Day 21 - Sat 18 Jun 2016
Docked – Oswego, NY

[photo: two 11 year old girls on shift as the "Bridge House Brats" were eager to try out our very different looking folding bicycles.]

Today was a day of changing plans, but it all worked out OK. We awoke at a reasonable hour to see at least some of the PDQ flotilla readying for departure. Once they were gone ahead of us, we planned to move the boat, now named Peregrin, from alongside us to alongside the dock. We knew that the yard was coming early to replace 2 batteries, but we thought they would be better served not having to traipse across our boat, and perhaps if there was a delay, we might need to leave earlier.

So, about 0730 we disconnected his electric cord and untied his lines to move him by hand to the dock. As soon as we started doing this, the owner, Gene, pops out and startles us. We had thought he was sleeping at the motel as he had the other nights. I apologized for our actions with consulting him, but all worked out in the end.

We got word that our friends would be able to meet us in Phoenix for lunch instead of supper, so we headed to the dock to pump out our waste tank. We locked through the last lock for us on the eastern Erie Canal with Vagabond and then waved goodbye when we stopped as they entered Oswego Lock 1. Our stop in Phoenix was great. We had 2 eleven year old girls, part of the Bridge House Brats, help us tie up and then plugged into shore power to air condition the boat.

We toured the small museum, with the girls as guides, left our donation, and the unpacked our folding bikes for the first time. The girls were fascinated with them and we let them try a short ride. After that, we took a little tour of the immediate vicinity and then got back to Diva Di. Our friends joined us on the bot for a simple lunch and we talked about the recent weather. They suggested that we consider crossing Lake Ontario early Sun to ensure good weather, and their advice was good.

We then decided to say goodbye to our friends and cast off to make tracks N on the Oswego Canal closer to the lake. It was almost the last few minutes of lock operation when we got through Lock 7 where we tied up on the free wall for the night. There were quite a few boats there that had met before, so we had a great impromptu cocktail party aboard Diva Di with the quiet generator running and the A/C on. Otherwise, it would be sweltering in the cabin with the current temperatures. Our PDQ buddies were farther up the canal and having a group dinner in a restaurant, but we had already told them it was unlikely we could join in that.

After the cocktails and appetizers, Brian and Judy aboard Valentine, Tom and Cathy aboard Reveille, and Mike and Cathy from Trawler Life left to go prepare supper. Brian is quite the hunter and outdoorsman, so he grilled venison backstrap, and wonderful chicken sausage on his grill. Diane and I quickly ate some delicious leftovers of flank steak, potatoes, and fresh tomato/mozzarella salad, and then she was ready for a shower.

In the still hot temps, the stern shower, al fresco, felt great, but she put on her nightie and stayed inside while I got into cleaner clothes to rejoin the other group. They were picking at the scrumptious offerings, and Brian kept cajoling me to eat more of the wonderful meats he had cooked. The guys picked and talked and sipped, in repetition, until it was all gone. Man, that was good stuff!

I returned to Diva Di at 2100, Looper midnight as we have heard it called, and found Diane sound asleep in the cabin. We expect to pass through the last lock about 0800 tomorrow and run about 5 hours N across Lake Ontario to clear into Canada, and then anchor somewhere pretty. The following day, we should be in the marina in Trenton to get situated for a visit by some Canadian friends, Bud and Suzanne.