Waterford, NY

On Sunday, July 30, Jonny made us a delicious breakfast of French toast using the cinnamon raisin bread and Vermont maple syrup from the farm stand in Orwell. What a treat!

We left Fort Edwards at 8:50 bound for Mechanicville. We had to travel through several locks to complete the Champlain Canal.  Upon arriving at our first lock we were chagrined to discover that a huge flotilla of over 100 kayaks and canoes was traveling the canal en masse.  They were about to enter the lock so we were told to hang out until they locked through not only this lock but three subsequent ones as well!  Jonny was kicking himself because he had heard something about this on the radio but had neglected to pay attention to it.  Oh well! We had no agenda so we tied up at the lock wall and took Archie for a walk across the canal to a pretty little hamlet called Fort Miller. It was a beautiful day, sunny with temperatures in the 70’s, so there was no need to complain.

We chilled for a couple of hours until we were notified to proceed into the lock. From there we went through 3-4 more locks with ease.

Just before getting to Mechanicville we had to go under a bridge that was so low that we were required to notify the nearby lockmaster the day before we would be coming so he would have time to lower the water level, which fortunately he did. We only had a few inches between our solar panels and the bridge.  Yikes!

Because Mechanicville wasn’t our favorite town and because we still had plenty of daylight left, we decided to continue on to Waterford. 

We arrived in Waterford by 5:30.  This is an important intersection because it is where the Erie and Champlain Canals meet. We tied up at the comfortable town dock that only charges for electricity - $10 in our case.

We took Archie for a walk along the waterfront which is quite attractive (and clearly has some sort of horse theme going on)!

Later we returned to Zendo and made grilled pork chops, zucchini and potatoes for dinner.  All in all, it was a long day but not a strenuous one given our early hiatus waiting for the flotilla.  We are taking our time heading south on the Hudson. We’ll seek out some towns that we haven’t visited in the past and probably stop at some old favorites.

Fort Edward, NY (return trip)

The first thing we did on Saturday, June 29 was to walk Archie along a different part of the waterfront towards Whitehall Marina. Upon arriving there we confirmed the negative impression we had of it from seeing it from the water. We definitely won’t be staying at this marina especially given the comfortable and free accommodations offered at the town dock.

While walking by the marina we encountered this unusual version of the American flag. We looked up its meaning and discovered that while it was originally meant as a sign of support for law enforcement it has also come to signal opposition to the racial justice movement and a symbol of white supremacy or support for the Blue Lives Matter cause. It was a disturbing reminder of the current problems our nation is facing, 

Jon was eager to have breakfast at Historic Grounds so we stopped in for a hearty breakfast. While there, we met the couple who were docked behind us and we chatted with them for quite a while. They were from Kansas City and had a little trailerable boat that they did a lot of cruising in - a little too cozy for us!

We took off by 9:50 for the four hour cruise on the Champlain Canal.  It was a straight shot through the narrowly dug canal.  We started at lock 12 and got to lock 7.  Halfway through the series of locks, we had reached the highest point and from then on we were locking down instead of locking up.

We have often been the only boat in the locks but on this day we shared one of the locks with two other boats.

When we arrived at Fort Edward we followed a sharp S turn and entered the upper Hudson River. We tied up at the free town dock there bordering a pretty park. Archie loved the fact that our deck was level with the shore and he could jump off and frolic in the grass which he happily did before settling down in the shade for a rest.

Shortly after our arrival it started to rain so we hunkered down inside of Zendo and had fun catching up by phone with a few friends.  We were expecting Michael and Melina to drive over from their home in Dorset, Vermont. They came by at 5 and we had drinks and appetizers on board before heading out for dinner at a nearby restaurant. It was still raining so we donned our rain gear and drove over to the only nice restaurant in the area called the Anvil.

The restaurant,which had a very rustic atmosphere, was hopping on a Saturday night.  We enjoyed a very nice dinner and had fun chatting away.  It’s always a treat to see Michael and Melina and we hope to see them when they come to Florida this winter.  They drove us back to Zendo where we had a quiet evening before going to bed.

Whitehall, VT (return trip)

Stephanie awakened us on the morning of Friday, July 28 to tell us it was Eloise’s first birthday. Of course, Archie had to wish her a very Happy Birthday!

As soon as we got up we rushed to borrow the marina car to go into Orwell to pick up the strawberry rhubarb pie that the owner of the Red Sky Farm had promised to bake for Jonny. She delivered as promised and Jonny is one happy camper!  Of course we had to have a slice as soon as we returned to Zendo. Delicious!

