alerted us on channel 16.

We arrived in Newburgh, NY at 1:30 after traveling 59.1 miles. We had very favorable current. Bob and Margaret are coming over tonight for dinner. We will make the crab cakes we had bought and frozen at the fish market in Cape May, NJ.

New York City, NY – June 16, 2008

Our last day in the city started at 6:00 a.m. when we took the PATH to 33rd and Broadway then took the NY subway from there to Rockefeller Center, which is the site of the Today Show on NBC. We arrived there at 6:45 and were four people among a very large crowd.

The first hour of the show was all inside the studio, most of it was devoted to Tim Russert. Additionally, Al Roker was in Iowa reporting from Cedar Rapids, so he wasn’t outside with his frequent weather reports.

The second hour had quite a few of the segments outside. It was very interesting to watch what was involved in getting everything ready for Matt Lauer or Meredith Viera. There were so many people there, seemingly doing nothing. We decided that each person has one job to do and then they stand around and wait until they have to do ‘their’ job again.

There were monitors outside so we could watch the program. There were also speakers but we were unable to hear much of anything, even when the segment was being shot outside.

A few times during commercial breaks Matt and Meredith would walk around, shake hands, sign autographs and say hi to people. They didn’t come in the area where we were standing, but we did get some pictures. You really need to look closely to see Matt. He’s blurred in one and we just got the back of his head in another. One of the guests today was Mike Meyers who has a movie coming out. He was interviewed inside the studio but he came outside before the segment to greet the people and sign a few autographs. We got some close shots of him.

We don’t think we made it on TV this morning, however Bob and Margaret did. We each made a sign and were holding it up. Bob and Margaret were in a better place and Keely told us she saw them and the sign. We had a good time this morning and are happy to have experienced this.

We were quite tired when we finally left. We had been standing for over 2 hours and went into a coffee shop to sit down and have a coffee break. Then we made our way back to the PATH and came back to New Jersey.

We have really enjoyed the past few days, but we are ready to continue our trip. We didn’t encounter a single “stereo-typical rude New Yorker”. Everyone we asked questions of or talked with was very nice and helpful.

New York City, NY – June 15, 2008

We got going again today at 8:00 and just missed the PATH to NYC. We had to wait 15-20 minutes for the next one. Upon arrival at 33rd street we spent a little time planning the rest of our route for tomorrow morning when we are going to Rockefeller Center for the Today Show. We think we have everything figured out and plan to leave our boats at 6:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. THAT’S EARLY!

Our plan was to get directly on one of the buses and complete the bus tour we started yesterday. We got on at 9:30 for the Downtown Tour. We had thought to complete the entire tour, particularly since we had such an excellent tour guide, then go again and get off at the places we wanted to spend more time. We drove through or by: the Theater District, Macy’s, Madison Square Garden, Empire State Building, Greenwich Village, Soho, Chinatown/Little Italy, City Hall, World Trade Center Site and Wall Street. At Battery Park we were told we had to change buses (and guides). So, we decided to get off there and spend some time walking around.

There were many beautiful buildings and many small areas that were designated as parks. There was more greenery and trees than we had expected.

We were amazed to find that in the Financial District, right next to Wall Street, was Trinity Church and its cemetery. The original Episcopalian Church was built in 1698 and was destroyed in 1776 by the Great Fire. A second church, built in 1790 was demolished in 1839 and the present church was completed in 1846. Alexander Hamilton is buried there as is Robert Fulton, who invented the steamship. There was a service going on as we visited.

Ground Zero, the site of the World Trade Center, was nearby and we walked there. It was very difficult to see anything as there was fencing all around. They are in the process of putting in the foundation and setting pilings down to bedrock for the new building. The building will be 1776 feet high and will be named Freedom Tower. Completion is expected to be 2012.

We visited St. Paul’s Chapel. More about St. Paul’s Chapel in a separate posting.

We needed lunch, but were in the financial district and most of the eateries were closed on Sundays. We ended up eating in Subway, one of the staples of NYC.

