Oswego NY

Today is Friday the 13th and we left the marina in Brewerton at 9:11.  Good thing I am not superstitious.  The  saga of the over heating engine on The Laura Lee continues.  Rich and Laura decided to continue travelling down the Erie Canal at a reduced speed of about 5 kts, it only overheats at 7+ kts.  So we wished them safe travels and fair winds as we parted ways. We will both end up in Lake Erie so we may meet up again.

The Oswego River is much the same as the Erie Canal.  Houses dot the landscape, along with small towns, bridges and locks.  Six hours on the water today,  we transited 9 locks
and 31 miles. 

Our destination today was Oswego Marina in Oswego NY, at the mouth of Lake Ontario.  We are officially back in the Great Lakes.  Notice how blue the water is now that the lake is in sight.  A nice change from the Erie Canal and further down on the Oswego river.

 

Amsterdam, Little Falls, Sylvan Beach & Brewerton NY (Erie Canal)

Our journey on the Erie Canal is almost over, we have visited a few towns along the way, it's impossible to see them all.  The canal is freshwater, no more salt, I think I can almost hear Sales & Nails cheering.  Along the way we have seen kayaks, row boats, john boats, canal boats, dinner cruise boats and the list goes on. There is a towpath that runs along side which is a great attraction for bicyclist, walkers and runners.  They enjoy watching the boats meander down the waterway an lock through.  For the most part it is quiet, very picturesque, and rural.

Amsterdam was a overnight stop, we pulled into the city docks to avoid the thunderstorm that was heading our way.  We secured the boat just as the first rain drops fell.  The docks were newer and surrounded by a park, all in all it was a good stop. BTW, actor Kirk Douglas was born and raised in Amsterdam, NY.

 Next on the list was Little Falls, very rich in history, as most of these towns are.  We went through Lock 17, the highest lift on the Erie Canal at 40 feet.  There are 35 locks on the Erie Canal, we will only go through 23 before we exit onto the Oswego.

Sylvan Beach is the last stop before crossing Oneida Lake.  An amusement park next to the water brings in tourist from all over.  We walked into town and went to the amusement park.  The rain moved in and we were stuck in a downpour.  There apparently are no taxis in Sylvan Beach, we ducked into one of those beach shops and bought umbrellas for the walk back to the marina.

We crossed Oneida Lake on Tuesday and stopped at Ess-Kay Yards Marina in Brewerton.  We knew it would be a 2 night stay,  Rich & Laura on "The Laura Lee" have an engine that is overheating, and we are reluctant to leave them without it being fixed.  Jim and Rich worked on it all day yesterday, while Laura and I went to get pedicures, haircuts and groceries.  Bobbie, my wonderful talented hairdresser at home, and Lesley my nail tech have been greatly missed.   I cannot believe how hard it has been to get good haircuts & manicures/pedicures on this trip.  I know... it's a tough life!!

It is Thursday afternoon, and we are back in Brewerton after leaving this morning. There was a 90% chance that the guys fixed the engine problem . After about an hour and going

thru Lock#23 on the Erie Canal, The Laura Lee overheated again.  There was allot of grass, and sea weed ( Jim calls it salad) on the other side of the lock, it may have clogged the sea strainer and burned up the impeller. So the repair continues, I'm thankful it is not our boat this time. The lock keeper had a garden along side the lock and invited us to tie up to the wall after locking thru and help ourselves to the fruits of his labor.  Some of the best cherry tomatoes I've had in a long time.  The bright side of coming back is getting more tomatoes when we lock thru again.

Here's hoping the Laura Lee's engine problem is solved soon and doesn't require a bank loan to do it. :)

Waterford to Schenectady on the Erie Canal

The locks did not open on time, there was a delay until 12:30.  We went through 7 locks today. Stopping for the night at Schenectady Yacht Club, the pool was a real treat.  The weather was hot & humid, with more of the same for tomorrow.

Troy Federal Lock & Waterford, NY

Back to locking through the waterways.  We start out with the Troy Federal Lock, it has a rise of 15' feet. 

The visitor center at Waterford, NY offers a wall to tie up to with electric & water before starting the Erie Canal.  

A walk into town for dinner and sight seeing.

Right next to the wall is the first of 5 locks on the Erie Canal, we walked over and took some pictures from above the lock to give a different perspective.  We were planning on staying only 1 night, but one of the locks was down for repair and were not opening until around 2:00 P.M. so we decided to stay another night and head out at 8 tomorrow morning.

