Month: October 2023

Today is the final day of actual travel for the Wayward Explorers on this adventure.  They are traveling from Brewerton to Baldwinsville.  There’s not much new and exciting to say about this route as they’ve already traveled it multiple times in both directions.  When they first came off the Oswego Canal to the Erie Canal, they had turned east for a short bit to go to Brewerton for fuel and to visit with a few friends.  Then they turned west and passed it again. They passed this route again on their way from Syracuse to Sylvan Lake, and now as they return, they are covering this same stretch of water.

Once again, they stopped at Winter Harbor Marina to fill the tanks.  When they stopped before, their tanks were half-full, and now they are half-full again, so they used a little more than half their diesel capacity on this trip.  This time, it took 160 gallons to re-fill the tanks. The Explorers have noticed that people who boat often fashion themselves as experts. One thing they have been told is that you should fill the diesel tanks before winterizing to reduce the amount of condensation that can form in the tanks.  They honestly don’t know if this theory is true; so many boaters have strong opinions(and often opposing opinions) on matters that it is hard to know if they are right or wrong.  The Explorers filled the tanks after the first season, and didn’t after the second, and didn’t really see any difference in their performance of their engine. Still, the price at Winter Harbor was better than anything they’ve seen recently, so they decided to bite the bullet now, and enjoy starting next year with full tanks. 

After fueling up, they passed through the familiar Lock 22, and covered the same stretch of the canal that they have seen over and over.  They passed by the J&S Marina where they will be hauling out on Monday. 

As they were getting close to the lock in Baldwinsville, they checked the dock wall before the lock to see if there was electric power.  Unfortunately, there was none.  Had there been, it would have made sense to tie up there for the upcoming rain because they would be on the same side of the lock as the marina.  Without shore power, they would never be able to keep their batteries charged while cooking, keeping their food refrigerated, showering, making ice cubes and using the Starlink for the next few days, so they pressed on through the  lock to the dock wall where they have stayed multiple nights, and know there is electricity for a small donation. They are hoping for a break in the weather some time on Sunday, so they can pass back through the lock and park at the marina.

In the evening, they walked to Tops to get a few provisions to last through the weekend.  On the way to Tops, they passed a HUGE historical graveyard with many monuments and plaques.  They even saw the tomb of the actual Baldwin, namesake of Baldwinsville.  However, after the graveyard, the sidewalks ended, the road narrowed, and they had to keep leaving the roadway to let traffic pass.  After shopping, on the return trip, they took an alternate route through neighborhoods (with sidewalks) which was longer, but much more enjoyable. 

In the evening, they both enjoyed (how rare!) the sequel to Knives Out (Glass Onion), and got ready for bed.  Instead of the noise of the race track, they were serenaded by the sound of a crazy number of ducks with intermittent quacking.  It was a peaceful night. 

The rain is expected to start in the morning, and the Explorers expect to be mostly holed up in the boat for the next 3 days, packing up what needs to be taken off the boat, and catching up on mundane tasks like email and bills; with any luck, they will find breaks in the weather to get out and stretch, and perhaps do a final load of laundry. Rather than bore their readers further, they will wait until the final day, Monday to write their final blog entry for this trip.  Until then…..

By the time the Wayward Explorers woke up, the two big mega-yachts that parked in front of them were gone (sorry, no pictures).  No doubt they are hustling to make it to the Hudson River before the locks close.

The Explorers took another, longer walk around Sylvan Beach.  The beach was still deserted; they watched the workers at the amusement park disassembling more of the rides and moving the parts into a big warehouse for the winter. 

Explored the Cove at Sylvan Beach, which is a cluster of vacation rentals owned by Turning Stone Resorts.  It has its own channel, and rentals include a boat slip and a pontoon boat.  It’s definitely a little pricey, but seems like it would be great for a family vacation. However, there is no beach access, and a some internet sleuthing revealed very contradictory information about whether swimming is allowed on Sylvan Beach anyway.  The answer seems to go back and forth, based on whether the town has hired lifeguards and whether the water quality is acceptable.

