A Little Loopy

Cleveland to Put In Bay Island OH: 11.1 mph; 58.2 miles; 5:18 hours IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE MICHIGAN & GREAT LAKES:  Michigan Harbors are operated by the state: midnrreservations.com  the site includes information for the Ohio area as well. The site has a sliding scale with set prices. It was pretty helpful when we planned our next stop. I decided to download the pdf Michigan.gov/Harbors and have all the marina numbers with amenities in one place. If you are making a last minute reservation, ditch the app and call the marina directly. Put-In-Bay, OH B Dock is the place to stay, during the week: $2.00/ft with electric and water. The bathrooms are free to the community in the downtown area but the showers are, wait for it, bought with tokens. A $3.00 token will get you 8 minutes in the shower. You could buy two tokens for $5.00/20 minutes. I have no idea if the water is instantly hot or not. I was of the mindset - boat hair don’t care. This island is so differen...

Tanawanga (Niagara/Buffalo Area) to Erie PA: 14.5 mph; 85.3 miles; 5:52 hours Erie PA to Cleveland OH: 102.02 miles; 7:10 hours Lake Erie Leaving Buffalo, you have one last lock - use it. If you travel the outside route you will use twice the fuel to end up at the same place - Lake Erie and the currents are strong and churning. It's a long run, Buffalo to Erie, PA, and takes the entire day. Once you see the change in water color, you won’t care how long it takes - it’s the most beautiful jewel green (if that makes any sense). I want to reproduce it and paint. Erie, PA: ANCHORAGE:   We dropped anchor at Presque Isle State Park , it’s quiet, calm, peaceful and a great place to kayak or paddle board after the long run. There’s a slow fuel dock with pump-out, sort of. We ended up heading across the bay to Perry’s Landing fuel dock (they open at 8:00am). If you want restaurants, Perry’s would be the place to stop and stay - lots to do over there. WHY THE LONG RUN?  We were tryin...

Albion to Middleport NY 15.6 miles; 2:26 hours Middleport to Lockport 6.4 miles; 1:27 hours Lockport to Tanawanga (Niagra Falls) 19.2 miles, 3:06 hrs                                       Middleport NY FREE wall with electric, water, showers, bathrooms, and a coin-operated laundromat is next to the wall. This area is shared with the fire department and the picnic tables are well maintained. That’s about all Middleport has to offer - seriously. The coffee shop opens around 10:30... Lockport NY Locks E-34 and E-35 WOW! What an interesting place. You won’t stay the night here but it’s a cool stop. This is a double lock and the tallest on this side of the canal. The Lock Master encouraged us to stop and dock next to the lock to explore the museum, bronze sculptures, and the old lock next to the current lock. What a TREAT! This is where engineering was put to the test. I am sure that if the ca...

Spencerport to Brockport :  7.2 miles; 1:12 hours Brockport to Albion: 12.2 miles; 1:54 hours Brockport, NY I am including a bit on Brockport because it's really beautiful and I wish we had stayed there the night before Albion. The town has invested a great deal in redevelopment with a Victorian flair, it has more to offer by way of art, and restaurants. The docking is limited and looked like part of it had electric and water. When you are on your way, look over and make the decision then, what do you have to lose? Albion, NY FREE dock: electric, water, and a short walk through the local police and fire department parking lots to the bathrooms and shower. Our intended stop was Middleport but the Bridge Master advised us to stop here for the night because the Knowlsville Lift Bridge was having mechanical problems.  The town has beautiful architecture to satisfy the inner photographer in you and a Greek Restaurant to stop you in your tracks (so the police chief tells me - never ...

Newark to Spencerport, NY:  42 miles; 7 hours { Locks E-27 to Lock E-33} Spencerport FREE dock with electric, water, shower, bathroom; a coin-operated laundromat is a short walk away. A nice walk around town, plan to grill out and having docktails with other Loopers. We stayed an extra day because of a failed lift bridge ahead of us. TRUTH About Low Bridges:  There are two very low fixed bridges along the canal at 15.5 feet but they aren't the only ones. There are a LOT MORE than simply two low fixed bridges! Every old railroad bridge along the western part of the Erie Canal is a low fixed bridge at about 16 feet and you need to be prepared for all of them. They start at Lock E-29 so have your boat ready with a spotter up top and everything pulled down. Be prepare to hit reverse at the last minute.  The Real Tests are at Locks E-29 to E-30:   There are bridges and guard gates between these locks; if you are close to the limit for either of these, stop at Ma...

DECISION TIME Little Falls to Sylvan Beach NY: LONG TIME{Locks E-17, E-18, E-19, E-20, E-21, E-22} Sylvan Beach to Brewerton: 2:12 hours {Lock E-23} Brewerton to Baldwinsville NY: 3:12 hours {Lock E-24} Baldwinsville to Lyons NY: 5:40 hours {Locks E-25, E-26, E-27} Lyons to Newark, NY 0:37 hours  {Locks E-28A, E-28B} Speed: Along the Canal System, NO WAKE Sylvan Beach   Free wall - nothing offered; Sylvan Beach is an old beach town with a few things to do. We never found a grocery store but there was a gas station and a Dollar General. I can see why the locals flock to this area, the beach is white as can be and the water is so shallow that you can walk out pretty far up to your knees. Great for families. We stayed overnight and then headed over Oneida Lake - calm and beautiful. LEARNING MOMENT: Not all docks have standard cleats. Sylvan Beach uses something that looks like a hog ring. After jumping from the boat, I literally froze in place and Jim had t...