The first 5 locks are called the "Waterford Flight" they start with E2 up to E6.  This is a series of  5 locks where boats are lifted & lowered to the greatest height in the shortest distance. The total height is 169 feet, twice as much as the total lift from sea level to the summit of the Panama Canal.  We will transit 23 locks on the Erie Canal before making a detour to the Oswego.


The afternoon brought rain showers, I am glad we stayed an extra night and are not travelling in that.

Castleton and Albany, NY

We stopped at Castleton Boat Club about 5 miles shy of Albany for two days.  Rich & Laura on the sailboat "Laura Lee" needed to unstep their mast here.  They are too tall to get thru the upcoming bridges.  Between the 4 of us, we were able to get it down and secure it to the top of their boat.  It was a good stop to get some laundry done as well, then we all went to the local Italian Place for a great dinner, Rich & Laura's treat. Our days are numbered with travelling together.  Once we hit the Erie Canal we will only go a little less than half way before we turn off into the Oswego.  Rich & Laura will continue all the way on the Erie canal to Lake Erie.  On the Erie canal there are a few bridges with a height of 15' we can't get under them, so we have to take a detour to get to Lake Erie.

Albany was only 5 miles north of Castleton, so it was a short travel day on the water.  My sister Lisa's in laws, Joe & Ann,  live in Albany.  They took all 4 of us back to their home for pizza, wine and good company.  Lisa, Nick & Jillian, came in about an hour after we got there from Ohio, they brought their new dog, Lacey with them. She's cute, all white, black eyes and nose, the breed is a Maltese. I guess I didn't get any pictures of Lacey, or Jillian.  And despite the way these pictures look, we did have a good time, I think everyone was tired. Nick and his sister Donna are missing as well, they went to get the pizza.

Hyde Park, NY

Hyde Park is a stone's throw from Rhinebeck NY, I mean right around the corner.  You know, Rhinebeck, where Chelsea Clinton is getting married on Saturday.   Well we made it on time, but the invite must have gotten lost in the mail.  I called home and Mom assures me, it's not there.  So we will have to find some other way to entertain our selves.

The Vanderbilt & Roosevelt Mansions are located in Hyde Park. We toured both of these stately homes on Wed. with Rich & Laura from the Laura Lee. 

The FDR Presidential Library and Museum were also located on the property.   He was the first president to give his papers to the American people, and they form  the core of the library's research archives.  Today it houses over 17 million pages of manuscript materials, 51,000 books, and 150,000 photographs, negatives, and audio-visual items.

Some interesting facts that I did not know and some that I just forgot, about FDR.

• The Library was the first Presidential Library and the only one to be completed and used while the president held office.
• On March 4, 1933 when FDR took office for the first time, the unemployment rate was 25%.
• His first 100 days in office, he drafted 100 pieces of legislation.
• For 8 years he led the country through the Great Depression. In 1940 the nation reelected him  to an  unprecedented third term.
• Amid a separate epic crisis - World War II, the nation would reelect him for a fourth term. In all  Roosevelt would serve over 12 years, longer than any other president.
• He died 3 months into his fourth term, missing the ending of World War II by one month.
• FDR drafted the legislation to institute Social Security.
• His wife Eleanor, was his fifth cousin, once removed.

            The Frederick Vanderbilt Mansion
                The Vanderbilts of Hyde Park

The Frederick Vanderbilt Mansion sits high above the Hudson River, just as FDR'S home does.  The views of the river & valley below are spectacular.  Again like FDR's home, inside photography was not permitted.  The Vanderbilt mansion is also a National Historic Site.  Frederick Vanderbilt is one of eight children,  grandson of Cornelius Vanderbilt, and son of William Henry Vanderbilt. Both the richest men in America at the time.

 In 1878 Frederick married Louise Anthony Torrance, 12 years his senior and recently divorced from one of his cousins. They married against the wishes of his parents,  as punishment, Frederick only inherited $10 million. Over time Louise became one of William Henry's favorites.  Unlike any of his brothers he managed to increase the  $10 million into $70 million by the time he died. His accomplishments were impressive, he sat on the boards of 22 railroads, he was the director of the New York Central for 61 years

Frederick & Louise never had any children, Louise died 12 years before Frederick .  Louise's niece inherited the estate upon Fredericks death in 1938.    She told President Franklin Roosevelt, a neighbor and close friend of the Vanderbilt's to donate the house and grounds, (211 acres) to the Government as a National monument to her Uncle Fred. Frederick Vanderbilt was also very generous to his  staff,  leaving a portion of his wealth to them and various charities.

By the way, George  Vanderbilt, the youngest of the eight children, built the biggest home of all the children, 250 rooms.  He built the "Biltmore Estate" in Asheville,  NC