After returning to the canal, the Explorers crossed the bridge over the canal to see if there was anything interesting on the other side.  They found nothing but a campground and a few cute garden gnomes.

Back on the boat, the Explorers fixed lunch and talked about whether to cross back over Oneida Lake today or tomorrow, in order to be west of the lake before the rains arrived.  They concluded that there wasn’t much left to see in this closed-down sleepy little beach town that was within walking distance; there weren’t any good bike trails and there was no shore power, so they decided to go ahead and cross the lake today and return to Brewerton once again. 

Oneida Lake was a bit more crowded today.  There was lots of boat traffic; it was a perfect day to be on the water, the sun was shining, the water and wind were calm, and there was no bug-cloud like the day before.  Captain Mark exclaimed that this was the most boat traffic he had encountered at any time along the trip.  Traffic aside, the Explorers felt they had make the right choice to cross today, even though it meant their future held a few days of being cooped up on a boat in the rain.

As they pulled into Brewerton, there were happy to see that the single power pedestal was available again.  This never would have happened during the summer season.  It was like hitting the lottery. They docked the boat, and once more trekked to Dollar General to get some soda. As they were walking, they became keenly aware of loud car engines revving.  A quick look at Google Maps revealed that there was a race track only about a block away from where the boat was parked.  Apparently, today was race day.  They figured it would be “no problem” because the noise would certainly cease by 10:00, as they have seen in all the other canal-side towns.  Unfortunately, they were wrong; when they returned from Dollar General, the noise was still going and would continue for hours.  There would be no movies onboard tonight.  At 11:30-ish, the car races finally stopped, and the Explorers were able to get some sleep.

Sidekick Sue liked these friendly garden gnomes.

Cute gnome hiding in a hole in a tree.

View of the Wayward Explorer from the campground across the canal.

The Wayward Explorers spent the morning in Brewerton.  Sidekick Sue had rescheduled her failed Zoom meeting from last week to this morning, and wanted to be standing still for it (the diesel engine is quite loud in the background). Captain Mark used this opportunity to bike 14 miles roundtrip to Wegmans to pick up some things at the grocery store. Shortly after Captain Mark left, Sidekick Sue got an email that her Zoom meeting was canceled (again), so she used the time to get caught up on some writing.  After Captain Mark returned, they ate lunch and set off.

The entire trip today was crossing the wide-open span of Oneida Lake.  The lake was extremely calm, and the day was extremely sunny.  The Explorers have really been enjoying a week of summer weather in October.  As the Explorers approached Sylvan Beach, they encountered a huge cloud of gnat-like bugs that lasted for the last few miles on their approach.  Sidekick Sue quickly hopped into action, hiding in the cabin with the doors shut, leaving poor Captain Mark to endure the bug storm alone.  As they re-entered the canal on the Sylvan Beach side, the bugs were suddenly gone, and the Explorers marveled at how many bugs were caught in the spider webs that appear daily on the boat.  The spiders were going to have a feast (and probably multiply like crazy). 

As the Explorers docked on the wall in Sylvan Beach, they noted that there were no power pedestals, and since the Explorers were only motoring half the day, their batteries weren’t fully charged. They had to power down luxuries like the ice-maker and the Starlink.  With the trip winding down (the locks close in 8 days, and they have scheduled to have the boat pulled out in 6 days), the Explorers sat down to plan their route for the remainder of the trip.  While driving (and fighting bug storms), Captain Mark had been looking at weather predictions, and realized that the summer-in-October was quickly coming to an end.  Rain was coming in 3 days and was going to continue for the next forecastable future.  The Explorers had wanted to use their last few days motoring to Little Falls, and then swinging back through Utica (with any luck, catching a stand-up comedy show that their friend Brenda was performing in) before re-crossing Oneida Lake and returning to Baldwinsville to pull the boat out. Unfortunately, the rain in the forecast was causing a “rain on their boat parade”.  They weren’t so opposed to traveling in the rain, but they were warned by friends Jane and Andy, way back on their first trip through Brewerton, that Oneida Lake was relatively shallow and could really kick up waves in bad weather. If it was earlier in the trip, and the Explorers had more flexibility, they could simply “wait it out” if the water was rough, however, with an appointment to pull the boat out in 6 days and the locks closing in 8 days, they made the responsible decision to stop moving east and to save the eastern branch of the Erie Canal for a future year. It just wasn’t worth putting themselves in the position of crossing the lake in bad weather, or worse, getting stuck on the wrong side of the locks. Had they not lingered so long in Rochester, with Sidekick Sue taking time off to go to girls’ weekend, they could have finished the whole canal, but they have no regrets, having seen many friends and family members.  So, the end result, is that they decided to turn around and work their way back to Baldwinsville, even though it will mean holing up in the boat for a few extra days in the rain.  With any luck, the rain won’t be constant, and they’ll be able to get out and walk and ride their bikes.

