44 25.61 N 073 14.94 W
We may be stranded here on Lake Champlain for the winter. The Champlain and Erie Canals are closed. Officially there is no word on when they might reopen. Unofficially, we hope that the Champlain Canal might open in another week. That would put us behind schedule on starting southward migration but not badly so.
The Erie Canal is much more severely damaged by Irene. I'll post some pictures soon. It won't reopen this year for sure. I think even next year is in doubt.
What alternatives do we have? We could go up to the Saint Lawrence River and head for Nova Scotia. That is a much long trip than you might suspect. Doing so would also put us in the Atlantic in the Perfect Storm neighborhood in the Perfect Storm month. We are not up to that. Tarwathie could do it but not her crew.
We could also try for the Great Look route to get out but that might get us frozen into Lake Michigan in December.
No, we would have to find a place to put Tarwathie up on the hard for the winter, and then impose on Jenny for a place to live. That might work but we (and I'm sure Jenny) sure don't want it.
So, for now we enjoy our extra weeks in paradise and enjoy it while keeping our fingers crossed.
Posts
Dick,
ReplyDeleteI'd love to hear how you'd go from Champlain to the St. Lawrence. I've never thought about that before and don't have a clue how it's done. Have you made any of that trip?
Doug
The Erie Canal suffered considerable damage. Some lock buildings are gone and many gates that control water levels are heavily damaged. But I haven't heard what damage the Champlain Canal suffered. Hopefully, it opens soon and you can be on your way. Storing on Lake Champlain might be difficult because most marinas require you to have a cradle and don't use jack stands. Consider having the boat trucked out. I've used Bob Guay out of Schuylerville in the past. He's quick and reasonable.
ReplyDeleteDoug,
ReplyDeleteThe answer is the Richelieu River. Read this blog for the period 7/13-7/30 2007. We made the trip going the other way from Oswego NY to Champlain via the Richelieu.