Our first Day on the Erie Canal

We are happy to announce the next chapter of our journey has begun!  We enjoyed our six weeks at AYC and it was a bittersweet farewell at the Wednesday night happy hour.  Jokingly, Bert had accused Hilary of starting to grow roots at AYC.  Ha ha!  

Yesterday we tossed lines at 6:00am and had a perfect 1st day as we entered the Erie Canal, traveling 28.53 nm in seven hours and passed through seven locks.   

Signboard in Waterford, NY. 
Turn left (west) for the Erie Canal
Continue straight (north) for the Champlain Canal and Canada

After a few miles heading north, 
we are heading west towards Michigan

As mentioned in a previous blog, the five locks in Waterford are in quick succession, raising us approximately 170' in just 1.5 miles.  Entering the lock chambers is a bit intimidating, especially when the giant doors swing close.  It feels like you are in a cement lined pit, but approximately 20 minutes later the lock chamber has completely filled and you have a view of the landscape once again.  Fortunately there were only two other powerboats waiting to enter the locks with us in Waterford.  The three of us traveled as a group for the majority of the morning and passed through the locks together.  We also passed through our first two lift gates.  The scenery is just stunning and there is some wildlife too, mostly birds.  While not pictured we saw a bald eagle.

Entering Lock E-4.

Lift Gate - used to control pool levels along the canal system.

Approaching lock E-7. 
Lock to the left.
Damn and water overflow to the right.

We docked at the Scotia Landing municipal dock for the evening.  We were the only boat here.  Hilary was able to go for a walk along the old tow path of the Erie Canal.  We also enjoyed an ice cream treat towards the end of the day at a local favorite, Jumpin' Jack's Drive-In.

Sign for vintage drive-in serving light fare, including ice cream.

A section of the Erie Canal old tow path.
This is part of the Empire State Trailway which parallels the Erie Canal.

Our dockage at Scotia Landing next to the fire boat.

At the end of the day we enjoyed watching water skier's practicing for an upcoming ski show here in Scotia at the end of June.   Bert shot some great video's but the blog sight doesn't seem to agree with the file so a still image was shared instead.

Water Ski Teams practicing for an upcoming show.

The normal hours of operation for most of the Erie Canal Locks are 8:00am - 6:00pm.  Today we had a long day planned, with a goal of traveling 43 miles and eight locks.  We hoped to take full advantage of the hours of operation of the canal system.  However, upon a review of the weather today, there is sustained wind of over 15mph with gusts nearing 40mph.  So, we have decided to stay put here in Scotia.  Fighting wind and risking damage to MMS would not make for a very enjoyable day of boating and this trip is supposed to be fun!  As boaters say:  "we are blown out today".  Hopefully conditions will be better tomorrow.