Baltimore to Chestertown (Sept 12-Sept 19)

Baltimore has become one of our favorite stops on the Chesapeake.  The Fells Point area where we stay is full of good bars and restaurants and is close to the Inner Harbor.  There is no lack of things to do or choices for good food.  We saw the movie “Sully”, and can highly recommend it, particularly to our aviation oriented friends.

After an enjoyable 3 days in town we moved on to the Chester River on the Eastern shore of the bay.  Our first night there we anchored in a quiet bay on Reed Creek.  It was a still evening with a good moon and we were treated to over flights by eagles.  The following day we completed the 28 mile trek up river to Chestertown.

Chestertown is home to the SULTANA,  a reproduction of a Boston-built merchant vessel that served for 4 years in the British Royal Navy.  It was used from 1768-1772 to enforce the “Tea Taxes”.  It is one of the most accurate reproductions of an 18^th century schooner in existence.

18th Century Schooner SULTANA

250 years ago Chestertown was a thriving river port and Royal Port of Entry.  In those times it was a convenient stop for people traveling from Virginia to New York or Philadelphia.  As a result George Washington is known to have stayed here on at least 8 different occasions.  Many of the stately homes built in that era still exist today in well preserved condition.  Washington College was established here at the conclusion of the Revolution.  George was instrumental in its founding and served on the Board for 5 years.  Time has passed the town by in terms of commerce, but it is still vibrant as home to the college and a large contingent of retirees.

 Below are pictures of a small sampling of homes dating back to the 1700s.  The Hynson –Ringgold House was constructed in 1743 and was later acquired by Thomas Ringgold a wealthy merchant and Maryland legislator.  Since 1944 it has been owned by the college and used as the residence of the college president.  The Wickes House was built in 1767.  The mantles of its 15 fireplaces, moldings and floors are all original.  The Nicholson House was built in 1788.  The three Nicholson brothers were prominent members of the Continental Navy.  John was the commander of the sloop Hornet,  James was head of the continental Navy from 1776-1785 and Sam supervised the construction of the battleship Constitution in the 1790s.

Wickes House 1767

Hynson-Ringghold House 1743

Nicholson House 1788

We left Chestertown on a rainy Monday passing through Kent Narrows on our way to an anchorage off the Wye River.  We will spend the remainder of the week visiting Oxford and Cambridge on the Choptank River.

Suinset at the end of a rainy day.
Lloyd Creek off the Wye River

New York City to Baltimore (Aug 30-Sept 11)

We arrived at Liberty Landing Marina, located in Jersey City, directly across from lower Manhattan on Aug 30.  That evening we enjoyed a wonderful alfresco dinner with our friends Andy and Yatze La Stella.  The good food, music, and companionship was only out done by the night time view of Manhattan.

Debby, Yatze, Andy, Jim

View from the bridge of PARADISE
Lower Manhattan

The next day we ventured into the city via a 10 minute ferry ride and once again joined Al and Dorothy Oliver for late lunch at O’Brien’s Pub and Happy Hour at Sardi’s.  Now viewed as “regulars” there we were again recognized by the owner, and enjoyed the bar tender’s views on the latest shows in town.  Debby and Dorothy being two peas in a pod are always great fun in a bar.

Al, Jim, Dorothy, Debby
Sardi's

Our Friendly Sardi's Bartender

With Tropical Storm Hermine threatening the area we decided to stay in the hurricane hole of Great Kills Harbor in Staten Island.  Although the highest wind we experienced there was only 25 knots the off shore seas were so tumultuous we could not move on to Cape May, NJ for 7 days.  The time was well spent as we got to make friends with several other transients.  One young couple, Mirko and Courtney Vuksa, were traveling on a 36’ sailboat with their 10 month old son Vincent.  They were on their way to Newport before turning around to make their way to Ft. Lauderdale in November.  We were able to restock the boat with provisions, and more important, Debby was able to get her hair done.  This was our 4^th stay at the Great Kills Yacht Club.  The members there are very welcoming, going out of their way to provide transportation and help of any kind.

Mirko, Vincent, Jim
Cole's Dockside

Debby, Vincent
Cole's Dockside

Hermine finally moved on and left us with the perfect “weather window” to make the 137 mile, 8 hour open ocean trip to Cape May on Sept 8.  The next day was equally fine to venture up the often rough Delaware Bay for the 72 mile trip to Chesapeake City where we enjoyed a quiet night at anchor.  Finally on Sept 10 we moved on to Baltimore.

