WanderlustandWhimSea

For those of you who know me well, I’m a tad goal oriented. Stop laughing about the “tad” part. My second goal for this trip was making it to Burlington, VT. The Notice to Mariners with some locks not opening till 3 Sept made the decision clear, that going further east was a no go.… Continue reading Know When To Fold ‘EM

I’ve always said this trip would require lots of flexibility and plans A through Z. The remnants of Hurricane Fred hit upstate New York and it rained for 48 hours. As I was underway yesterday, I received a “Notice to Mariners” that Locks 24 – 28B were closed due to high water. I just passed… Continue reading Fairport = Flexibility + Fred

I am getting quite the education in bridges. Yesterday I went under 35 bridges and today it was 34. Above is a gate bridge designed to help control the water levels. This one is odd as only one side is up. Above is a lift bridge. I had 7 lift bridges on my route today.… Continue reading Bridges and Bicycles

The Niagara River is in a hurry to get to the falls. You’ll notice I opted for the calmer side. This is essentially the Great Lakes excess water moving on the path to the sea. So I admitted to being nervous for my first lock. As it turns out, the lock keeper told me to… Continue reading Goal #1 – Erie Canal – Achieved

It was an easy trip from Dunkirk to Buffalo. Upon arrival I went to hook up electric and found a missing prong. Before I could even devise a plan to get a new one, boaters Lisa & Dawn donned angel wings and offered to help. They just happened to have an extra brand new 30… Continue reading Boat Angel’s in Buffalo

It was a wild ride on the docks at Dunkirk. I didn’t get a lot of sleep as I constantly refreshed the radar map. At a normal dock and harbor this storm wouldn’t have been a problem but the docks were bad and there was a ricochet wave effect from the city pier. The cleats… Continue reading Dunkirk NY – A Tough Night on the Docks

On my run from Conneaut to Erie, PA my voltage gauge showed green for over an hour and then flipped to the dreaded red zone. I had a bunch of folks give me recommendations, so I ran with every light and blower on to try to pull some current and made it safely to Erie.… Continue reading Voila – A New Alternator in Erie, PA

One of the reasons I’m enjoying this Great Loop boating lifestyle is the daily planning. Each day you have to determine how far you want to travel, where you want to dock and whether the weather gods are going to cooperate. I have been having great luck with Marinas until Conneaut. The Port Authority had… Continue reading Conneaut, “This isn’t going to work for me”

I’d never been to Geneva On The Lake but it was very cool and much like a flash back to the 1950’s. There is a strip with arcade games, lemon shake ups and Eddies Grill that’s been around since 1949. I’m a sucker for those kind of places and had to have a foot long… Continue reading Geneva On The Lake

When I think of Cleveland I think of the Browns and Indians (The Guardians will take a bit). I had forgotten it is large port. I was quickly reminded as I dodged freighters and tugs in the channel. Whatever the USCG book says I just get out of their way. There were no close calls… Continue reading Ahoy Cleveland