By 10 we left Chipman’s Point Marina bound for Whitehall. It was a beautiful, sunny day in the 70’s and we’re so glad to escape the heat wave that is enveloping the rest of the world.  We just learned that June 28 was the hottest day on record world wide!   

This part of the southern end of  Lake Champlain doesn’t even feel like a lake. It is very narrow, winding and wooded. It makes for a most scenic cruise.

After going through the first lock on our return trip we arrived at Whitehall’s town dock and tied up by 1:05.  It is so easy and convenient to stay at this free dock that includes electric.  Archie scooted right off of Zendo onto the adjacent parkland. This is a great place for him because it’s very quiet and he can run off leash.

We puttered around onboard for much of the afternoon and took a quick nap before taking the pup for a walk along the waterfront.

For dinner we had lamb chops and zucchini on the grill. We had leftover French fries from our recent dinner out and for the first time used the air fryer feature on our microwave to heat them up (maybe a little too much)!  It was cool enough to enjoy dinner on the aft deck in this lovely setting.

Afterwards we watched an episode of the Wire before reading and going to bed. We really should be concentrating on historical dramas since we are cruising through an area steeped in Revolutionary War history. The next day we’ll be on to Fort Edward.

Orwell, VT (return trip)

Waking up to a somewhat foggy and overcast morning on Thursday, July 27 we went for one last walk on the beautiful grounds of the Lake Champlain Maritime Center.

At the end of the long dock we saw examples of the type of little sailing dinghies that the boatbuilder was working on the day before.

 

We pulled up our anchor by 8:40 for the four hour cruise to Chipman’s Point Marina in Orwell. It was a cool and cloudy day. It rained on and off enough to cause us to spend much of the cruise in the salon which is unusual for us.

The museum has this great map of Lake Champlain. If you look closely you can see some of the towns we’ve visited and the very narrow part of the lake that we will be going through next as we head south to Whitehall over the next couple of days. It is at the very southern end of the lake and is the start of the series of locks we need to go through.

We passed under the Crown Point bridge as we made our way to Chipman’s Point. 

Arriving at one of our favorite marinas we tied up at a face dock behind a Nordic Tug with a friendly owner named Scott who Jonny ended up helping with his electrics.

We spent the afternoon on boat and housekeeping chores including two loads of laundry. Borrowing the marina’s car, we drove into the village of Orwell to pick up some groceries. We were happy to be able to get all that we really needed from our favorite farm stand there called the Red Sky Farm.  Jonny was especially interested to go because that’s where I had purchased the delicious strawberry-rhubarb pie over the 4th of July. Alas, the owner was all out of pies but she promised to bake one for us first thing in the morning as she starts baking at 5 a.m.   She gave Jonny his choice and he happily chose another strawberry-rhubarb. We could pick it up early the next morning before we resume our cruise. Score one for Jonny! 

Our friend, Michael Goldfield who visited us last time we were here, came by again on his way from Burlington to his home in Dorset. We had a short but nice visit aboard Zendo and we’re hoping to get together with him and Melina over the next couple of days before they head to Hawaii for Melina’s son’s wedding!

That evening we ate crab cakes, salad and corn on the cob from the farm stand. For dessert we availed ourselves of the ice cream that Chipman’s sells for $1 per serving. Such a deal!

As evening arrived, it started getting warmer and we turned on the air conditioner so we could sleep more comfortably.  We have been so fortunate to escape the terrible heat wave that is encompassing not only the nation but the whole world this year.

North Harbor, VT

After chatting with the owner of the beautiful home near our dock, we left Vergennes at 10:30 on Wednesday, July 26. We headed down Otter Creek and were pushed along swiftly by a two knot current.

It was a perfect summer day as we got onto Lake Champlain and traveled the short distance to an anchorage in North Harbor which is part of the Basin Harbor Resort. Our plan was to visit the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum which we had read about as being a very worthwhile visit.

By noon we arrived at our anchorage and had lunch on board before heading onto land. The Maritime Museum sits on the shores of Lake Champlain in a magnificent setting. We pulled up to their dock which was surrounded by several brightly painted rowing skiffs as well as a replica of an 1862 canal schooner, the Lois McClure.

