Tom and our son, Daniel, took the boat from St. Clare Shores, MI to Buffalo, NY while I stayed behind in WI to take care of some family business. I joined Tom the following week and we entered the Erie Canal that took us to the mouth of the Hudson River. It was like motoring in a bathtub for most of the way, with the shoreline close and lots of houses and small towns to look at. Other times the canal merged with a river and it was a lot more tedious and boring. What was NOT boring was going through 34 locks along the way. As the water levels of different bodies of water change, you have to be moved up or down in a contained tub of water and released on the other side. To summarize, Tom had to steer the boat into a narrow opening at one end of the lock and slowly maneuver it alongside of a very slimy, rough concrete wall where he slowed down long enough for me to reach over the side of the boat and grab a thick, slimy rope (with gloves on!), put the boat into neutral and race to the stern (back) of the boat and grab his own slimy rope. The metal doors clanged shut and we began our 10-15 min. of going up or down 5 to 25 feet before the doors on the other end would open and we could thread our way out. We actually became pretty skilled at the mechanics of it and the only tough days were when the winds were trying to blow you off the lock wall or when it was pouring rain. I am happy to report - those rain suits actually do work!
Sarah
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