Let The Fun Begin - Oswego to Minetto

Let the Fun Begin

 

As I shove off and head up the Oswego Canal to lock 8, which is right there, no more than a minute away, our journey starts in earnest.  Our journey - yours and mine - along this historic canal. Can you feel the anticipation building?  I can. It’s going to be a glorious month, slowly exploring the old waterways of Upper NY State and chatting with interesting people along way, getting first-hand knowledge of the area and the history.

Fueled and watered at Oswego Marina (I sound like a horse, but then I guess I am since I will carry my passengers easily along the watery trails) we enter the first of many locks.  A lock pass is purchased for the entire New York Canal system here for $75 for a craft over 30 feet long. They do not take credit cards so cash is a necessity unless you still use cheques. 

This lock has both ropes hanging down and cables.  The ropes are free at the bottom so they can be grabbed and pulled into the boat to keep us close to the wall while looping a line around the cable, keeping the other end close to the wall.  The lock fills with water and we rise the 10.4 feet to put me at the top of the lock.

Oswego Lock 7 is only feet away. I am told to hold, as there are workers that need to be cleared from the lock before I can pass. No problem, there is ample wall space to tie up. I go farther up river, close to lock 7. The concrete on the wall has been redone and offers a nice area to tie up.  The concrete behind me is rough and crumbling.  This area of the wall has not been restored.  I use 15” round fender balls down the side I intend to tie off on. I also use a fender board to add extra protection from the walls and the slime that has built up over time. It works!  The lockmaster even complimented me on how well I was prepared with padding.

 

Minetto, New York

Oswego Lock 6 from the north Oswego Lock 6 is also very close at hand and all three locks can easily be managed in very short order.  Not far past Lock 6 is Minetto, which has a new dock with power connections on posts.  The power is a little light, possibly 15amp connected on 30amp plugs.  My A/C unit was fine, but when I used the range the breakers tripped and I had to wait until the facility caretakers, Bruce and his wife Judy, returned.  Some groceries can be obtained locally at the corner store; Stewart’s; just up the street and directly across the road from the corner store and gas station is a wonderful cigar store called Premium Cigars.  The atmosphere inside is almost like an old fashioned men’s club, with a knowledgeable shopkeeper.  He didn’t even mind that I brought the dog in. When I stop at Minetto I find Bruce and Judy fishing from the dock (Judy says she is usually the one with the most fish out of the two of them.) They are true ambassadors of the area and have a wealth of knowledge about the canals. Bruce has been running on this river since he was a young man, and talks about the days when he and his buddies would run up and down the Oswego River late at night, traveling to such places as The Royal Yacht Club in Toronto, Ontario Canada.  He speaks of lock operators working all night and opening the locks once an hour, on the hour.  He speaks fondly of the foggy nights back in ‘62 when they would have to go from marker to marker to keep their old Trojan Flybridge Fisher on the right path along the river. They were constantly on the lookout for logs and debris floating down the river with the real possibility of sinking or at the very least being disabled.  It’s not much different today.   Judy looks after this nice little park at Minetto and does an outstanding job.  The bathrooms are clean and stocked as she conscientiously takes pride in her work each and every day.  She looks forward to and asks for boaters’ suggestions to enhance the service they are providing on the river; my only suggestion is a WIFI connection. The town hosts a number of events on the river each year such as Magic Minetto, which saw 217 kayaks racing down the river last year.  The last Friday of every month the church hosts a free supper where boaters are welcomed and encouraged to attend. Bruce tells me the canal used to be a wonderful experience, with friendly, open people.  It still is, at least here. Long past days of industry in Minetto.  The old Minetto Shade Cloth Company 1853 – 1972

© Simon Geller 2014