It has been another whirlwind few days. We had two days in Brewerton to restock our pantry and supplies before heading into Canada where prices would be higher. The marina has a courtesy car that can be used, but we had our truck stored there so it made our chores easier. Bob and Diane, Sea Cottage joined us for a run to a NAPA Auto Parts store, Walmart and liquor store on day 1. Maggie was happy to come along the next day to pick up a few bags of dog food and a special treat for her. She also got to go to Lowe’s. All chores were getting checked off the list and then, I added a biggie to the list. When tossing a bag of dog food onto the boat, I watched as my iPad slid out of my arms into the river. UGGGG! After some key 4 letter words, foot stomping and numerous groans, I calmed down enough to look at Tim who saw the whole thing happen. He was wonderful- no scolding or I told you sos, he got on his phone and located an Apple store in Syracuse and was off again to buy me a new one. What a guy!
With all chores checked off, it was time to leave. Unfortunately, after almost 2 weeks traveling with Bob and Diane, we would be separating. Their list of chores was much longer than ours and they needed to take care of some oil pressure issues. We decided not to say “Goodbye”, but “ see you later”. We enjoyed our boat buddies and know that at some point, we’ll be able to cruise together again. Even though we were leaving Sea Cottage, we were so happy to have our friends, Tom and Nancy, Meanders, traveling with us now. So, at 7am on Monday, we headed out of Brewerton with Meanders behind us.
This would be the last leg of the NY Canal System. The Oswego Canal. We traversed 8 locks, all dropping us on our way to Lake Ontario. Our last US stop was at Wright’s Landing in Oswego. We were directed to the Black dock with no power or water. While we knew this was where we were going to dock, we wish we had tied up to the free wall in Oswego instead. Hmmmm free vs. $1.50 /foot for the same lack of services. Yes, the free wall was the better deal.
The forecast for our Lake Ontario crossing was spot on. The conditions couldn’t have been much better as we traveled the approx 50 miles across the lake to Prinyer’s Cove, Ontario. Checking into Canada was as easy as a phone call to Can-Pass and giving the customs agent basic information about us and the boat. Prinyer’s Cove is a sweet, rustic camp with a small marina. We grabbed a morning ball beside Meanders and settled in. Meanders left he next morning heading west to the Trent- Severn while we hung on for one more night. We spent our first full day in Canada snuggled on the boat while it rained and drizzled. No problems. We’re looking forward to welcoming friends on board and the rain gave us plenty of time to pencil out our next few weeks and make reservations for Montreal, Ottawa and Clayton, NY.
Before we move on to Canada, I have to mention the wonderful men and women operating and maintaining the canals and locks in the NY Canal system. All of the employees we came in contact with were helpful, respectful and friendly. We greatly appreciate all they do that allows us to have this wonderful experience. Our friends on Exhale told me how they were giving treat bags to lock masters as a thanks you for their service. We loved this idea and have enjoyed doing the same. We bought bags of cookies, crackers and some candy. I put a treat in a brown paper bag and staple our boat card on it. One of the lock masters was so appreciative, he took a couple pics of us as we exited his lock. Thanks!
