June 30, 2013 Day 39 The Hudson River

Donovan’s Shady Harbor Marina
New Baltimore, NY

This morning we packed a lunch and along with Irish Attitude and Down Time took a dinghy ride to see the DuBois family on Sea Hunt IV. They are anchored near Houghtaling Island which is not far from here. We had a fun visit with them while we tied up to their swim platform. Then we went further down the river and rafted our dinghies together and had lunch. 

Lisa, Luc, Pierre, and Andre

We could see storm clouds approaching, but made it back before the thunderstorm hit. We do not need more rain!!

All the Loopers here have been discussing options for travel since the Erie Canal is likely closed for two weeks. Most of the Loopers will take the Champlain Canal route. This is the route we took last year. Bill looked at our radar arch along with the wiring, and thinks he can take it down to make the 17’ bridge clearance. We barely made it last year and we are concerned about higher water levels.

So, that is our new plan – to take the Champlain Canal to Lake Champlain and then cross into Canada. We will take the Richelieu River to the Chambly Canal go as far as Sorel and then head east to Quebec City. We are meeting Lisa and Ron on Outbound there on July 20 and will travel the Down East Loop with them.

Docktails were held in the rain under the canopied area and our diverted plans were the topic of discussion. We came back and had a light dinner on board and then watched a movie to complete our busy day.

June 29, 2013 Day 38  The Hudson River

Donovan’s Shady Harbor Marina
New Baltimore, NY

This morning, Joyce, Gay, and Margi took the courtesy car to do major grocery provisioning.  We had a very successful trip!  We spent the day visiting with other Loopers, reading, and trying to stay cool. 

At 5:00 we had our usual docktails gathering and learned more about the situation on the Erie Canal.  There is damage to two locks from recent flooding and debris is preventing the scow boat to get through to assess the extent of the damage. We also learned there is shoaling in some areas from mud silting.  All of this could mean another delay of one to two weeks.   We are all trying to remain calm and look at our options.  Some of the boaters can go through the Champlain Canal if they can clear the lowest bridge which is usually 17 feet (except the water level is higher there now).  If not they will have to wait for the Erie to open. 

We hope to be able to make a decision this week as to what direction we will take.  We are looking at alternative plans if the Erie does not open soon.   

After docktails we went to the Boathouse Restaurant with Rick & Margi and Mike & Gay and had a good dinner. 

If the weather is good tomorrow and if the river is calmer (there was a strong current today and many trees and logs floated past us)… we will go for a dinghy ride with some of the other Loopers.

 

June 28, 2013 Day 37  The Hudson River

Donovan’s Shady Harbor Marina
New Baltimore, NY

We went to West Marine with Rick and Margi this morning to get a few boat supplies.  We were near Waterford at that point and decided to go there and pick up our mail. The Visitors Center has held our mail for us for almost three weeks!  When we arrived, most of the boats had been moved from the wall in front of the Visitors Center to above Lock 2.  The last four boats were moved while we were there. There is flooding further up the canal and it will be in Waterford tonight.  The Visitors Center staff was moving items to their second story level to protect them.  We visited with Great Laker and Barefoot’n while we were there.  They are resilient but are eager to continue their journey.  Bill talked with the Lockmaster and was told it could be the middle of next week before the canal opens.

We returned to our marina, had lunch, did some laundry, and caught up on some reading.  We enjoyed docktails from 5-7 pm and welcomed more Loopers who arrived today.  We had a quick dinner on board and spent a quiet evening. 

June 27, 2013 Day 36  The Hudson River

Donovan’s Shady Harbor Marina
New Baltimore, NY
 
After a morning of visiting with friends and saying good bye to them and the museum staff, we prepared Carried Away to depart Kingston.  First, we helped Sea Hunt IV untie from us and we left behind them around 11:15.  Journey was right behind us! After 17 days in port, it was a good feeling to be underway again!

The Rondout Lighthouse 

We entered the Hudson River at the end of Rondout Creek and turned north as we passed the Rondout Lighthouse.  We found a lot of debris in the river today, mostly logs and some that were quite large.  We enjoyed the view of the beautiful Catskill Mountains to the west of us as we traveled north on the Hudson.

The Catskills are a lovely backdrop on the west side of the river

Waving goodbye to Sea Hunt IV as they headed to an anchorage

We arrived at the marina around 4:30 and met many other Loopers here.  Some of them had been with us previously in Kingston.  As soon as we got checked in it was time for docktails and we joined everyone for those in a nice canopied area. An hour later the rain began and we all hurried back to our boats before the downpour.  We were glad to have leftovers in the freezer which made for an easy meal tonight.  We were tired from our trip and from the heat!