With the hard decisions made, the Explorers chose to enjoy the rest of their day in Sylvan Beach. The beach season was obviously over; almost all the restaurants and shops were shut down.  They still enjoyed walking around the town and looking at the attractions.  The beach was nearly empty. The amusement park was being disassembled and looked like a bunch of steel skeletons of what it must look like in the summer.  They stopped at a fun consignment shop and bought a ceramic turkey to add to their Thanksgiving decorations. The Explorers intentionally scheduled this trip off-season in order to avoid the crowds and the trouble of finding places to dock.  The downside of that is arriving at all the portside towns after they have “rolled up the sidewalks” for the summer.  The Explorers don’t really mind, as this adventure is about exploring new places, not riding Ferris wheels, going to rowdy bars or roasting on the beach. 

When they got back to the boat, they ran the generator for the first time on this entire adventure so they could cook dinner without draining the batteries, and left the generator running a little while more to charge up the batteries.  Usually, they avoid using the generator at the dock because it is noisy, but there were no other boats nearby, and the restaurant across the way was closed.  As they were cooking and eating, two HUGE (55’+) luxury yachts (generators blaring) parked in front of the Wayward Explorer; Captain Mark was envious of all the thrusters that allowed them to pull up to a space and just move sideways into the spot.  The Explorers figured these huge vessels must be heading out east to the Hudson River to head somewhere warm, like the Bahamas, for the winter. 

After dinner, the Explorers took another walk through the town to pick up something at Dollar General.  There were a few more restaurants and bars open in the evening, so the town was a tad livelier, but it was still clearly off-season. The Explorers had a quiet evening… no TV in order to save battery power for lights and refrigeration. 

Crossing Oneida Lake

Closed for the season — the amusement park at Sylvan Lake

Nearly deserted Sylvan Beach. Look closely to see one person at the edge of the water.

Some cute pastel beach houses on the beach.

Captain Mark can never resist a picture of the Wayward Explorer from a bridge.

In the morning, Captain Mark went for a 10-mile bike ride along the Onondaga Lake Trail while Sidekick Sue showered and prepared for the day.  The Explorers were amazed that every carnival ride had been disassembled overnight and most of the rides and attractions were packed up and gone.  Just a few loaded trailers remained, waiting to be towed away. 

The Explorers got on their bikes and rode into downtown Syracuse to visit the Erie Canal Museum.  They arrived about 15 minutes before opening time, so they spent time looking at outdoor exhibits that explained how the old Erie Canal went right through downtown Syracuse.  The museum was attached to the old weighlock building where the canal boats would enter, and the water would be drained until they were resting on a scale where they could be accurately weighed.  The tolls charged for using the canal were based on the weight of the boat.  Sidekick Sue thought that was a rather complicated way to charge a toll, and remarked that the length of the boat would be a fairly rough estimate of its weight and its cargo capacity…. and would be much less involved to measure.  Today, the canal does not charge any tolls, but common boat operations like dockage and storage are often charged by the length of the boat. 

