GWA is “going west again,” and here we start at about 130′ above sea level. We’ve just passed the road sign included in a post here in 2006. Ahead of us is lock E-2, the beginning of the flight of five, located in the town of Waterford.
Above E-3, my former vessel waits, along with Chancellor. Those two boats alone have a combined total life of 196 years between them. In the foreground is the business end of a cutter suction dredge.
Recreation boats come from everywhere.
Beyond the guard gate atop E-6 is Grand Erie, who also came from away, the Ohio River in her case.
Locals know how to enjoy the 200-year-old waterway.
Below E-11, we get a green light in the early morning drizzle.
Squeezing a 183′ x 39′ vessel through the locks involves a skilled crew and vigilant lock master.
Drivers on the Thruway at this point are 42 miles from Albany, 190 from NYC.
At E-15, still in the drizzle, a Florida boat —Sharon Ann–waits as we lock through.
Above E-16, the 90-year-old Governor Cleveland attends dredge pipes, maintenance dredging being ongoing. Yes, the canal needs maintenance, and so does the Thruway, any street, RR tracks and infrastructure, my car, my body . . . .
A boxer takes its human for a run . . .
More guard gates–width is 55′–to squeeze through.
Lords of the air watch all along the waterway.
At E-17 we share a lock with Tender #5.
Since we tie off above E-18, Lil Diamond II has to maneuver around.
An SPS lands a crew on the bank for preventative maintenance … keeping dead trees from falling into the water and jamming lock gates.
More recreational boats from far-off ports.
More maintenance above E-19, this time with dragon dredge and the electric tender . . . #4.
Reinforcement of the canal walls is a canal priority this year.
I always imagine the mythical Utica lies beyond the berm marked by the open tower. Central NY was once included in the “military tract,” land distributed to Revolutionary War veterans.
Above lock E-20, we are at the high point of this portion of the Erie Canal,
and Rome was the original high point/ portage in the Mohawk portion of the waterways that pre-date Europeans settlement of North america.
We are now 456′ above sea level, where we’ll pick up the journey tomorrow.
All photos by and any errors attributable to Will Van Dorp.
4 comments
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August 10, 2017 at 5:45 pm
Jim Gallant
Great stuff here, Will, especially for those of us who have never been to, and may never get to see, the Erie Canal. Keep it coming!
August 10, 2017 at 7:28 pm
tugster
Thx, Jim. I’m postponing using many photos for now, so that we can keep moving and make it to Chicago. Maybe this winter, I can revisit the topic on the blog and add more photos. There’s a book evolving here, to reveal a secret.
August 10, 2017 at 8:58 pm
Daniel Meeter
I loved this post. Were those nuns among the locals? These posts are all relevant, once we remember that the Sixth Boro became what it was because it offered ocean passage to the route through the Appalachian Wall, which Philadelphia and Baltimore could not offer.
August 10, 2017 at 9:38 pm
tugster
Dan– I had the impression they were Muslims, not nuns. And you’re absolutely right about the connection with the sixth boro and the populating and economic development of the Great Lakes megalopolis: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Lakes_Megalopolis