August 26
We were up early this morning and away by 7:30 am. It had been quite windy through the night and the water was quite rolly, but the wind had settled into a steady 10-15 knots and we had a great sail as far as Dunkirk. Gorma is a good boat and we become more confident with her all the time.
The wind died down mid-morning, though, and so we motored the rest of the way to Buffalo. The waterway through Buffalo to Tonawanda is heavily traveled, particularly on a sunny afternoon. There were sailboats everywhere in the outer bay, and hundreds of power boats on the river and Black Rock Channel, paralleling the Niagara River.
We were up early this morning and away by 7:30 am. It had been quite windy through the night and the water was quite rolly, but the wind had settled into a steady 10-15 knots and we had a great sail as far as Dunkirk. Gorma is a good boat and we become more confident with her all the time.
The wind died down mid-morning, though, and so we motored the rest of the way to Buffalo. The waterway through Buffalo to Tonawanda is heavily traveled, particularly on a sunny afternoon. There were sailboats everywhere in the outer bay, and hundreds of power boats on the river and Black Rock Channel, paralleling the Niagara River.The river and channel are approximately ten miles, and besides giving us an opportunity to sharpen our aids to navigation skills, it also had a couple of bridge openings and a lock in store for us. Although they shouldn’t have, both of these came as a bit of a surprise, and we have our first lock with ropes under our belts.
Around every corner, a new adventure, and here the sign marks the beginning of the Erie Canal. The canal system is 341 miles long and contains 34 locks. It connects the Great Lakes to Troy NY and then to New York City.
Around every corner, a new adventure, and here the sign marks the beginning of the Erie Canal. The canal system is 341 miles long and contains 34 locks. It connects the Great Lakes to Troy NY and then to New York City.
