New York To Great Lakes - Can you help?

[Capt Andy]

I live in Mi. I have purchased a new Catalina-Morgan 440, in Ct, and am considering bringing the boat up the Hudson, Erie Canal and through the lakes to Lake Mi. I know the mast has to come down along the way, but thats about all I know about the trip. I would appreciate any feedback anyone can give me about this trip, including, where you need to drop the mast, are there services,along the way,readily available to have this done. Approx time table NY to Lake Erie. Costs for services and locks (are there any?). As you can see, like I said, "I don't know much" At any rate, I know there are lots of knowledgeable sailors that can fill in the gaps for me. Thank you in advance, for your time and input.Andrew Mattingly

 

[mike C16582]

check out....

my friend's John and Mary did this trip from Wisc. to Florida this past fall. Check out their web site as they have some info posted, (and I'm sure you can email them with specific questions)www.sailmarylee.com

 

[GuyT]

Check out NY State Canal web site

I have included the link.They have a cruising guide to the erie canal that I got over the winter.For 25 bucks you cannot go wrong. It has all the info that you would need to go thru the canal.Have a great trip.

 

[KorculaChris]

A couple wrote a book about it

"Our year in Paradise", or something similar. They wrote about the southbound leg...you could read the book backwards!

 

[letterman]

some suggestions.

The Hudson is a piece of cake. There are a few places BEFORE you get to waterford to take the mast down. Google it. The place we put ours up at (we were going the other way) was about 20 miles or so South of Waterford, on the West bank.Going West on the canal might be a challenge as you would be going up river (the Mohawk). This time of year might be a pain. The Erie Canal is a piece of cake, going West to East. East to West might pose some problems till mid-canal because of the Mohawk. If the river is up, then they close it so you could be stuck somewhere for a while. You can stop anywhere along it to camp. Just tie up. The further West you go, you enter the cities you can stay at. Some charge a nominal fee ($10), but most are free. There was a place just out of the canal that you could put you mast back up, but I'd save it till Buffalo. There is a marina there that is very good. It's three initials. I'd look at taking another route besides the Mohawk, then coming back in at Rochester to the Erie. Of course, thats a river too.Past the canal, Lake Erie should be easy. I only did the US side. How e did it:Buffalo to DunkirkDunkirk to Erie (there really isn't anyplace else along the way).Erie to Ashtabula or the Grand River at Fairport Harbor.Either to Cleveland (no place free, but you can anchor just west of the old CG post at the mouth of the river.Lorain, Vermilion or Huron. All have places to stay. PIB Then, your past my knowledge base.

 

[Brian M H23]

buffalo marina

RCR yachts? There's also an RCR in rochester

 

[letterman]

That's it!

RCR. They use to have an office in Erie too.

 

[Capt Andy]

How about the current

Thanks for your input regarding my possible NY to Erie trip. 1 question. Do you have any idea how strong the current is in the canal/river? I am asking so that I can make some kind of eduicated estimate of what kind of SOG I can expect to make.Thanks again!Andrew Mattingly

 

[Chuck15486]

Great trip

We did the trip the other direction a few years ago. NO Problems. We spent 7 days in the canal but we could have done it in 5 if we wanted to push it. We stepped our mast at the Riverview Marina in Catskill, NY. They were very good. Unsteped in at RCR in Buffalo. Darrin and his crew are the best. If you get to RCR let me know and I will will buy the first beverage. I would be happy to e-mail you copies of our logs if you would like to read them.Contact me off list at CDickhut2@aol.com The book Chris refered to is "A year in Paradise, How we lived our dream" by Stephen Wright WattersonCapt ChuckS/V ObsessionCatalina 320

 

[Gary Sisson]

Oh, when I was young

When I wss in the 8th grade-a long, long time ago, my father, a friend and I brought a sailboat from Conn. to Mich. via the Hudson and Erie canal. A wonderful experience for a young kid. I climbed all the locks for the old guys. Go for it!

 

[letterman]

current

Depends on the rain. If there is a lot, it will show up for two or three days after the event. Some of the locks on the East side of the canal are there to skirt to dams. There are some logs and trees in the river, but most are easily avoided. We did 7 knots most of the way going West to East. I suspect you will go slower going the other way, till you hit the "real" canal part of the trip. At that point, the current is about 1 knot or so. You travel between locks and bridges. They are open from morning to evening. Some of them are operated by one person controlling 2 or 3 locks or bridges, which means when he opens for you, he gets in his car and drives to the next location. It's very easy though.Again, if the current is dangerous, they close down the bad section of the canal. Funny story. The gatekeepers take a lot of pride in their work, and buildings. We were going W to E. On a winding section on the East side we were passed by three identical 40' powerboats going way over the speed limit. The people living along the shores have rocks and suck to stop erosion, and going faster then the 10 knot speed limit (might be MPH) is akin to going 100 mph down your side street. Well they made huge wakes and were gone very fast. Some kind lady heard the lapping on her rocks and saw us just passing by, so she assume we made the waves. She called the station we were about to arrive at and when we did we got an earful. After the guy vented, and we were allowed to get a word in edgewise, I said "You realize this is a sailboat"! He kept ranting, blowing off most his steam and all I kept saying was "You realize this is a sailboat"!. Finally I said "The top speed of this boat is 8-9 miles per hour, below your posted speed limit. And didn't three 40' powerboats just come through you locks going the other way? Perhaps they made the waves and by the time she got there, they were gone and there we were, so she assumed, like you, that we were the cause of the waves." He thought about it and said ala Roseanne Rosanadana "Nevermind".