We will stay here until at least Sunday and decide whether we will stay or go to an anchorage. Since the Erie Canal is not opening Friday due to all the rain, we are back in the waiting game along with many other boaters. 

June 26, 2013 Day 35  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day seventeen here in Kingston!  But, we have good news that the Canal will open on Friday.  So, we will cast off our lines tomorrow at the Museum Dock and go to a marina about 32 miles north of here.  Journey will travel with us and Sea Hunt IV will go to an anchorage.  Many other Loopers will remain here a few more days.  We have rain in the forecast for the next several days and that will not help the situation with the canal system.  We can only hope the opening will happen.

Rick and Margi on Journey

Bill with Andre on Sea Hunt IV 

We had another fabulous potluck dinner tonight with over 20 Loopers attending.  W

Ron, Kenny, and Arch

e have declared Kingston, NY “The Potluck Capital of the Great Loop”!

Looper Potluck

We have had wonderful spontaneous visits with friends, shared meals, opportunities to go sightseeing, good walks, dined in good local restaurants, shopped, and relaxed…but we are ready to move on now after our unexpected delay that has lasted more than two weeks!  We do want to recognize the friendly museum staff and their volunteers for their help and for reaching out to us and driving us to places on a short notice. 

We will not forget our stay in Kingston, New York.

 

 

June 25, 2013 Day 34  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day sixteen here in Kingston! We are still hopeful that the Canal will open on Friday. 

 

We were happy when Looper friends on Sea Hunt IV, (Andre, Lisa, Luc, 12, and Pierre, 9) arrived in Kingston and rafted to us this afternoon. We met them last summer in Canada and last saw them in Clearwater Beach, Florida. We did the Gulf crossing with them and Irish Attitude and will always have those special memories.

The DuBois Family

We went to dinner with them at Ship to Shore, and then came back to continue our visit on our boat.

 

We will remain here tomorrow and look forward to another Looper potluck for dinner!

 

 

 

 

June 24, 2013 Day 33  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day fifteen here in Kingston!  We are starting to hear more “unofficial word” but from a good source, that we can expect the Canal to reopen on Friday. If so, we will depart on Thursday and anchor out before we reach Waterford.  We shall see!

Bill worked on chart plotting today and Joyce made a provisioning trip to Walmart with some of the other Loopers this morning.  We also did Facetime with our granddaughter, Ashley who celebrated her 11^th birthday today!

We had an afternoon thunderstorm that brought small hail with it.  Apparently trees were uprooted on the other side of the creek but we did not sustain any wind damage.  At last we could enjoy cooler temperatures afterwards.  This is our second day of over 90 degrees.

We enjoyed docktails with Loopers on Spiritus, Aurora, Journey, Adagio, Kiwi II, Miss Darlin, and, newly arrived Duddon Pilot and Attitude Adjustment.

 

We had Margi and Rick over for dinner afterwards and had a good visit.

 

June 23, 2013 Day 32  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day fourteen here in Kingston!  We spent more time cleaning and visiting with friends today. We mainly tried to stay cool. It was very hot today and our walk was a short one!

This sailboat stayed on our side of the bridge!

There was another constant parade of boats going up and down Rondout Creek today just like yesterday – a weekend on the water! A 60+ foot sailboat arrived today and we learned they are going to step the mast so they can take the Erie Canal also.

We had docktails with Loopers on Spiritus, Aurora, and Adagio. We grilled out tonight and then visited with Rick and Margi when they returned from their family visit this weekend.

We will stay here again tomorrow.  No updates on the Canal today, but we remain hopeful that we can move this week.  We stay in contact with Loopers in different places on the Hudson, and we are all eager to continue our journeys!

June 22, 2013 Day 31  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day thirteen here in Kingston!  We spent some of the day cleaning, doing laundry, and visiting with friends. 

Many rowers were out today

Today was very warm (87 degrees) and there was a constant parade of boats going up and down Rondout Creek.

We welcomed Loopers, Ron and Jan, on Adagio to the group when they arrived this afternoon.

Another fun Looper dinner!  Ron and Jan, Adagio are on the front left

We had docktails with Loopers on Spiritus, Kiwi II, Aurora, Adagio, and How Lucky Again.  We continued the gathering by grilling brats and sharing great side dishes for dinner. Eating well never seems to be a problem!