After lunch we continued our bus tour by taking the Uptown Loop. We didn’t get off at any of the stops but saw and heard about Upper West Side, Dakota Apartments (where John Lennon lived), Strawberry Fields (a garden in Central Park across from the Dakota Apartments which Yoko Ono built as a John Lennon memorial), several of the museums in NYC, Harlem, The Apollo Theater and many of the extremely expensive apartment buildings. We felt the bus tour was a very good way to get an overview of NYC and see many famous sites without walking a lot.

We were finished about 4:15 and were all very tired. We caught the PATH back to our base in New Jersey, rested a bit then had dinner in a New Jersey Eatery.

New York City, NY – June 15, 2008

St. Paul’s Chapel was built in 1764-1766 and Manhattan’s only colonial-era church. George Washington attended this church and his pew is still there on view. It is about 2 blocks from the WTC and was not damaged at all when the buildings fell. Not even a pane of glass was broken. The Chapel became a place where the many workers and volunteers went for replenishment, both material and spiritual. There were meals served, cots for rest and support offered to enable them to continue to return to Ground Zero.

There are memorials to those who died and those who aided. A memorial altar has pictures of many who died. There is one made up of insignia’s from the many men and women of the many departments/states/countries who came to help. Many of the signs and cards sent were on view for all to see. The Chapel still holds services, but most of it has been devoted to 9/11 and its aftermath. This was a very emotional experience.

Fuzzy in a Soda Fountain

Fuzzy got to go into Cape May, New Jersey with Nana and Papa. He likes to look around and learn about new places. Ask your Mom and Dad to show you where New Jersey is on the map Fuzzy sent you.

There was a funny looking bicycle there. Two people could sit next to each other and they both peddled. There was also a bench on the back for passengers. You could use this to go sight seeing around town.














Fuzzy got to go on a trolley ride and he learned about the town of Cape May. Then he got to have lunch with Nana and Papa. They ate at a soda fountain! Have you ever been in one?
















You sit on stools at a counter and get to listen to old-time music that is played on records that are in a jukebox. Do you know what a record is? That is what we had before there were CD’s. Ask your Mom and Dad to show you what a record looks like









The people who work there wear white shirts, bow ties and funny looking hats. They are called Soda Jerks! They got that name because of the “jerking” motion they use when adding soda water to an ice cream soda! The Soda Jerk who waited on us was very nice.

New York City, NY – June 14, 2008

The four of us left our boats this morning at 8:00 and walked about 1 block to the PATH. The PATH is the New Jersey subway system and runs from New Jersey under the Hudson River and makes several stops in New York City. We had a little difficulty figuring out how to get the tickets and discovered we had been trying the wrong machines. We finally figured it out and took the PATH to West 34th and Broadway.

We walked several blocks just looking around and finding such places as Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Macy’s and many Broadway theaters. We also needed to get to the Marriott Hotel as early as we could to get in line for half-price tickets for a Broadway show. Margaret and Beth waited in line while Bob and Darrell found a coffee shop and had a break. Once they opened at 10 a.m. the line moved very quickly. By 10:15 we had very good tickets to Mama Mia.

We saw many other tourists, every 4th person seemed to have a camera. While it wasn’t very crowded this morning, by noon it was packed with people. We had to check out Rockefeller Center because we may try to do the tourist thing Monday morning and get on the Today show. There were many policemen all around. We saw ‘Living Statues’, musicians playing on corners and a man playing a guitar wearing only briefs (the naked cowboy.) Many people were having their picture taken with him.

We bought 48 hour passes on a tour bus, a double-decker with an open top. The package we bought goes Uptown, Downtown, Brooklyn and a Night tour. It stops at many of the attractions tourists would like to see and you can get on and off as often as you want. We thought we could see a few things before our matinee but got off after a few stops so we wouldn’t be rushed and could have a leisurely lunch before our matinee.

