One last bit of excitement...

The trip across the Erie Canal was a lot of fun without any real anxious moments. We did have a terrible hail storm, and lost the starboard engine on Oneida Lake but these rank as "inconvenient" and not even close to heart stopping. Guess we couldn't expect our luck to last forever.

 

We topped off our fuel tanks just before leaving Tonawanda and entering the Niagara river. We were about 1/2 empty, the same level as when the starboard engine quit working on Lake Oneida. We planned to stay at Smith Boys marina which is located north of Tonawanda, just a few miles upstream of Niagara Falls.

 

Just as we got into the middle of the Niagara River heading north (toward the falls) the starboard engine sputtered, then died. I was at the helm and didn't tell the crew (I was nervous enough for the entire crew). Smith Boys is located about a mile from where the engine quit and with a strong current carrying us we traveled that mile pretty quick. As we turned into the marina I told the crew to be ready to lasso the dock posts as we only had the port engine and we would be coming in fast. We docked without any problem. I will be replacing the fuel filters before bringing the boat home in two weeks. I also plan to replace the 50 year old fuel tanks this summer as I believe the tanks have a build up inside that is plugging the filters.

 

All in all we had a great trip from the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland, to the Niagara River, New York, travelling about 750 miles.

 

 

 

Bill finds a way to make every job easy.

Lockport, the last two locks on the Erie Canal.

Our neighbor in Tonawanda.

Tom and Bill, great shipmates and darn good cooks.

Mo and I played 81 games of Gin Rummy. At a penny a point Mo owes me $65.80.

Our last night at the end of the Erie Canal in Tonawanda, NY. That's the Niagara River.