Attempted movie night under the stars (under the Super Moon)

Several of us went down to sit on Kiwi II’s aft deck to watch the movie “When Harry Met Sally”.  This was the first of a series the city is doing for the summer. We were about half way through when the movie quit working!  That was disappointing but we did enjoy being with friends for the evening.

We will stay here again tomorrow.  We have heard that the Canal may reopen by Thursday but we have no “official” word! 

June 21, 2013 Day 30  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY


Mimi is 125' and dwarfs us all!

Day twelve here in Kingston!  A few of the Loopers left this morning to head further north to another marina. We all said goodbye to Journey (the Monk 36); Irish Attitude, and Down Time and helped with their lines. We will see them on the Erie Canal when it reopens!

A very large (125’) yacht came in this afternoon. They are not on the Loop but this boat will go through the Erie Canal. The dockmaster had to move some smaller boats to make room for her!

Joyce ran a few errands today (thanks to Linda on the Museum Staff for providing transportation), while Bill worked on the shifter and thinks it is good now.

We had docktails with Loopers on Spiritus, Kiwi II, and Aurora.  Peter and Lynn on Kiwi II are from New Zealand and we enjoyed hearing about some of their traditions.  They are also Gold Loopers.

Six of us walked around the downtown area for a while then found a Chinese restaurant (we were looking for pizza!). 

We have decided to stay here at least one more day until we hear some positive updates about the Erie Canal.

June 20, 2013 Day 29  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day eleven here in Kingston!  The news today is somewhat conflicting as to when the canal will reopen, but we try to be optimistic. 

Today was such a fun day.  Joyce, Margi, Gay, and Melesia decided to go to the mall. This required taking three buses and about 1 ½ hours each way, but we made it! We got pedicures, shopped at Macy’s, Bath and Body works, had lunch, stopped at Walmart for a few things!  As soon as we returned, the others Loopers were already having docktails, so we joined them. 

Dinner at the Irish Pub

An hour later it was time for dinner, so eleven of us headed back to the Irish Pub and enjoyed their outdoor seating and their fabulous food.  The Guinness Pie should not be missed!

(Bill continued to work on projects by the way while Joyce was out having fun.) 

June 19, 2013 Day 28  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day ten here in Kingston!  We received more positive news from a good source - but still unofficial (it is not on the NY Canal website yet) news today that all of the Erie Canal will be open on Sunday.  We will still stay here in Kingston until Saturday and then anchor out for two or three days!

We had a fabulous brunch today with over 20 Loopers and some of the Museum staff.  We had quite a feast with sausage egg casseroles, French toast, biscuits and sausage gravy, fresh fruit, sour cream coffee cake, brown sugar/cinnamon bacon, macaroni & cheese, risotto salad, pastries, grits with oysters, and Ebleskiver (Danish pancakes).  It is so good to have such great people here with us.

Our Looper Brunch!

Joyce finally got her hair cut today (two weeks over due) so she is happy about that.  Bill made progress on more boat projects today.

We got together with Margi and Rick (Journey) and Dottie and Carl on their boat, Down Time for docktails.  Loopers on Blew Grass left today to head to the Champlain Canal.  Symmetry II will follow them tomorrow, so we are starting to say good bye to people.

We were still full from our brunch so we just had sandwiches for dinner. Then we watched  the 1945 production of “State Fair”!

June 18, 2013 Day 27  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day nine here in Kingston!  We finally received some positive news today that part of the Erie Canal is opening in the morning.  We will still stay here in Kingston for a few more days.  We have mail being delivered on Friday and we also want to let the rush of boats to get past us.  Even so it is such good news!

We worked on more boat projects this morning. Little by little everything is getting done.  Joyce and Margi walked to a market about a mile away (uphill) with Linda and Jim. (…and yes, we were at the grocery store yesterday).

When we returned Joyce baked a Sour Cream Coffee Cake. All the Loopers are having a brunch tomorrow and the cake, along with an sausage egg casserole are our contributions.

We met three couples (Margi & Rick, Bonnie & Bob and new arrivals Dottie and Carl) for dinner at a seafood restaurant and had a good time. Rick and Margi came back to our boat for coffee and another good visit.

 

 

June 17, 2013 Day 26  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day eight here in Kingston!  We hear that we could be here from a few days to two weeks.  We continue to get some things done on the boat and enjoy the company of the other Loopers while we wait.

Today, Joyce did some shopping with Margi and together they filled the back of an SUV with groceries.  Bill fixed the fuel line to the dinghy and took a long dinghy ride on Rondout Creek while they were gone.