After a delicious and large lunch we got to Winter Garden Theatre in plenty of time to get to our seats and get ready for the wonderful performance. We had seen it before and we had enjoyed it very much. We were happy to see it again and it was so fun to see Bob and Margaret enjoy it.

Our plan was to get back on a tour bus after Mama Mia but it had started raining. We abandoned our plan and decided to go back to our boats. Unfortunately it was a few blocks to any subway that would take us to the PATH which would then take us back to New Jersey. We got quite wet.

Liberty State Park, NJ – New York City - June 13, 2008

We had dinner last night with Bob and Margaret. We each provided a portion of the meal. We toasted our arrival in New York by having champagne that had been given to us when we started our trip.

This morning a swan came over to our boats. Bob brought out some bread and we got some good shots of it.

We are staying at the Newport Yacht Club & Marina for the next 4 days. It was only about 5 miles from our anchorage so we didn’t need to get an early start. We did some catch up jobs around the boat before leaving at 10:30. We cruised the 4.4 miles and were in and tied up at Newport Yacht Club & Marina by 11:15. We are on the New Jersey side of the Hudson but we can easily see Manhatten and the Empire State Building from our slip. The price is extremely good for here but there is a downside. There is major rolling during the day from all the ferries going by. We have heard it calms down at night and we hope that is right.

We decided to spend the afternoon visiting Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. We took the light transit to the end of the line ($.95 each one way), then caught a shuttle to Liberty Park ($.65 each round trip). We got on the 3:00 ferry to Ellis Island. The pigeons are so used to the ferry’s they fly in and walk around looking for food.

Ellis Island was a very interesting place. There was so much information given about its history. Some called it the Isle of Hope and some the Isle of Tears. Approximately 12 million people passed through Ellis Island. 98% of the people arriving, after medical and legal checks, were permitted to stay while the other 2% had to return to the homeland they had left. There were many exhibits detailing why people left their homeland for America, the possessions they brought with them and how the inspection process occurred.

We spent so much time at Ellis Island that we didn’t have time to get off at Liberty Island. It was OK though, because the museum in its base was closed as was the inside of the monument. It was too late in the day.

We had to wait for the shuttle to pick us up for the return, then had another $.95 ticket each for the return on the light rail. You buy the ticket for the light rail, validate the time by machine and get on the train. You don’t have to turn in the ticket or have it checked by anyone. The transit police randomly check passenger tickets and assess stiff fines ($150) if you don’t have a valid ticket.

We arrived back at Newport about 6:30. We didn’t feel like cooking, yet no one wanted to eat out either. So we found an Italian restaurant and ordered pizza’s to go. We sat at the bar and had a drink while we waited. The pizza’s were good and quite reasonably priced.

Metedeconk River, NJ – Liberty State Park, NJ, June 12, 2008

This is L'Attitude Changer in front of the Statue of Liberty.

We got underway a little before 7 this morning. It was a beautiful, calm, clear day. We were in the canal system for only a few miles before the ICW ended at the Manasquan Inlet. We then had a 26 mile open ocean stretch to Sandy Point, before crossing the Lower New York Bay and getting into protected waters again.

You need to look at the weather and pick a good weather window for this leg. There are only a very few places you can go for protection if it starts to blow or storm.

We saw the skyline of New York City about 2 hours before we got there. We went under the Verrazano Narrows Bridge, which connects Staten Island and Brooklyn. It is also the dividing line between the Upper and Lower New York Bay. Shortly after entering the Upper New York Bay and rounding a corner we saw the Statue of Liberty. It took us another hour to get to her.

We took pictures of Bellissimo with the Statue of Liberty and they of L’Attitude Changer and the Statue. Ellis Island is just next to the Statue of Liberty. The skyline pictures are of Manhatten.

We are staying the night at Liberty State Park in New Jersey. Bob and Margaret dropped anchor at 1:30 and we rafted up to them. We can see the Statue of Liberty from our anchorage. Prior to 9/11 we could have taken our dinghy and gone directly to the Statue of Liberty. Now, you can only go to the statue by designated ferry’s. You must first go through security.