We spent a couple of hours wandering through a collection of historic replicas of buildings representing various aspects of maritime life on Lake Champlain.  The grounds were beautifully laid out. One of the buildings included information about the history of the wars in the area, another housed replicas and actual vessels showing the evolution of the canoe, another had a huge ice sailing boat and still another had some beautiful examples of old Chris Craft boats.  There was a blacksmith shop and a boat builder who was working on building small sailing dinghies.  He told us about the sailing and boat building programs the museum sponsors for young people and told us that the colorful boats on the dock where we came in were all built by program participants. We were fascinated!

Later that afternoon after returning to Zendo we took Archie on shore so he could run through the grounds and so I could load my blog since we had no connectivity onboard. We walked up the hill towards the resort to check out the restaurant and decided to dine there.  The restaurant was filled with families, all of whom we assumed were staying at the resort.   Afterwards we were encouraged by some of the young resort staff to go to a free outdoor concert hosted by the resort that was being held along the waterfront. We strolled over to see lots of people on lawn chairs enjoying the evening listening to a rock band. 

The grounds of the resort were quite beautiful.

Nearby was the resort’s small and well-protected marina. The marina offers cruisers the use of their mooring balls for only $20 a night plus a resort fee which includes the privilege of using the pool and other resort services.  We were more than comfortable with our anchorage which was adjacent to the mooring field. 

After checking out the grounds we stopped for a soft serve ice cream cone which hit the spot!

Heading back to Zendo, we made an early night of it. Since we had no connectivity we hit the sack early, read for a while and pretty quickly fell asleep in our idyllic anchorage.

Vergennes, VT

We had an incredibly calm and quiet night in our beautiful anchorage in Hawkins Bay with only one other boat that left early in the morning on Monday, June 24.

The first thing we did after breakfast was to dinghy to an old rickety set of stairs along the bay where Jonny tied up to a tree. We went for a lovely walk in the woods along a path that climbed a hill high above the coast. Much of this area is undeveloped and designated state park land.  As always, Archie enjoyed running freely along the path and chasing unknown critters as he spotted them in the woods.

By 11:30 we hoisted the anchor for the less than two hour cruise up Otter Creek to the idyllic setting of Vergennes. We hadn’t been here since our first cruise nine years ago and it was one of the most memorable places that we have stayed in our travels.  This time we weren’t quite sure what to expect. We had received a report from the two Johns that the recent flooding had caused the floating docks there to have to cut their chains because there was so much strong water gushing from the falls in this historic town.  With the runoff from the mountains and the strong water flow, a lot of debris can fill the creek and cause more problems for boaters.

We were very fortunate in that we found none of these issues while cruising the river. We did encounter several small antique looking vessels with wood-fired steam engines that would gleefully toot their horns at us as they passed. It must have been a convention of some sort!

When we arrived at Vergennes, the docks were intact and there were no other boats.  However, with the strong water flow still emanating from the falls the docks were floating further away from the shore and there was a huge build-up of foamy, sudsy water billowing in the space in between.  We tied up easily and Jonny ran the power cord through the water and plugged us in. These docks are free including electricity and water. The town has a box and requests a donation of between $10 and $20 for the night, Certainly a fair deal!

We were in such a beautiful setting with the falls behind us and a beautifully maintained historic home in front of us.  The older gentleman who lives there provided us with helpful advice about the area. The home has been in his family for 100 years!

That afternoon it rained a little so we mostly stayed on board. I did Spanish homework while Jonny did a number of boat chores. We had dinner on board - a new recipe I found on-line -  a traditional Ukrainian dish with chicken, cabbage, paprika and a few of other ingredients. It was relatively simple and quite good!

The next day, after my Spanish lesson I did some long needed interior cleaning and defrosted the freezer while Jonny caught up on our finances.  That evening we treated ourselves to a dinner out.  We walked up the rather steep hill into the charming and historic town of Vergennes.  Known as the smallest of Vermont’s ten cities, it has a population of 2,500.  It was first settled in 1766 and it was here that the fleet that defeated the British on Lake Champlain during the War of 1812 was built and armed. The Otter Creek Falls provided power for the mills and factories that grew through to the late 19th century but since then the industries that were once active have declined and the recent focus has been more geared towards tourism.

As good tourists, we had reservations to eat at the Black Sheep Restaurant where we had dined during our previous visit.  They have an unusual pricing model whereby they charge $10 for each of their appetizers and $28 for each of their entrees. The choices of both were very appealing and we had a delicious dinner trying four different items. We had Archie with us so we sat outside in a covered area by the sidewalk and we had a lovely evening - a date night!

We walked back down the hill to Zendo where the nearby falls were nicely illuminated by the moonlight.