The Explorers were the first people in line to enter the museum. Having spent multiple weeks on the canal system, the museum was actually very informative, and answered a lot of the questions the Explorers had pondered on the trip.  It was really amazing to think about all the work that went into digging the canal by hand, the many new inventions that were developed out of necessity during construction, the many canal expansions and re-routings, and the relatively short lifespan of the canal for commercial operations as it was quickly replaced by the railroad.  Sidekick Sue was happy to find a Christmas ornament for their tree, which is her traditional souvenir for their travels. 

After visiting the museum, the Explorers biked back to the boat and prepared to leave back through Lake Onondaga.  They once again, lowered the canopy to assure passage under the low bridge on the Inner Harbor channel. Once they were out on the lake, they stopped to raise the canopy again, as it was a very sunny, hot day. Crossing Lake Onondaga, the diesel engine started to act up.  It sounded like it was going to stall.  Captain Mark called Sidekick Sue up to the helm so he could go down below and switch the values to pull from the other diesel tank.  That seemed to do the trick, and there were no more problems getting across and out of the lake.  Captain Mark made a mental note to change the old filter on the first tank that evening. 

Back out on the Erie Canal, the Explorers stopped at J&S Marina, where they will be storing the boat for the winter.  The place looks very run-down, but there seemed to be plenty of boats there.  While Sidekick Sue was securing the lines (and watching her footing because the dock looked so bad that she was afraid her foot would go through in some spots), an older gentleman pulled up on a golf cart to ask the Explorers if they needed help.  Captain Mark explained that he was looking for Dee so he could pay for his winter storage and make arrangements for the boat to be pulled out the following Monday.  Dee was not working that day, but it turned out the guy was the owner.  He was 86-years old, a former Navy sailor who had served at the Portsmouth shipyard in New Hampshire, and who claimed that he was still working 7-days a week.  He had been running the marina since he left the Navy, and it appeared that he had given up on maintenance and upgrades many years ago.  He took all the necessary information from the Explorers, but told them to pay Dee next week.  Once the information was relayed, the Explorers resumed their journey, with their fingers crossed that their information would be relayed to Dee and that they really had a reservation for Monday. Although the place looks rather unkempt, it was the only marina that returned Captain Mark’s calls and it fit the bill for what the Explorers needed… somewhere where they can store the boat that will let them do repairs and sand and paint the bottom of the boat themselves in the spring. 

The Wayward Explorers continued east on the Erie Canal through Lock 22 to Brewerton, which had been their first stop on the Erie Canal when they had come south down the Oswego Canal. This time, they parked in a second public docking area on the opposite side of the canal.  They were lucky to grab a spot at the ONE electric pedestal available in town (one of the perks of traveling off-season).  Once settled, they crossed walked across the bridge into town to stop by Kinneys to get a birthday card for a niece and then walked to the post office to mail it.  There were no real grocery stores in walking distance, so they stopped back at Kinneys to pick up some soda… which was actually a far better price than the grocery stores.  Back at the boat, Sidekick Sue did some writing, while Captain Mark changed the clogged oil filter.  They enjoyed a night with shore power, using the internet and watching Murder Mystery 2, another Adam Sandler, Jennifer Anniston movie.  Sidekick Sue thought it was silly, but she didn’t hate it.  She thinks it is finally her turn to pick the entertainment again. 

The Erie Canal Museum

Wall mural outside the Erie Canal Museum.

A map showing the path of the historic Erie Canal… it came right down the road that Sidekick Sue is facing.

While the lower level of the museum was dedicated to the construction and workings of the canal, the upper level had a lot of artifacts from early 1900’s America.

The Explorers left Weedsport early.  There is not much to see at this particular docking wall as it is located in the weeds behind what appears to be a defunct restaurant or event venue, separated from the dock wall by an orange construction fence. Pretty ugly.

The Explorers arrived in Baldwinsville before noon, parking for a few hours to take advantage of the power pedestals to charge the boat batteries (which had run low in Weedsport where there was no electricity on the wall).  They considered staying for the day, but also figured they would be spending more time in Baldwinsville this fall and next spring because this is where they are “wintering” the boat.  Captain Mark did a little research and figured out they could take a side trip across Onondaga lake to the Inner Harbor in Syracuse.  There was limited information online, but many boaters warned against this trip because of a low bridge and low water depths (as low as 2 feet) in the Inner Harbor channel.  However, there was also conflicting information saying that the channel was dredged four years ago, and is now accessible to many larger boats. 