Beach Haven, NJ - Metedeconk River, NJ, June 11, 2008

We left the marina at 9:15 this morning. It was a beautiful day. It had cooled off some and we had a nice breeze to help us stay comfortable.

We had pretty much a straight shot today, not like all the twists and turns we had yesterday. We crossed the Barnegat Bay, a large body of water that averaged only 5-7’ max in the channel. On either side of the channel it is only 2-4’. Even in the channel there are numerous areas where it has shoaled to 3-4’. The boat draws 3.5’. Our depth sounder is set to sound the alarm at 5’. It sounded many times, but we were always OK. Luckily the bottom is mud, not rocks.

We arrived in Metedeconk River, NJ about 3:00. Bob and Margaret anchored and we rafted up to them. If all goes well, we will be anchored by the Statue of Liberty tomorrow night.

Marmore, NJ – Beach Haven, NJ, June 10, 2008

We left this morning about 8:15. During the rest of our trip to New York there are several areas of very skinny water. (That’s shallow to you landlubbers.) Boats with a draft of greater than 4 feet usually have great difficulty and many must go outside of the barrier islands in the ocean. You try to time your trip to get the benefit of the rising tide.

When we left it was about ½ hour before low tide. Our depth sounder went off several times, we churned brown water once, but we never hit bottom. Our draft is 3’6”, Bob and Margaret’s is about the same, so if we made it they knew they could. On one picture, note how close our boat is to where a bird is standing. We were in the middle of the channel.

When we got to the Margate City Bridge, we discovered the 13’ bridge we needed to open for us was out of service until tomorrow. We had to backtrack about 5 miles and go out the Great Egg Harbor Inlet into the ocean. Luckily it was a calm day and it was actually cooler in the ocean and that was welcomed. We ran until we could get back inside at Absecon Inlet, by Atlantic City. We got some shots of Atlantic City, but some shots were through haze and from quite a distance.

Note the lighthouse. Can you see it in between the tall buildings? The lighthouse is no longer necessary and is now a historical site. The lights from all the casinos are all anyone needs at night!

It was very hot again today. The heat is supposed to break sometime this evening and thunderstorms are forecasted. That will be a relief to us. We are all hoping we don’t have this heat while we are in New York City.

We arrived in our marina at 2:15. We stayed at Beach Haven Yacht Club Marina and they give a special rate to loopers. That’s always nice to find. Margaret and Beth are going to try to win at 500 tonight.

Cape May, NJ – Marmore, NJ, June 9, 2008

We left around 10:30 this morning after Bob and Margaret received a UPS package they had been waiting for. It was very hot again today. It never cooled down overnight. For a while after we left we were running with the wind and it was miserable. Luckily we had to turn north and then had a fairly nice breeze while traveling.

We went by a Coast Guard Station. It is the only active Coast Guard Training Center. They used to allow visitors to the site, but changed that policy after 9/11. Even at graduations, only family is allowed in. We met a lot of commercial fishing vessels and passed thousands of boats that were docked. We saw “waterfront” homes, which are built on pilings. In one area there was a small community of these homes. There was one with flags on the front. We wonder what they said.

Today the trip was very scenic. It was nice to get back to the feel of the intracoastal, having land on both sides of the water. There were many towns, many boats and miles and miles of the Cape May Wetlands with many birds. We saw one man fishing in a boat while shading himself with an umbrella.

We had heard that, particularly in New Jersey, fishermen like to anchor right in the middle of the narrow channel. We can tell you that it is true. It makes it difficult sometimes for us.

We arrived at our destination at 3:00. We had originally planned to anchor out but the lack of anchorages and the extreme heat made us change our mind. We wanted electricity so we could run our air conditioning. We could run our generator at anchor, but we would have to run it all night to keep the AC going. It turned out to be lucky for us, because the price of diesel here was lower than any other place we had heard about so both boats bought fuel.

