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

Manhattan to Haverstraw on the Hudson & West Point

The Hudson River is lined on one side by New Jersey and the other by New York both cities offer gorgeous views from the water. We had blue skies and warm weather, with lower humidity levels, making it a very comfortable day.

Once in Haverstraw we plan on renting a car with Rich & Laura and going to USMA (Unites States Military Academy), commonly known as West Point.  Named for being the most Western point on the  western shore of the Hudson river in NY.  The proper term is USMA @ West Point.

More Manhattan

Riding the sub way was a new experience for us, it can be a bit confusing, but once you get the schedule straight it is a great way to get around.  The sub way station was very hot, no air movement, I was relieved to find the sub way cars were air conditioned.  We visited Times Square, the United Nations, and Central Park where we took a carriage ride.

In Times Square it seems every building has a video screen on it.  The following is a description according to Wikipedia. Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets. The extended Times Square area, also called the Theatre District, consists of the blocks between Sixth and Eighth Avenues from east to west, and West 40th and West 53rd Streets from south to north, making up the western part of the commercial area of Midtown Manhattan.

These pictures were from the outside of the United Nations building

The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River. With a main span of 1,595.5 feet (486.3 m), it was the longest suspension bridge in the world from its opening until 1903, and the first steel-wire suspension bridge. Begun in 1867 and ultimately completed in 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge is now the city's best-known symbol of the age of growth that seized the city during the late 19th century.

Here are some shots of Liberty Landing Marina that we stayed at. I have done laundry in a lot of different kind of buildings, some even on the outside in Florida, but this was a first. The red ship is where the laundry facilities were for this Marina. They are in the process of completing the building you see in the background, and that is where the laundry will be moved to.

I have taken so many pictures of this fascinating city, I can't possibly post even a 1/4 of them.  The architecture is unbelievable.  I have tried to label each picture, so if you double click on the picture it will enlarge and you will see a description.

Central Park pictures, and the carriage with "Joey" the horse that took us through Central Park.