July 16 and week thereof

 

Saturday started so peacefully. We left the Schuyler Yacht Basin having new friends, the Hudson River sparkled under blue skies, and arrived at Ft. Edward, being the only boat on its wall.

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. . . at 8PM on Sunday, Capt. Phil discovered that our starboard side transmission had an oil leak. By around 3PM the next day, he found the source, tightened some nuts, and declared us ready to cruise on Tuesday.

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We arrived at Whitehall, NY, on a very hot Tuesday, looking for some comfort after passing through four locks. Unfortunately, while Whitehall is very pleasant and picturesque featuring a very large riverside park and museum, there are few restaurants in town which are picky about the days they're open.

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Within a mile from where we moored our boat at the top of a bluff was a single Chinese restaurant. We arrived at its door soaked with sweat from trudging uphill, ate, and returned to our boat, still soaked with sweat.

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Sweat was constant for the next two days. Fortunately, by day 3, a lovely restauranta a half block from our boat opened. Did we have food on board? Yes? Did we feel like making it? No.

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We ended up staying four days in Whitehall, due to a threatened rainstorm that never materialized. Happily, while waiting for the storm, we met Sharon and Rudy. Not one of us complained about the lack of rain.  

 

Locks: Pictured here is the lock we pass through to to enter Lake Champlain. 

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Locks are huge rectangular containers which shift boats from high water to low, then back again. Going north, the water is high on the Hudson River Side and must be lowered to enter the Lake Champlain side. 

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To move through the lock from our position, the rectangular container is filled with Lake Champlain water. When it reaches the Hudson River level, the lock walls on that side open and we sail in. Water is then pumped back into Lake Champlain, which empties the lock and lowers our boat to the lake's level, at which point, the northern lock wall opens, and we sail out.

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We ended our week with a 5.5 hour cruise, interrupted by a light rain, to Burlington, Vermont arriving at the Burlington Community Boathouse Marina.

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To make our boat complete, while visiting Burlington's main shopping district, I shelled out possibly a bit too much for a Neoair Uberlite air pad (blow-up mattress), so we can nap on our back deck. This air pad weighs under 11 ounces, is as light as a mylar balloon, blows up easily, and when decompressed, can be stored with our canned goods.

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More Information: Visit The Whitehall Chamber of Commerce Site, Wikipedia, and Skenesborough Museum and Heritage Area Visitor Center for more information.

 

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