Being the adventurer that he is, Captain Mark decided to take some chances and make the trip.  What could happen?  So, the Wayward Explorers turned off the Erie Canal to head to Onondaga Lake.  There was one little bit of engine hesitation, which quickly resolved, and the Explorers wrote it off as possible “junk on the propeller”.  Crossing Onondaga Lake was easy; and the boat traffic was sparse.  The Explorers had to stop in the lake to fold down the boat canopy before entering the channel to the Inner Harbor. As it turned out, they probably could have made it through by a few inches, but after the disaster in Tonawanda, decided the risk wasn’t worth it; they didn’t want to trash their canopy any further.  It was definitely the lowest bridge of the whole trip (discounting the one in Tonawanda where they went through the wrong opening).

On the way across Onondaga Lake, Sidekick Sue texted with a friend in Syracuse to see if they were available for a last-minute visit.  Unfortunately, she wasn’t, but she did let the Explorers know there was a festival going on at Inner Harbor. This made them question their choices, because (assuming the water didn’t become too shallow), there might not be any parking when they got there.  As it turned out, all their worries were for naught, as the water was deep enough to get to the docks and there was only one other boat parked on the dock. Sidekick Sue used her boat pole to measure the water depth at the dock and it came out to 5’2” (same height as Sidekick Sue).  Apparently, many boaters have not gotten the message that the channel has been dredged or they don’t want to take chances with the low bridge.  The Explorers did have to manually pull the boat down the dock to find an electric pedestal that was actually working. 

The festival at Inner Harbor was larger than the Explorers expected.  There was a full carnival there with a midway, a ferris wheel, the Scrambler, and many other rides.  The best part was, that arriving by boat brought the Explorers in the back door, so they were already through the entrance gates.  Lots of festival-goers were interested in the boat, as it was clearly larger than what they were used to seeing. Little kids asked the Explorers if they were doing boat rides, but they had to explain they didn’t have the proper license to do that. As they were finding a place on the dock, they got a lot of questions, which, on one hand was welcoming and friendly, but on the other hand made them a little hesitant to leave the boat. One of the online reviews about Inner Harbor indicated that someone had their boat untied during the night and ended up in a swamp the next morning, so the Explorers took the precaution of attaching their locking cable and making sure the cabin doors were locked before heading out to explore the festival.

They walked through the festival, but didn’t partake in any of the carnival offerings.  There was another section of the festival with craft booths, food trucks, beer trucks and bands performing onstage.  The Explorers need to eat, but decided to pass on the fried Oreos and Twinkies, and the other fast food options.  Instead, they walked to the famed Dinosaur BBQ which was less than a mile away.  It was ironic that they were able boat so close to the Dinosaur, because a group of Sidekick Sue’s sorority sisters had just met up there the night before to enjoy one of their favorite North Country college bands, Double Axel, that has been performing for over 50 years.  Sidekick Sue never imagined she’d get so close to attending the event, as the chance of being in Syracuse at all, or being there at the right time was slim… yet Captain Mark’s decision to risk the trip into Syracuse put her in the vicinity only a day late.   

Walking home from the Dinosaur BBQ, the Explorers found the Empire State Trail along the Onondaga Creek, which they should have been able to follow back to the lake, but they encountered a “bridge out” sign and had to double-back a bit to get back to the Inner Harbor. Despite their nerves, all was well with the boat when they returned; it looked completely undisturbed. From the boat, they enjoyed the remainder of the music from the festival, and watched as the crowd slowly dissipated. The festival  morphed into a quiet night, except for the sounds of the crews disassembling the carnival.

Hanging out in Baldwinsville, charging the batteries.

Approaching the low bridge. Captain Mark could only reach up and touch one part of the bridge, whereas he can easily touch the canopy when it is up… so the Explorers “think” they could have passed through without taking he canopy down.

