Antares Cruising East

Day 18 Fairport to Clyde, Tuesday, September 17, 2013
On a 40 degree misty morning, we quietly left Fairport. Another sailboat "Saltine" would be leaving shortly and would probably catch up to us. It was sunny, no wind, and cold on my fingers and nose. At one point, I had to go forward as a lookout because of the thick fog on the water. Information told us that the Mid-Lakes Erie Macadon Landing about an hour away had the gas that we needed. As we pulled up, we wondered if we would get stuck, but John slowly, very slowly wiggled our way in to a vacant dock. John got his gas and we got on our way. (The gas is for the Honda outboard and the Honda generator). In the meantime, Saltine passed us by and was already through the lock by the time we returned to the channel. We waited for Lock 30 to refill and open. As usual, the docking is poorly completed. On Lock 29, it was a bit better, and on Lock 28B...the bow hits and the stern pulls away. We just couldn't get it right. Knowing that there were two more locks, I said it's time to change tactics. I moved most of the fenders onto the starboard side and we planned to dock on that side. Coming in on the starboard side, I hooked the line from the wall by the boat hook and handed the line back to John. I immediately go forward and snag another line for myself. This worked! Finally! A second success at Lock 27 confirmed...are we getting it right? As we pass by the town of Lyons, 25 miles from Fairport, there's Saltine already tied up. We figured that we should get more distance behind us, since tomorrow will be a 40 mile day and today turned out warm and sunny. We totaled 38 miles for this day, and docked at a small park in Clyde. The chart showed no amenities, so we were pleasantly surprised to find water, electric, pump out, and restrooms.

It was a steep walk to the bridge, over the canal, to the town. We had specific items we wanted and figured a pawn shop would do. The drip coffee maker quits working after only one or two cups are made; time to give it up. John's phone charger is hit or miss when charging, so time for another one. Clyde seems nice, though many of the downtown buildings were empty or condemned. We decided to stop for pizza on our way back to the boat, but had to try to find the replacements first. There it was; a pawn shop near the carry-out. We stopped in and right away found a stainless steel percolator and the correct sized charger. To top it off, there was a Pelican box, too. We'll have coffee, a charged phone and a dry phone to boot. We found these quickly, didn't stop to look around, paid for the purchases, and got what we needed at the carry-out. As we returned to Papa's Pizza, one of the pawn shop patrons talked briefly to us. We walked back across the bridge with our left over pizza, watched a fast moving train go under us, and heard the clop-clop of a horse and buggy going by...a real sense of the rural.

Within minutes of getting back on the boat, the pawn shop patron came walking up with his girlfriend wanting to sell us a cam-corder. When we said no thanks, he pitched his hard luck story and asked again if we wanted to buy it. John finally said, "Too much information." We said good-bye and went down below. Other than that, Clyde was a nice place. We settled down to watch "On the Road," and finish our pizza.

Day 19 Clyde to Baldwinsville, Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Today we phoned the lock tender about our plans to go through Locks 26 and 25, but stop short of Lock 24 in Baldwinsville. That's 37.2 miles ahead, about 6 hours of motoring. Charts indicate mostly marshes and a wildlife refuge. It was sunny, light wind, and 44 degrees; a promise of a beautiful day. And what a day it was. We sighted lots of fish, a muskrat, and an eagle. By now, the green and red markers have numbers on them to coincide with the charts. The canal is often in the Syracuse River that is wider than we've been on for a while. We cross Cross Lake and the openness of the place takes my breath away. There's a sailboat in the distance actually sailing in our direction. Will the ocean have this effect on us? Coming off the lake, there's a notation on the chart about missing the turn. It is a very narrow canal taking a sharp left away from the river. The markers are in place, but it doesn't look right. We slow way down to follow the turn to what looks like a dead end. It keeps going on and under a bridge and on again until it returns to the river once more. Approaching Lock 24, we met our goal after six and one-half hours.

It is here that the word is confirmed that Lock 13 is closed for repairs. It will be 2-3 weeks before traffic will be moving again. That is a long wait; time to figure out our alternatives. In the meantime, the showers are across the canal, and electricity is $5.00 a day. We can stay here for as long as the lock is closed. No time to panic....