erie canal trip?

I'm always aroun the canal let us know when your going , october can get a bit chilly for me at night up there . brrrrr........
 
linda and i were thinking about september, nights should be cooler, thereby not requiring air conditioning. since we've not cruised on the canal we have little knowledge of the area or when to actually do the trip. all information and recommendations are greatly appreciated.
i have seen prior post of groups getting together for a canal cruise, and didn't know if this might be an annual event.
thanks
pat
 
pat, sept. is a great time to go temp. wise nice days and cool nights ( not- cold ) for the most part. if you can get a group together great , if not don't sweat it once you bunch up in the locks , you'll meet plenty of fellow boaters groups stay together for the most part if you keep locking through , the lock masters call ahead to the next lock to try and have it ready for you when you get there, the hot rodders who speed just get stuck at the next lock waiting for the group to catch up. they time it roughly to the 10 mph. speed limit, and you;ll hear boats in the group calling locks as they get close , generally a friendly chit chat between boats ensues. you can also find people heading to a similar destenation when you stop along the way to cruise with if you like , or hang out at the locks mabey even find another C- DORY to cruise with. :) it's a piece of cake don't sweat it & have a great time i know you will,....john
 
thanks john,
we're scheduling three trips this boating season, florida, the june 6 maryland trip and then the erie canal.
our interest in the canal are the little towns or shopping, restaurant areas along the canal. not sure exactly how far we'll go, what ever distance is traveled west will have to be traveled east, back to the truck and trailer.
where would you recommend to put in, that will give us the best access to shops and restaurants?
thanks
pat
 
Pat,
I have several really good books/charts on the Erie Canal. I will try and remember to bring them with me to Lankford in June and you can look thru them over the weekend.

To all others: Tina and I would be all for a trip in September. At the end of June we are going to go up to Watkins Glenn, NY and put in, head up thru the Cayuga-Seneca canal then into the Erie canal. Not sure then if we will go east or west, time (as well as the number of winery stops) :lol: will tell.
 
hey pat, wow where do i begin i've been using the canal for years and still find new things every time i go. for starters get yourself the "CRUISING GUIDE " to the new york state canal system, it includes attractions, amenities and facilities along the canal. it's about 20 bucks and well worth it , don't waste money on anything elese trust me you'll just get the same info. from different books & guides execpt for mabey history type stuff the guide will give you good ideas for your interests and needs . the guide also copies NOAA chart14786, you don't need to buy it it gives you all important info like buoys , mile marks , bridge clearences, ( you don' t have to worry about that ) rember it's a canal & dredged you won't see depth contours like a regular chart.once again check the guide for parking , for me the most important thing about parking is that knowing my truck / trailer is safe while i'm gone so i'd suggest looking into some of the rv, boat parks they have have nys guard gates were you pay on entry and are patrolled 24 hrs a day never had a problem , nor are they expensive you can also talk to privaete marinas about parking and security, again never had a problem the finger lakes are nice too and accesable from the canals lots of wineires and stuff to do and see check the guide and if you nail down some speciffic questions i'll pm you with my phone number, my e-mail is screwed up right now be glad to help all i can pat mabey we will have a sunset drink on the beautiful canal one day BTW lots and lots of free docking some with water,elec, showers along the way talk to you soon ..........john
 
Hey pat forgot one thing that i have done before . if you don't wan't to do the east -west and back thing think about taking your boat east dumping it in the canal jump back in the truck - trailer park it west hop on a bus ( cheapest) or cab or car service back to boat then cruise one way to your trailer it 's a pain and seems like a wasted day but depending how far you go can give you many more days on the water & see more with out having to go back i've liked doing it that way/ just a thought for you it's nice and you'll be closer to home when it's over.
 