Cape May, New Jersey – June 8, 2008

It got very warm today, the temperature hit 100. According to everyone we talked to, this is very unusual for this time of year.

The downtown area of Cape May was about a mile away and we all decided we would get there in the morning, before it got too hot. Bob and Margaret left about 3/4 hour before us and they called and said that the walk was further than the mile that was advertised, so rather than walking to meet them we took our bikes.

We decided to take a 45 minute Trolley Tour to get an overview of Cape May. Cape May’s number 1 industry is tourism. Number 2 is commercial fishing. The tourism season runs from the beginning of March through the end of the year. There are about 3,700 fulltime residents in Cape May and that number grows to 45,000 in summertime. Cape May was once known as the Queen of Seaside Resorts and was “the” place to go.

We were told this is the #1 birding spot in the world. The Migratory preserve has a fresh water lake as well as saltwater marsh areas with a boardwalk and many observation platforms.

Many presidents vacationed here. The entire city of Cape May is in the National Historic Register, which means there are very strict guidelines for building and renovation.

Cape May offers many different events and week-end activities. There are ghost tours, food and wine tastings, a Sherlock Holmes week-end, Halloween activities and six weeks of Christmas tours and events. There are many more things to do and a lot center around a family, including a treasure hunt for children. There are many Victorian homes, which have been renovated into bed and breakfasts.

Downtown Cape May has a walking mall, a 3 block area of boutiques and stores without automobile traffic. After our tour we went into a dime store, which had an old fashioned soda fountain in the back. We had lunch there. Afterwards Margaret and Beth wanted to look in more stores and Darrell and Bob had had enough. So, Darrell and Bob took the bikes and rode back to the boat. Margaret and Beth did more looking around and got a taxi back to the marina. It was way too far and way too hot to walk.

There was still a lot of the afternoon left so the four of us played 500. Unfortunately, Bob and Darrell won all 3 games.

Fuzzy as Captain

The weather was nice and the seas calm so Fuzzy got to be the Captain and take the helm for a while. He had been wanting to do that for a long time and he was so happy that Nana and Papa thought he was ready.

Fuzzy had to know how to read the charts and how to follow a path on the GPS. GPS means Global Positioning System and it shows where the boat is by getting signals from satellites in orbit around the earth. Papa can put in directions and it will show you the path you need to be on to get to your destination.

If you’re in the Intra Coastal Waterway you need to be able to stay in between red and green markers that are in the water. This is to make sure you’re in deep enough water. If you don’t stay in the right path you could get in shallow water and run the boat aground.

It is a lot of responsibility to have, but Fuzzy was up to it. He did very well.

Reedy Island, Delaware Bay, Delaware – Cape May, New Jersey, June 7, 2008

We were up at 4:45 and there was some haze in the sky. We wanted to get an early start again as we are trying to use the tide to help us. When we pulled the anchor at 5:45 the haze had increased and it was very foggy. It is really good to have GPS because we couldn’t have navigated in the fog using paper maps.

This was one of the more miserable days of travel. Not only the fog making it difficult, but it was damp and nothing on the boat dried off until later in the day. It was also quite chilly.

We stayed just outside of the shipping channel while traveling down the bay in the fog to avoid any large ships. We angled further east to the Cape May Canal. We were able to take this man-made canal rather than going around the tip of New Jersey and up on the ocean side. The canal really saves a lot of time. There was a lot of boat traffic on it. Just as we entered the canal there was a sign saying Welcome to New Jersey.

The sun started to burn through the fog about 10:30 and by 11:00 it was gone. We are fortunate that we decided to continue through the C&D Canal yesterday. We heard on the radio this morning that the Coast Guard had closed the canal due to fog. It wouldn’t stay closed all day, just until the fog lifted but it really would have messed up our plans.

After the sun came out and we got closer to land the temperature changed quite drastically. It got very warm and, was supposed to get into the 90’s today.

