En Route

Snell Lock
N 44 59 W 0774 47

WE anchored out in the river last night with no problem. This morning dawned as a perfect day. The sky was deep blue, signifying clean air. The humidity was very low, giving excellent visibility. Small clouds dotted the sky.

We still did not have a set place to meet John, Nick's dad, in Ogdensburg. The marinas were full. We just motored over there and looked for a place once in the harbor. We spotted an abandoned commercial landing by a vacant lot and went there. To my surprise, a Colonial soldier appeared out the the weeds to help us tie up. It seems that we had by chance landed in the middle of a recreation of a 17th century battle from the French and Indian war. That made it very interesting.

After a while, John arrived and got lost in Ogdensburg. Eventually he found us and he and Nick drove away. It was a bit sad for us. After so many weeks with the pleasure of company of friends and family, Libby and I will be alone for a good stretch.

The motor-sail down the river was great. Aside from Lake Champlain, this is about the prettiest waterway we've ever seen. Many of the properties along the banks have extensive grass meadows. Meadows are much prettier than trees when seen from a distance. Surprisingly, the Canadian side of the river is much more developed with houses than the American side.

When we got to the Eisenhower Lock, we had to tie up and wait 2 hours for the lock. While we were waiting, I tried to call Canadian Customs to re-enter Canada. I learned that I misunderstood the system. Even though clearance is done by phone, you have to call from a dock at a port of entry. We'll have to do it in Cornwall, past the Eisenhower and Snell locks. That may be a problem because getting to Cornwall requires a two mile passage against a stiff current.

The locking procedures and methods here are much different than what we're used to. First, one must pay a fee, $25 to $30 per lock. I suppose that must compensate for the lost opportunity to sell a megawatt hour to NYISO because they spell 21 million gallons of water to cycle us through the lock. Second, the way of securing the boat is different. We pulled up next to a bitt and the lock tender helped us to attach bow and stern lines to it. I was surprised to learn that the bitt floats up and
down with us. I had though that the bit was fixed in place and I was prepared to use 100 feet of line to secure us as we dropped 50 feet. The floating bitt method os much superior. Third, we are forbidden to use our VHF radios in the vicinity of the lock. To request passage, we tie up to a floating dock along the wall, go ahore, and call the lock master on a special telephone. We are admitted to the lock only when there is no commercial shipping wanting lock passage.

Right now, we're stuck between the two locks. It seems that a big ship, the Federal Yukon about 600 feet long, says that they ran aground here. That requires a US Coast Guard investigation and perhaps an underwater inspection of the ship's hull. We, and three other pleasure boats, are stuck here indefinitely waiting for them to clear up the mess. We're not allowed to anchor here or to spend the night so presumably they'll let us through soon.