We had dinner on board and then walked down to Jim and Linda’s boat Symmetry II and watched a local group of musicians perform outdoors. It was really more of a jam session but it was a nice change of pace.  Rick and Margi also joined us. 

 

 

June 16, 2013 Day 25  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Day seven here in Kingston!  We got more work done on the boat.  Joyce polished the stainless steel rails and Bill waxed them. We still had residue from salt spray on them and they desperately needed cleaning.  This last step is supposed to protect the surface and we should not have to clean them as often.

Today was Father’s Day and we talked to both of our children. We also did facetime with our grandson who celebrated his 2^nd birthday today! He was very busy playing with his toys! 

                                                       
We had dinner on board and then took a long walk along Rondout Creek and back through some of the historic area.  This part of town dates back to the early 1800’s.  We liked the slate sidewalks and had fun trying to guess the original purpose of some of the buildings.

We have had no positive updates on the Erie Canal, so we expect to be here most of the week. Loopers on a 22’ sailboat, Aurora, arrived today and we enjoyed meeting them.  We also talked by phone today with Ron and Lisa on Outbound. We plan to meet them in Quebec City in late July and travel together for the remainder of the Down East Loop.

 

 

June 15, 2013 Day 24  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY



Eddy, Margie, Tom

Tony, Leslie, Mike, Bob, Bonnie, Stephanie

Today was a warm sunny day which was greatly appreciated.  Joyce went for a morning walk again with Margi and Rick.   We had a fairly relaxing day and spent some time just visiting with other boaters.

Margi, Melesia, Linda, Mike, and Gay

Joyce and Leslie

Our highlight of the day was our group potluck. 

Tom, Jim, Linda, Bill, Rick, and Hank

We had quite a delicious spread of food and had a fun evening with lots of stories and laughter.  We finally called it a night when it started to get dark.   This is our 6^th night here in Kingston!

June 14, 2013 Day 23  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

We spent some time today talking with other boaters including some who are as far north as Albany.  The situation on the Erie Canal has worsened and it looks like we may be waiting here in Kingston for a while.  We are already booked here all weekend and probably much longer. 

Joyce spent the afternoon out with five other ladies.  One of them had a rental car so we spent a few hours shopping in stores such as Home Goods, Tuesday Morning, Marshalls, Pier One, and Kohls.  We all had a good time being off the boats and not having to hurry though the stores.

We went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner with Margi & Rick and Bonnie & Bob.  Tomorrow night all the Loopers are getting together for a potluck and we look forward to that also!

June 13, 2013 Day 22  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

Rain and more rain.  We stayed on the boat most of the day and got more chores done.  We did go out to lunch with Rick & Margi and Bob & Bonnie. We had a great meal at the Ship to Shore Restaurant and loved the atmosphere there.  Then we all walked along Rondout Creek to a boat yard but the office was closed. Bill was looking for a part to repair the fuel hose to the dinghy. We did find an unusual “hardware” store and spent time browsing through it, and none of us came out empty handed!

We had dinner on board and had a quiet evening – other than the noisy rain!

We will be here again tomorrow with more rain forecast.  More locks on the Erie Canal are closed and the situation is getting worse. 

We will just have to wait!

June 12, 2013 Day 21  The Hudson River

The Hudson River Maritime Museum Dock
Kingston, NY

As planned, we joined Rick & Margi and Bob & Bonnie for a guided tour of West Point Military Academy.  We were glad we made the return visit and found it just as interesting as we did last year.  The history, traditions, architecture, and setting above the Hudson River kept us in awe of this remarkable sight.  We also spent some time in the museum following the tour.  By then we were hungry and found a Chinese Restaurant for lunch before returning to our boats.

The Protestant Chapel at West Point

After we drove back to Kingston, we got ready for docktails at 5:00. The canopy covered tables next to the museum were perfect for us.  Nineteen Loopers were present and we had a wonderful time visiting and getting to know each other better. 



Two more Loopers, Irish Attitude and Blew Grass arrived earlier today and are docked behind us.  Spiritus arrived yesterday and the Hudson River Maritime Museum docks are officially full. We are still awaiting the reopening of the locks on the Erie Canal. The docks and marinas near Waterford (60 miles from here) are full also.  So we wait!  We plan to remain on the boat tomorrow and get more work done if the rain arrives as forecast.


A great Looper get together!

The girls - Margie, Maresia, Linda, Gay, Stephanie, Joyce, Margi. Linda

This colorful tugboat went past us tonight up the creek!