Schenectady NY to Amsterdam NY
We traveled an extensive 18.1 miles today. Wow. Such a journey ...
But there were FOUR locks in there and the Erie Canal is mostly slow speed when you aren't waiting for a lock or in a lock. We spent a couple of hours today sitting still, standing in the sun, holding ropes to keep our boat in place as the water rose under the boat...
Another part of the reason for the short distance today is we got a late start.
We didn't leave the marina in Schenectady until almost noon.
I was really tired after yesterday. We wanted to watch church before leaving (because we knew we wouldn't be able to watch live while in a lock...) and I also wanted to fix my windlass if i could....
Mission accomplished on the windlass.
Two wires were corroded so bad the power couldn't get through. One was almost dead (lowering voltage about 3v) and the other was completely corroded through. Thank you salt water. You will not be missed. There is no real choice when it comes to anchoring. Anchors and chains drop in the salt water and then come up wet as they come back into the anchor locker. Salty wet areas corrode...
Fortunately I have the tools to cut, crimp, solder, heat shrink wiring and make them work like new. I had to pull the whole windlass solenoid box off the ceiling of the anchor locker (while hanging upside down in a tight spot) to get to it and diagnose the wiring. More than one person in the marina wondered if I needed help. Lol.
One burned toe and one cut knee - but all will be well. Burns heal. (My little utility butane torch didn't shut off when I let off on the trigger and put it down next to my foot like it's supposed to....) Not good. Burned the callous and then into the live flesh. Ouch! That will be sore a while... At least I didn't burn the fiberglass.... Fiberglass doesn't heal.
I'll save you from the pictures of the injuries. Those who know Katie know she is the model of sympathy and feeling my pain. Such a dear sweet loving wife and caretaker I married..
(whew - still alive - no lightning after that lie. Haha.). .
The journey in this part of the Erie is stunning. The bridges are all about 21ft over the water. My antenna are about 20ft 6 inches I think. (I can put the antennas down and get to 18ft, 11inches..)
Hills, mountains, rivers, bike paths, railroads and some highway.
They definitely run a ton of trains through here. Each lock has this amazing running water and huge waterfall. Lots of water coming out of these hills...
We've arrived in the town of Amsterdam.
Once we cleared the lock we hit the spot we heard existed (online) but haven't seen. A free tie up wall on a dam, and FREE 50 amp power!
Time for a bike ride to Walmart to get some fresh produce, donuts, Diet Coke and the other essentials.
These ebikes are awesome when we get to small towns. Walmart is 2.5 miles away and 500+ feet UP HILL. There is hardly a hill in Michigan that is 500ft high.... But in New York they are everywhere. Thus the locks and rivers canal systems. We have a few locks in Michigan but here there are tons...
We have one neighbor tonight. Maybe we will get another. It's supposed to rain most of the day tomorrow so we might just stay a 2nd night....
There is a bridge about 100 miles ahead of us that is broken. Stuck down. They won't be even looking at the problem until Tuesday (after the holiday).
Hopefully it's something they can fix quick. Last year the same bridge broke and was stuck for three weeks! They eventually had it moved manually one Saturday so that the backlog of boats could get through....
Boy is it hot this afternoon. 85 and sunny. I'm sure glad for ebikes or that 500ft climb (in .4 miles) would have killed us.... The other two miles to Walmart weren't as bad but that .4 miles....
Amsterdam NY is a pretty poor area but there are some beautiful old houses. I didn't take pics of them when biking past them and balancing a case of 24 diet cokes while holding the brakes.... (Publisher edit: Katie reminded me she had three bags of groceries on her bike and I only had diet Coke... She's right. She's perfect. Love that lady.).
Perhaps we will get some photos and add them later if/when we go out again. We hope to go visit other loopers who are tied up below the dam and maybe get some..... Ice cream. Until then we will enjoy the peaceful sound of the freight trains running 200ft from our boat every 12 minutes or so. Lol. I'm glad I sleep deeply. This bugs many people but I'll never notice....
---- continued. ----
This evening we went out for ice cream (meh) and went to visit Riverlink park. This is the strangest park I've ever seen in my life. No parking. Between the river and railroad tracks and the highway.
So what do they do? A normal place would build a pedestrian bridge with ramps on each side. Not Amsterdam NY. They find a shopping center and a hospital and find an upper parking level attached to these things.... Then they use the ceiling of the two buildings as a fenced walkway to go OVER the offices, the hospital and the shopping center as well as a sketchy warehouse and an abandoned (apparently) facility....
Then they put a sketchy ramp in and a over highway and railroad walkway in (inside a cage). When you get to the other end? No room for a ramp so....
Put an elevator in the middle of the park.
Once you take the elevator there is a beautiful park, an amphitheatre area, a picnic area and a cool bridge over the river into. ...
a sketchy neighborhood with bars on all of the windows. We rode around that area for a bit and decided we should be on the other side of the river. Not good.
We came back to the boat just before sunset. It's beautiful here a mile from town on the other side of the lock..
Good night. We may or may not decide to move tomorrow depending on weather. Holding ropes in locks in the rain isn't my idea of fun... Especially since I have a free wall with power and there is a bridge ahead that can't be opened until at least Tuesday ..
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