Under the bridge. Nobody had to duck.

Dinner options.

Food stands, beer stands, craft booths. Can’t believe the Explorers forgot to get pictures of the carnival rides.

Captain Mark at the Dinosaur BBQ in Syracuse.

The Wayward Explorers left Newark.  They passed through 3 locks in rather quick succession:  Lock 28B right outside of Newark, and Locks 28A and 27 in Lyons. As they passed Lyons, they noticed a billboard advertising the town as the “Once Peppermint Capital” and wondered what city or town is the new Peppermint Capital. Retracing their earlier westward journey in reverse, they passed through Lock 26 in Clyde and pulled over after Lock 25 in the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge. 

Over the years, on trips to and from Rochester, the Explorers have driven the NYS Thruway dozens of times past Montezuma Swamp and have never stopped to visit. Today, they intended to change that. They put together their folding bikes and rode the 6 miles to the Visitor Center.  It wasn’t a bad ride, except for a small stretch along Route 20, which was very busy with fast-moving traffic. As they turned down the road toward the Visitor Center, they passed signs warning them to “stay in their vehicle”, and wondered if riding through on bikes was such a wise idea but saw no signs of large or dangerous animals. At the Visitor Center, they looked around at all the exhibits and the store, but didn’t find anything worth buying.  Outside, they looked off the observation deck and then headed to the Seneca Loop Trail, a one-mile loop that included an observation tower with a telescope and a viewing platform.  During the walk, the Explorers saw thousands of birds of all kinds, including bald eagles.  They saw a little bit of other wildlife like frogs and snakes, but honestly, they had seen more squished frogs, snakes and other critters on their bike ride to the wildlife refuge.  The trail brought them along the Cayuga and Seneca Canal which they had previously navigated on their way to Seneca Falls.  At this point, they realized they could have boated directly to the Visitor Center without the 6-mile bike ride, but were glad for the exercise.  Also, the dock on the Seneca Trail looked a little small and rickety for a 36-foot boat. 

After the short hike, the Explorers did the 6-mile bike ride back to the boat.  Sidekick Sue noticed even more squished critters on the way back.  Captain Mark pointed out a HUGE black snake that was trying to cross busy Route 20.  The Explorers did not want to look back to see if he made it safely across the road.  They missed their turn back down the dead-end road that led to the dock wall at the lock, but figured out their mistake in short order when they realized they were on a bridge crossing back over the canal.  So they backtracked a bit and found their way back to the route.   

The Explorers had been hoping to make it to Baldwinsville, but because they had used up so much time biking and hiking, and they had lost time passing through so many locks, they no longer had time to get that far. They could have stayed at Lock 25, but decided to move up to the crumbling dock wall in Weedsport, where they had stopped to bicycle on their trip west.  Like Lock 25, it was very rustic, without electricity, but at least it would bring them closer to Baldwinsville the next morning.  Sidekick Sue timed the chicken for dinner so that they could use the electricity generated while the engine was still going, so they wouldn’t draw down on their battery power.  After dinner, they relaxed for a bit before the mosquitos forced them to move inside and close the doors. Because they had been careful with their battery power, they were able to watch another movie selected by Captain Mark. This time, they watched “Ted” about a teddy bear owned by a guy named John (played by Marky Mark) that came to life.  The movie was pretty bad, but Sidekick Sue enjoyed the star-studded cast which included the bear’s voiceover by Seth MacFarlane (that sounded just like his Peter Griffin on Family Guy) and even spotted Ryan Reynolds in an uncredited role as Guy’s (Puddy from Seinfeld) boyfriend.  After the movie, she announced that she wouldn’t be watching the sequel, and spent some time trying to swat all the mosquitos that had gotten inside the boat before retiring for the night.  

Train going by some silos.

The dam at Lock 25

Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge

Heron sculpture, done by the same artist (James “Jay” Seaman) that did the huge eagle sculpture that is visible from the Thruway.

Trailhead for the Seneca Trail

Sidekick Sue on the observation tower

Sidekick Sue looking at birds through the telescope. There are literally thousands of them out there.