Southbound on the Hudson River (Waterford to NYC; Aug 23-30)

Locks, Locks, Locks

After traversing 52 of them thus far with their slimy lines and numerous bugs there is threat of mutiny from the crew.  The Captain must now do it alone, holding the boat against the lock wall with engines and thrusters.  Leaving Schenectady there are 6 more to go, 5 on the Erie Canal and one on the Hudson River at Troy.  The last 5 on the Erie drop us 150’ in a lateral distance of 1.5 miles.

Erie Canal Lock 6
Begin Waterford Flight

Erie Canal Lock 2
End Waterford Flight

Sharing Troy Lock with a barge

We spent the night of Aug 24 on the canal wall in Waterford, NY.  Once a thriving port town at the juncture of the Erie and Champlain Canals and the Hudson River, it now gives the appearance of a town well past its prime.  The Visitor Center is well done and people welcoming, but the town itself had little to offer.

Our next stop, Catskill, was a different story.  Here we found a main street with some interesting shops and attractive restaurants.  One antique store had a Columbia bicycle that was a match for the one Jim owned as a kid.  They wanted $500! (And it wasn’t in such good shape)  We stayed 2 nights and had a great lunch at The New York Restaurant.

Bear Mountain Bridge
Built in 1924
At the time the largest suspension bridge in the world

Piercing the Allegheny Mountains
Hudson River

Esopus Meadows Lighthouse
1871
Catskill Mountains in background

On to Poughkeepsie Yacht Club.  Seven miles north of Poughkeepsie this member run club was friendly enough, but the interconnected floating docks were a challenge to walk on in the numerous wakes from boats on the Hudson.  In addition the birds made good use of them for their toilet.  We stayed 2 nights so that we could visit the Roosevelt Homes and Museum.  One of the great leaders of WW II, FDR was an interesting character.  Many now question his handling of the Great Depression, but he did leave us with Social Security and the FDIC among other things.

The original family farm house had 17 rooms.  FDR expanded it in 1938 to 35 rooms.  At one time the estate consisted of 1600 acres.  FDR had "Top Cottage" built in 1937 as an "escape from the mob".  It was built to accommodate his disability.  A very simple and austere cottage he never slept there.  Rather it was used as a daytime retreat high on a hill several miles above the main house. He did entertain the King and Queen of England there in 1939

FDR's Family Estate "Springwood"
Hyde Park, NY

FDR's "Top Cottage"

Two more days of travel brought us once more to New York City.  Based on the weather forecast it looks like we will remain in the area for at least a week.

Jim’s 75th. Lenox, MA (Aug 20-22 )

We left the boat in Schenectady, rented a car and drove to Lenox, MA to visit our friends Dan and Madeline Hajjar.  They have a family cottage on Laurel Lake where they spend each summer.  We have been there several times before and always enjoy the area and the company.  Situated in the heart of the Berkshire Mountains, the area is well known for its natural beauty, arts and entertainment, and availability of good restaurants.  Beginning in the 1800s it attracted many luminaries from the art and literary world as a place to spend the summer.

Our long weekend there consisted of fine dining, kayaking on the lake, visiting the art fair in Stockbridge, and enjoying a ride on the newly refurbished carousel in downtown Lenox.  The visit culminated in a birthday celebration for Jim at a good Italian restaurant, but not before spending the afternoon at the Hancock Shaker Village.  This is a remarkably well restored and preserved village showing Shaker life in the mid to late1800s and on into the early 20^th century.  The Shaker cult was devoutly religious, devoted to efficiency and innovation, and progressive in their farming methods.  If they had changed one central tenant in their creed they would probably still be around in greater numbers today.  They were committed to celibacy.  (Not sure how they thought that was going to work long term.)

 

Debby and Jim on the Carousel

Eastbound on the Erie Canal (Aug 11-19)

TRUE LOVE
Debby manning the lock lines in the rain.

Leaving the 1000 Islands, we looked forward to a leisurely trip east on the Erie Canal.  When westbound we were in a hurry to get to Oswego for the Harborfest, and bypassed several interesting looking towns.  Although the scenery along the way is beautiful, with rolling hills and large prosperous looking farms, the stops along the way proved disappointing.  The boating facilities are inexpensive and more than adequate, but the towns and villages have little to offer in the way of shops, restaurants and points of interest.  A road trip along this section would probably be more interesting as most of the good museums and sites of note were not within walking distance of our stops.  From what we have read and been told the western part of the Erie would be more to our liking, but it is inaccessible to us because of our air draft.

