ERIE CANAL CRUISE 2010
CRUISE REPORT 3
We found civilization. Sylvan Beach, the "Atlantic City of northern NY'" is at the end of Oneida Lake. A touristy place with a long sandy beach with an adjoining park, amusement park, restaurants, and all that.
We moored at the town wall (or "terminal" or, more commonly, "wharf") with a bunch of other boats and the ever-present fishermen - whom I'll never understand. This was Friday night and a warm-up for Memorial Day next weekend. People all over the place. A compulsive talker on a nearby boat kept up chatter with passers-by, other boaters, fishermen; and when none of the above were available he got out the cell phone and talked loudly and at great length while roaming the outside deck of his boat. People strolled the wharf until all hours and fishermen sat on the wharf just off our bow drowning worms, smoking cigars and chatting even at 1 a.m. Why would anyone be fishing at that time? Who knows. A constant stream of boats through the channel was no problem because they mostly behaved themselves in this "No Wake" zone with engines at low power and low noise.
Early the next morning we left Sylvan Beach to cross Oneida Lake. It is about the size of Lake Tahoe but without the mountains, clear air and water, depth, or altitude; but the shore is lined with houses. A small bay looked inviting so we dropped anchor in a protected spot by a golf course anticipating an easterly wind forecast for the afternoon. Blessedly quiet but as the wind picked up it was a bit rolly due to the waves being refracted around the point. The next morning we were awakened two hours early by the constant rocking and sound of waves slapping the hull. Weighing anchor, we left the bay and found a two-foot "sea" from the east. Steering a zigzag course put the waves alternately on the bow or stern quarter, avoiding a rolly beam sea. Those weirdo fishermen in their little boats were undaunted by the conditions, of course.
Re-entering the canal we stopped at a marina with the cheapest fuel prices on the canal (which we had confirmed by phone) and loaded 200 gallons at $3 per. This may be enough to get us to our final destination, Buffalo, including some side trips at the Finger Lakes plus reserve. Afterward we locked down to a very nice canal park with a beautiful deciduous forest. These trees of many species make a wonderful forest in spring and summer. The fall colors are fantastic for a short while. But in winter the scene turns bleak with dark, naked branches against the snow turning everything a dreary black and white. For now, it's a Robin Hood forest of hardwood trees in a variety of shades of green. Maples cast off their helicopter seeds to slowly auto-rotate down in the breeze and the cottonwoods litter the air and ground like snow.
Syracuse sits at the end of the very nice, 6-mile Lake Onondaga. The old canal harbor has been redeveloped into the finest small boat harbor I have seen and we were the only boat there. We discovered the problem is that most boaters are unaware of this new facility that hasn't made it into the cruising guides as yet. The second problem is that boaters are spooked by the very shallow channel from the lake to the harbor. We tippy-toed in and noticed a huge dredge and tug moored there. This new Inner Harbor attracts local walkers and strollers but, as yet, few boats.
After a quiet night we awoke to notice the dredge being slowly pulled out by the tug. A rapid cast-off and we got out before the dredge trapped us for an undetermined time stuck in the harbor. On our way out we passed the university at the other end of the lake where we had to blend in with the sculling traffic training on the calm waters.
Erie Lock 24 canal park offers moorage at the village of Baldwinsville. Needing some provisions, we started walking but discovered it was too far for the Admiral's sore leg. In the evening the Admiral, sitting on deck, asked some guy who was passing by if he was a local and knew if the town had a taxi to take us to the supermarket a mile away. He said he wasn't local but he had just purchased part of the commercial building on the corner and was walking around looking over the town and here are the keys to my car parked in front of the building, I'll be back in about an hour. So we went to the store. Upstate New York is in New England and more distant from Manhattan in spirit than in miles.
The park is quiet except for the chatter of many birds. The geese get a bit raucous on occasion. People walking their dogs and children, picnickers, and others are well-behaved. The wharf is beginning to fill up with boats anticipating the big weekend. Paper Mill Island, once a factory and now an excellent park and event area, is about 100 yards away will feature a concert tomorrow night. They promise it will not be rock noise but very little contemporary music actually deserves the term "music" so we will bug out in the morning.
Next stop is Cross Lake. We anchor in a cove out of the wind. Low, tree covered hills surround the lake. Scattered homes on shore haven't cut the trees for view. The Admiral goes swimming in the clear water. Twice.
In the Finger Lakes area we moor at the Seneca Falls Town Wall. The moorage is free as well as the electrical and water service. Showers and a coin-op laundry are right there in the Boater Amenities building about 15 steps from our boat. We thought we may not have a chance at a moorage on this long weekend but surprisingly, we are the only boat on the wall other than some tour boats.
The original canal that operated almost the entire nineteenth century has disappeared except for a few artifacts here and there. Self propelled craft made the canal modernization possible early in the twentieth century. The new route used rivers with only a few short canal sections to transfer from one river to another. Natural forest borders the rivers with a few summer homes set back in the trees. Some lakes have more permanent homes - large and small. Almost all private properties are well groomed with lawns down to the shore. Very park-like.
This part of the waterway lives up to its reputation as Blue Heron country. The rivers are full of fish and they frequently break the surface. Ducks and a lot of geese tending new broods.
The weather is staying nice even though it snowed here two weeks ago. Timing is everything.