We arrived at Utsch’s Marina around 1 and were docked by 1:15. 7 ¼ hours and 55.9 miles. This is a nice marina and when we registered, we were given a gift bag. In it was 1 bottle of Utsch’s Harbor Wine, some biscotti, hand made soap and miscellaneous literature and maps about the area.

Showers for everyone – and they were really nice showers!

The four of us had dinner at the Lobster House. We were told it is one of the top 10 restaurants on the east coast. We enjoyed it.

Rock Hall, Md., - Reedy Island, Delaware Bay, Delaware, June 6, 2008

We were up at 5:15 a.m. and underway at 6:00. We were up for sunrise, but didn’t see it due to cloudiness. We wanted to take advantage of the tide on the leg up to Chesapeake City. We arrived at 11:00 and averaged 9 mph. That’s a record. Chesapeake City has a free dock they offer for a maximum stay of 24 hours.




We had planned to stay at Chesapeake City tonight and make the long run from there to Cape May tomorrow, but after some discussion, we decided to go through the C&D Canal today and then have a much shorter day tomorrow. So we took off again at 11:45.










The C&D Canal (Chesapeake and Delaware Canal) is a 12 mile man made passage between Delaware Bay and Chesapeake Bay. It opened in 1829 and is 450 feet wide with a depth of 35 feet. The largest ship able to take this route is 886 feet and requires powerful bow thrusters to keep them in course in the close quarters. Cargo ships and military vessels from all over the world pass through the canal.







We anchored at 2 p.m. about 4 miles south of the eastern end of the C&D Canal. We are close to the Salem Nuclear Power Plant. We had invited Bob and Margaret to dinner so they rafted up to us rather than anchoring and coming over in their dinghy.

Rock Hall, Md., - June 5, 2008

The morning was spent yet again with Darrell down in the engine room. Boat upkeep never ends. Beth rode her bike into town to pick up some groceries.

This afternoon we, along with Bob and Margaret, walked back to town to visit Durding’s Store, an authentic, 1930’s ice cream parlor. It had been closed yesterday and we were very happy it was open today. It is a most charming store. The building is more than 100 years old. Some of the original furnishings are still there. The marble fountain and stainless soda fountain is original. The old wooden telephone booth still stands...and works! How often do you see phone booths any more?

There was a painted picture in back of the fountain showing what the main street of Rock Hall looked like in 1923. Long ago drugstore cabinets were used to display items for sale and old apocathary jars and bottles.

Darrell had a chocolate malt, Beth had a chocolate coke, Bob and Margaret each had a different special of the day and they were really large!

Rock Hall, Md., - June 4, 2008

We had an uneventful night at the dock with nice, little waves rocking us to sleep. There was heavy rain and wind and Bob and Margaret had another experience entirely. They were docked beam to the sea and got little sleep as the waves splashed the boat and then pushed it into the dock.

This marina offers a mid-week special. Pay for 2 nights and get the third night free. In planning the next leg of our trip we decided to take advantage of the special, stay here 2 more nights and leave early Friday for our next stop, Chesapeake City. Bob and Margaret were able to move their boat and are now in back of us. They hope to get better rest the next two nights.

The 4 of us walked to downtown Rock Hall. It was about ¼ mile to their main street. Rock Hall is a very small town which counts on tourists for most of their livelihood. It was very quiet today, most of the visitors must come on week-ends. In fact, the majority of shops were closed and are only open Thursday – Sunday or just the week-end. Even the Visitor Center was closed.

We stopped at a small coffee shop for a mid-morning break. Just by chance, we glanced out the back window and saw a small group of colorful buildings. They were unique, well-decorated little shops with an eclectic mix of items. There was a shop with garden decorations, a shop having nothing but “hot” sauces, rubs and mixes, a shop with kites and one with a little bit of everything. There was also a “Hubby Daycare” building, which was sheer genius. It was a place where the men could wait while their wives or significant others shopped. It was a small building with a TV, a couch and a rocking chair. There was also literature about the area.

