Two years ago Bill Skaryd and I travelled down the same stretch of the Erie Canal that Mo and I cruised today. That day, two years ago, Bill and I got caught in a terrible thunderstorm. Today Mo and I went one better. We not only had a terrible thunderstorm, we had hail to go with it. When the storm was at its worst I couldn't see any of the channel markers (easy way to run aground or crash into one of the hundreds of logs floating down the river) . Between the torrential rain, hail, and a sudden drop in temperatures that caused the windshield to fog over, we were boating blind. One might suggest we simply stop and wait the storm out, but with the current, we would have drifted into trouble. We slowed down, put a heater on the dash to clear the windows, and crossed our fingers.
When the storm passed, "Whatever It Takes" was still afloat and we continued travelling through periodic rain squalls which seemed to occur just as we reached a lock and ended shortly after we passed through. Mo looked like a drown, white rat by the end of the day (Mo worked the bow lines open to the elements, I had to stay by the pilot house, honest).
Tonight we are docked at the St Johnsville Muni Dock. This was not the original plan. We were going to stay 15 miles east of here, but I actually missed the dock. One might think it hard to miss a marina when travelling at 9 MPH, but I did.
Click below to ride through a wicked hail storm.
http://youtu.be/E6fZOe0gYVQ
 |
| Hope this is a strong bridge. |
 |
| We have "locked up" over 250 feet so far, about the height of the mountain. |
 |
| Galley slave Mo made dinner tonight. Hamburger steaks with chopped onions and fried potatoes. YUM |
 |
| Caught site of our first Dolphin on its way to Lake Michigan. |
No comments:
Post a Comment