A Change in Plans - To the Finger Lakes!

The standoff.

Across the canal in Seneca Falls, NY, were two separate gaggles(or is it flocks?) of geese, each with what appeared to be the king goose.  The kings faced off as the gaggle with larger geese wanted to have the spot occupied by the gaggle with smaller geese.  We were prepared to see our first goose fight, but soon the smaller king backed down and his gaggle began to concede their territory.  At that point a man and his dog approached and the larger geese in the triumphant gaggle all proceeded to jump in the water, leaving the prime real estate to the gaggle of smaller geese.  

Birds have regular come up to our boat.
Perhaps, they are used to getting handouts.

Mother duck is keeping
a close eye

 Wildlife has been abundant on the New York canals.  We have seen blue heron, ducks, swans, seagulls, cormorants and way too many geese, who can leave excrement that looks like a dog’s.  I wish I had thought to take a picture of the deer we saw swimming across the canal.  From a distance it looked like a duck swimming backwards.

We weren’t supposed to be in Seneca Falls, but while in Little Falls a Canadian couple at the dock suggested that we skip some of our Lake Ontario plans because of record high water.  Instead, they said we should go to Seneca Falls and the Finger Lakes.  So okay, off we went.

Like most towns along the canals, Seneca Falls is a former
mill town fueled by immigrants.  This former mill is slated
to become the new home for the Women's Hall of Fame.

Seneca Falls is a nice town on the Cayuga-Seneca Canal between the north ends of Cayuga Lake and Seneca Lake.  We spent two days there, tied up to their town dock wall with free electricity as well as a free concert with a fantastic band, Destination, on Thursday night (7/25).  The local high school is called the Blue Devils, as is Lewiston High School in my former district.

Seneca Falls is where the women’s right movement started with a convention in 1848 and that history is honored with a National Park there as well as the Women’s Hall of Fame.  Molly and I read each of the plaques in honor of the 100 or so inductees that include two with Maine connections - Rachel Carsen, author of Silent Spring, and U.S. Senator Margaret Chase Smith.  I was particularly moved by the story of Ann Sullivan, who brought out the genius in Helen Keller.

Taughannock Falls.

5 miles into our hike at the Falls.

Cayuga Lake is one of the largest Finger Lakes, 35 miles long, with the college town of Ithaca at its southern end.  We cruised down the Lake and anchored off Taughannock Falls State Park.  After taking our dinghy ashore we hiked each of the trails that go to and from the Falls, which has a height that exceeds Niagara Falls, getting in 6 miles.  

Aurora greeted us with flags.

After a refreshing swim and night at anchor, we headed back up the Lake to the pretty town of Aurora, home of Wells College (sorry that I had never heard of this school).  We visited a

farmers market, purchased supplies and then got back on the boat to travel due west across the Lake to visit Goose Watch Winery.  The Finger Lakes region is the heart of NY wine country, and a few like Goose Watch have their own docks for boaters.  We weren’t disappointed, particularly as our wine stores were empty!

One of the 1925 tugs still in operation.

The wall in Baldwinsville, NY

Now we are back on the canals, taking the Erie to the Oswego where we are now tied up with just one more lock separating us from Lake Ontario  Many times we are the only boat going through a lock, and it as if this multi-million dollar system was built just for us  Other interesting artifacts along the canals include remnants of earlier, smaller canals, aqueducts that actually moved boats over rivers and 1925 tug boats still in operation.

Remains of the old aqueduct that carried boats over the
Oneida River.  The present Erie Canal opened in 1918 and
has  fewer locks and makes more extensive use of Rivers
because barges no longer needed to be pulled by mules on
the canal sides.

We are beginning to use an App
called NEBO that tracks our route.
We will write further about this
as we learn more.

Here kayaks are excited a lock.  Note that the large raised
gate is not the lock but a guard gate that can be closed
when the lock needs servicing or protection from winter
ice flows.