Later in the afternoon we had a thunderstorm blow through. There was severe weather in some areas so we were watching the sky closely. There was a trawler that came in and got tied up only minutes before the storm hit. It was lucky for them, as well as the dockhands who helped them dock.

Bob and Margaret prepared dinner for us. It was a delicious meal, a recipe they had found in Tangier Island. Nice food, nice company.

Annapolis, Md. – Rock Hall, Md., June 3, 2008

We didn’t get going until much later than we had hoped. UPS didn’t arrive until 12:45. The marina manager kindly let us stay past the 11 a.m. checkout in order to wait for our package.

There was a small craft advisory for the Chesapeake starting at noon today, with the forecast of thunderstorms later this afternoon and evening, so we were anxious to get started.

We left Annapolis a little before 1 and had quite an easy trip. The forecast was off a little so we were able to have a fairly smooth ride. We were in Rock Hall and tied up by 3:30. We met up with Bob and Margaret at the marina. We hadn’t seen them in about a month so it was nice to be together again and also take delivery of our mail which they had picked up while in Minnesota. We went to their boat to catch up on everything the other had been doing and to also start planning the next phase of the trip. We will be going together from here to New York.

The four of us went to dinner at Watermans Crab House which is right next to the marina. We were able to take advantage of the early bird special (served until 7 p.m.). The food was quite good.

Rock Hall Maryland is a small town on the east side of the Chesapeake. Hopefully we’ll be able to explore tomorrow if it doesn’t rain all day.

Annapolis, June 2, 2008

We spent most of today preparing to leave tomorrow. We finished up some work on the boat, did some final shopping and waited for packages to be delivered. Not everything arrived and we’re hoping it will come early tomorrow morning.

Tomorrow we will take the car back, then need to be out of the marina by 11 a.m. to avoid being charged for another day. We will be busy tomorrow.

Annapolis, June 1, 2008

Our niece Emily and her husband Matt live in Silver Springs, Maryland and they came over today for a visit. We rarely get to see them so were happy they could come. They took us out for lunch at Cantlers Riverside Inn, a very famous Annapolis crab shack. Darrell and Matt had crabs for an appetizer and Matt taught Darrell how to take them apart without using a mallet.

Unfortunately, for the first time this trip, Beth forgot her camera. She felt bad because it was such an interesting place and we would have liked to have some pictures. Matt took a couple with his cell phone but we don’t know if they turned out. Inside of Cantlers was a bar on one side and tables and chairs crowded together on the other side. Outside were picnic tables pushed together as close as possible. It was family dining and you’d find yourself at a table with people you do not know. Heavy brown paper is placed on top of the table because eating crab is so messy. They just gather up the paper and throw it away.

It was very nice to have such a long visit with Emily and Matt. In the past when we have seen them there were so many other people around we didn’t get much of a chance to talk.
We went back to the boat and we got this picture of Emily and Matt.

Fuzzy and the Battleship Wisconsin

Fuzzy got to go to see a ship with Papa and Nana. He went on a ship called the USS Wisconsin. The Wisconsin is a battleship and was retired from service several ago. Did you know that all battleships are named after states? Some other battleships are Arizona, Iowa, Missouri, and even Minnesota! Fuzzy was very interested in everything on the ship.

Did you know that Papa was in the Navy when he was younger? He was in the Navy for 6 years and was on a ship called the USS Bainbridge. It was a light cruiser, not a battleship, and that’s why it wasn’t named after a state. The USS Bainbridge was a ship that cruised with an aircraft carrier and helped to protect it.



There was a big anchor sitting on land Fuzzy got to sit on. Papa told him it was about the size of 1 of the 2 anchors on the Wisconsin. WOW!











Then he got to sit on the chain for one of the anchors. Look how big it is.













Fuzzy got to sit on Papa’s shoulder to look at the big guns.

















Fuzzy was glad he got to go. He learned so many things