John,

Are you referring to "The Cruising Guide" to the New York State Canal System published by Northern Cartographic for the New York State Canal Corp? If so, that is one of the ones I referenced in my upper post to Pat. I see you will be at Lankford as well this June. Should be fun to meet you all.
 
frogpaw, the cruising guide i'm refering to is published by the NEW YORK STATE CANAL CORPORATION , mine is a few years old and i know they hav a newer eddition out i saw it at my marina but didn't buy it yet.NOAA has a recretional chart #14786 for the canal system but its expensive and not necessery again no depth countours , just general chart info. ( NOTHING ABOUT DOCKING , ATTRACTIONS , FACILITIES, OR AMENITIES and the guide looks like an exact copy more or less. look on nys canal system web site pretty sure they have it there for sale, if not let me know and i'll find out exactly, mine is not in front of me it's on the boat i'll check tommorow skipper bob has a no frills guide to the canal no color photos or many ad's but i like his guides , was sorry to hear he passed away last year but heard his wife is still selling the guides . sorry if i copied your post but it wasn't up yet when i was sending mine. good to hear from you and also look forward to meeting youat the gathering i'm probably going by car unfourtanetly, my boat is not set up t o go that kind of distance in one shot , re- building a boat with a friend i got for free if i get the time to finish it i may take that for a shakedown cruise hopefully............... johnny
 
John,
Yea, I think we have the same "Cruising Guide", in the front of mine there is a letter from Gov. Pataki. and it is copyrighted year 2000 for the NYSCC. so mines a little dated as well. To bad there wasn't a letter from Gov. Spitzer, might be a collectors item!!! :twisted: I also have rec. charts 14786 on the NYSCS "the red plastic covered one" with "The Urger" on the cover and your right I think I paid a alot of $$$ for it! :amgry I will bring them both and we can shoot the bull about the canal with Pat while at Lankford, heck maybe we will have a fall trip planned by the time we are done :thup . Look foward to meeting you all.

Soapy Joe
22' Cruiser
 
Yea thats the one i remember the picture of his head . agreed spitzers might just have been :shock: :lol: same red coverd chart too. seems like your like me always thinking boat & trying to gather all the info you can . i practically have a libruary of books and charts on places i've never been yet but still like to read about . been a pleasure chating with you & look forward to more threads............john
 
Pat el al:

Some of us Northeast C-Brats have done the canal trip in two years. In 2005 we launched at Seneca Lake State Park in Geneva and traveled West to Tonawanda in about 6 days where we pulled the boats, rented a car, drove back to Geneva to retrieve our rigs, and went to get the boats. In 2006 we did the Eastern trip, again from Seneca Lake, to Waterford and did the same trailer shuffle. Both trips were fantastic, but I think most of us preferred the Western end, as there were more towns to stop at and better facilities. The State Park in Geneva had good security, a good ramp, and was about the center point of the Canal. I can highly recommend it, and you can also explore the Finger Lakes from there. The NYS Canal corporation cruising Guide is your best bet to learn about the trip, and provides tips for transiting the locks etc. See the Erie Canal picture albums on this site for more info.

This year we are doing a trip up the Hudson River and Lake Champlain in June, and then Maine in August. Some of the NE Brats that didn't get a chance to join us last time might join you in the fall if you go. I my opinion, September is the best month to go...not to hot or too cold!

If you have any questions, feel free to IM me. Good luck.

Dun (CTYankee)
 
yea, lets go, let me know when your comming to the hudson just got 4 recon props back from the prop shop a few days ago and can't wait to bash -em up again on the floating lumber in the river, shop keeps asking me what i'm hitting i tell them everything but the bottom (750 hp twists em up pretty good ) they told me to change my boat name to buzzsaw cause i'm in there so much, at least they give me a discount :lol: ........john
 
Marcia and I will be on the Canal from May 16 to the 26th. I've done the entire canal both ways on Spirit, my sailboat and Marcia and I did the western end from Tonawanda to somewhere east of Cross Lake on a Searay 270 factory boat for a magazine article years ago.

This year we plan on launching at Seneca Lake State Park and heading east and will probably go back to the park to pull out. We will have no destination, but just plan on kicking back and enjoying cruising through small town and rural America.

Re: the Finger Lakes. I'm open to any suggestions on destinations, wineries with docks and so on. Feel free to share your ideas on that area.

I'm really looking forward to seeing many of you at the Chesapeake CBGT.

Regards,

Nick
"Valkyrie"
 
Hi Nick,

Looking thru my stuff from past cruises I found 2 Seneca & Cayuga Lake guides that had locations of all the wineries that we picked up locally when stopping for gas.

Although at least 3 wineries are located on the waterfront, only 1 stated that they were docks for boaters - Goose Watch Winery, about 1/3 down the length of Cayuga. That's the winery that Carol & I hit a few years ago. Wine was good, especially the dessert wines. And the winery is fun to tour. It's a good day trip from Seneca Falls.

Rick from Maine
 
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