Locking thru with a cruise boat

One of many dams

40 ft Down in Lock 17
Highest Lift on the Erie
At one time highest lift in the world

Unique guillotine lock gate
Lock 17

Gate fully open

Typical Scene

Rare Calm Day

Castle Llenroc
(Cornell spelled backwards)
Private estate 30,000 sq ft
15 fireplaces, 10 bathrooms,
indoor pool and bar with portholes looking underwater into pool

Thousand Islands; Clayton, NY (Aug. 8-10)

In Pardise, On Paradise
Thousand Islands, St. Lawrence River

We were treated to good weather for the 42 mile run from Sackets to Clayton.  The waters of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River are crystal clear.  The first clear water we have traveled in since leaving Florida.  The fabled Thousand Islands (actually 1,834 of them) are as picturesque as all the stories say.  Although discovered by the earliest explorers in the 1500s, the Thousand Islands did not became a tourist mecca until the late 1800s and then only for the very wealthy.  It is said that General Ulysses Grant visited after his Presidency and extolled the virtues which led to the rush to acquire islands and build large summer homes and castles.

Clayton, NY is 15 miles downriver from Lake Ontario and is in the heart of the Thousand Islands.  At the turn of the 19^th century during the summer 20 trains a day deposited passengers who then boarded steam ships for transport to their homes or elaborate hotels.  Today it continues to thrive on tourism with the Antique Wooden Boat Museum being a large draw as well as numerous restaurants and shops. The Boat Museum is worth the trip in itself displaying pleasure craft of all sizes since the invention of the outboard motor.  One building is set up like a boat show of days gone by complete with prices for the boat at the time.

Debby liked the 1935 Ford Phaeton
more than the collapsible canoe tied to the side.

George Boldt's "HouseBoat"105'
Built in 1900

One of 100s on display

We took a commercial boat tour from Clayton to visit Boldt Castle, about 9 miles further downriver.  George Boldt emigrated from Prussia in 1868 at the age of 15.  He worked in hotels starting as a bus boy, working his way up to eventually owning the Waldorf Astoria in New York and a similar hotel in Philadelphia.  Being madly in love with his much younger wife in 1900 he started construction of a castle on Heart Island, so named as he reshaped it to look like a heart.  300 workers spent 4 years constructing the 160 room, 6 story main building along with power station, children’s play house and yacht house to keep his 18 boats.  Unfortunately in 1904 just before completion his wife died suddenly.  As the castle was to be a monument to his love for her he immediately stopped construction and never returned to the property.  The site lay dormant for 73 years until the state took it over and began restoration.  The opulence rivals Hearst Castle in California.

Childrens Playhouse
Boldt Castle

Boldt Castle

Power Generation House
Boldt Castle

Sackets Harbor, NY (Aug. 3-7)

After Harborfest we spent 2 more days in Oswego fixing a water leak from the ice maker and doing some major reprovisioning.   We then moved on to Sackets Harbor, a 42 mile trip to the eastern end of Lake Ontario.  Sackets is a very small village with a large amount of history and some remarkable restaurants.  During the War of 1812 Sackets Harbor was the home of the US Navy for the Great Lakes and the base for the Northern Army.  In addition, it was the major ship building port for the Great Lakes Navy.  A key battle was fought here that ended in a stalemate.  Today the village of one main street appears to survive on its reputation for excellent restaurants and its well protected tiny harbor.

Sunset, Lake Ontario, Sackets Harbor

Twilight, Lake Ontario, Sackets harbor

During our stay each night we had cocktails at Pin Tan Galley restaurant, the best in the area, and enjoyed the music of the owner, a very talented musician.  Throughout an evening he will play guitar, violin, banjo, keyboard, flute, trombone and two trumpets at once.

Andy Taylor, Owner of Tin Pan Galley

Not coincidentally, we met Steve Fortune, our friend from D.C.  Steve was raised in Watertown nearby and his family still has a lake side cabin just 4 miles from the village.  He was here with his brother and sister for a family reunion.  Unfortunately, his wife and Debby’s friend Georgia was unable to attend.  We enjoyed Friday evening together at the cabin and attended the lake side blues concert put on by the town on Sunday.  The Double Barrel Blues Band out of Syracuse was exceptional.

Double Barrel Blues Band
Free Concert, Sackets Harbor

Chris, Debby, Steve
Enjoying the concert!

On Saturday the town hosted a group dedicated to the restoration and collection of historic firefighting equipment.  Everyone has to have a hobby!  It really was quite fun to see this and imagine what it was like in times past trying to put out fires.

Fireman's Demonstration

1920 Firetruck

1935 Firetruck

19th Century Hand Drawn Hand Pump

1832 Jefferson Hose Carriage

1882 Remington-Howe Fire Engine

1812 Fire Pump