Locking Through

Today was a perfect Thunderbird touring day, so we headed west along the Mohawk River to Erie Canal Lock 17 at Little Falls.

It must have been an amazing feat building this lock, which is the highest on the Erie Canal at 40.5 feet.

Click on the photo to make it larger and you can read about it and the other high lift locks around the world.

The controls:

It has come along way since the original Erie Canal was built. This is what is left of it...

We were lucky enough to arrive in time to watch a motoryacht approach and lock through. We had to wait for the water to go out of the lock before the lift gate opened. Each cycle of locking moves 5 million gallons of water!

The gigantic door is lifted with this chain attached to a bar with counterweights that go down, raising the door up.

Eventually the huge concrete weights were lower than the lift gate. It was interesting to see the extra concrete blocks that were installed on the main weight bar so that everything works smoothly. It took awhile for us to finally see the "light at the end of the tunnel."

As I walked in front of the gate/door when it was all the way up, I noticed lots of plants growing in it. If I was a lockmaster, I would be growing herbs in it while at work. 😉

The boat finally got to pass under it all and the crew grabbed one of the numerous lines hanging in the water. They kept themselves secure and in place with this line and by using their bow thruster to stay against the wall in all the current as the water rose from below (the water coming from the doors is just water that leaks in).

After rising up the 40+ ft., the doors at the other end opened and they were on their way west to the next lock before Oneida Lake.

Just as "Ladies First" was getting ready to leave we heard a call on the marine VHF radio that there were two more boats arriving to the east and ready to lock through. There was no down bound traffic so all those millions of gallons of water had to come back out so it could accommodate the other vessels. I hope they knew that they had to wait awhile since the process takes a long time.

It was another fantastic adventure and actually very educational. It is incredible what interesting things we find only a little more than an hour away from home.

The 'Shrill' Of It All

Our warmer weather has brought toads to our fish pond to find mates and lay eggs. A few days ago we had just one and it was calling out for hours and hours. I think it was trying to cuddle up to my ceramic frog.

A day passed and the shrill call continued day and night. Finally we looked out to see 3 more toads had joined our solo vocalist at night. Now we had several of them calling and it was deafening, but actually quite funny. They were still at it during the day, which we had never seen (or heard) before. Strangely, last night we were back to the original toad who was the biggest out of all of them. This morning everyone was gone and yet there haven't been any egg cases left behind. I guess that means they will all be back. I did read that toads return to the spot where they were hatched to lay their eggs, and that unlike frogs, they don't need to stick around to protect the eggs. Instead they leave a smelly film on the egg cases that deters predators. No wonder our goldfish don't attempt to eat the eggs and wait until the tadpoles are swimming around. It's all about the food chain.

This Is More Like It!

Yesterday was more like what we have been hoping for all spring. We certainly took advantage of the gorgeous weather. First we went to the Malta Drive-In Theatre's Flea Market. Between 80 to 100 vendors were set up in the field with all sorts of wares to sell. The soggy grass didn't keep people away on this spectacular morning, although poor Dave's shoes leaked and he felt like he was walking around in just his socks.

I really wanted one of these:

My favorite booth was this one with the seller having a good sense of humor...

We didn't end up buying anything, but it was still fun to see so many eclectic items. Then it was on to Waterford for the Canal Fest, celebrating the 225th anniversary of the Erie Canal. Lots of vendors were set up at the lock's welcome center, tons of people arrived as the day progressed, and the docks were filled up with traveling boats. Most of the boats are stuck here due to all the rain keeping most of the canal system closed, heading west. Last I heard, only 7 locks were open.

This is Solaris, the first solar powered boat ever to be U.S. Coast Guard approved to take on passengers. The whole roof is covered with solar panels that charge the 32 huge marine batteries that run the engine.

At the upper part of the park, where the first lock of the Flight of Five is, the view is great and we watched several boats lock through.

There was plenty of musical entertainment and boat rides at both the upper and lower sections, but we couldn't believe our luck to arrive just in time to see a professional Flyboard demonstration. Mike, the owner and instructor, had a Bluetooth headset in his helmet so he could explain all about Flyboards through the PA system. Being the mechanic that he is, Dave had to talk to Mike afterwards and got all the technical info about how it all works and attaches to the PWC. The big flexible hose is attached to the jet of the PWC, but then brought underneath it and attached to the PWC before being hooked up to the Flyboard. Since the PWC's forward/reverse propulsion is disconnected, the power from the jet's water goes into the tube/hose, sending the Flyboard operator into the air. The more throttle that the PWC operator gives it, the higher it flies. It is the person on the Flyboard that regulates the direction that the PWC maneuvers.

He had to have been cold since he started out immersed in the water. Up, up, and away...

What a great outing and we sure are looking forward to more!

Interim Update

As you know, I am always trying to be upbeat with my blog posts. Right now though, I think that the saying about "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all" applies. Between rainy and windy weather and being sick, there certainly isn't very much interesting to report. We have had so few nice days and that's when we get outside for yard work both here and up north. We did open up the house in Ti, but had to turn the water back off due to the boiler/heater getting stuck on. It also leaked all over the floor, but luckily I noticed that the sump pump was going on a lot and went down in the cellar to find water everywhere. Next time we actually spend more than a few hours up north (where today and tomorrow it may snow!), we will get everything fixed up.

For now though, the only good to report is that things are getting green around here and the birds and other wild life are loving it. It's great to have them around...

Although sometimes a bit too close! This was right out my front window at dusk and we surprised each other...

Once again, check back periodically and I will post things that are interesting or if I have something nice to say. 😉