June 2-12, 2009 - Car trip to Winter Harbor

Although Team Finnegan definitely had some adventures this winter and spring while we were at home in Naples, Fl, this year we have decided to document just our crusing adventures on the blog. In this way I can magically go from nine months behind on the blog to caught up overnight. Yeah!!!!

We chose to drive to upper state New York because we had some items to take to the boat....such as my cute little expresso machine. The wonderful people at Winter Harbor had graciously agreed to store our car for us while we are out cruising this summer.

We did not take anywhere near a direct route since we had friends and relatives to visit on the way.

The first day we ran out of steam in Dawson, GA. This is a very rural area and quite scenic with rolling hills and woods. While there, we drove to Plains, GA, home of Jimmy Carter.

The train depot where Jimmy Carter announced his run for the presidency. Brother Billy Carter's gas station. Dawson, GA is such a rural place that the closest thing to fine dining was the McDonalds. Actually, we enjoyed a very tasty chicken salad.

The second day of our road trip, we arrived at our first destination, Priceville, AL to visit Robert's Aunt Desi and Cousin Joe. Last fall, Aunt Desi moved into a lovely home at The Terrace at Priceville. This is the model for a retirement facility. The monthly rent covers the two bedroom home, two meals a day, activities, all utilities, and weekly maid service. What makes it so special are the people. For instance, the staff knows Desi likes her buttermilk, so when she goes into the dining room, her glass of buttermilk is waiting for her at her table. If it is raining, someone comes in a golf cart to take Desi to the dining room. Click here for more information on The Terrace at Priceville.

We had two fun days visiting Joe and Desi. We spent quite a bit of time driving to see the local attractions of the Decatur area. A highlight was a drive out in the country to see where Desi grew up. We found the little church with cemetery where her parents, brothers, sisters and other relatives are buried.

The church with cemetery. You can see how scenic and wooded it is in Northern Alabama.Desi points out a family story to Robert. Aunt Desi

Cousin Joe, Aunt Desi and Robert Next up was a stop at Stone Mountain, GA. Robert had once seen the laser show at Stone Mountain and wanted to share this with me. The pictures I took at Stone Mountain have mysteriously vanished, but you can click here for more information. We took a long, lovely walk in the morning and then played nine holes of golf in the afternoon. The golf course was just beautiful and a pleasure to play. The laser show had changed greatly from Robert's first visit, but it was a lot of fun.

From Stone Mountain, GA, we drove to New Bern, NC to visit our friends John and Vivian. We always have a great time visiting John and Vivian and this time was not an exception. Since we spent three months at the Sheraton Marina two summers ago, it was fun to see the changes in New Bern. Most notable were the renovations to the Sheraton, itself. When we were there, this hotel could politely be called a dump. It is now quite lovely and worthy of its lovely setting on the Trent river. Even more amazing, the Sheraton is now a Hilton.

Next jaunt was a great favorite of ours, Norfolk, Va. Two summers ago, we met a wonderful couple while anchored out off the Elizabeth River during Norfolk's Harbor Fest. Distance and circumstances had kept us from getting better acquainted. Since George and Frances live in Virginia Beach, we gave them a call and found them available for a dinner reunion. Once again, we greatly enjoyed their company. George and Frances were planning on cruising New England this summer. We compared schedules and found we could meet in a couple weeks' time in New York and then again later in the summer.

Our last stop was our favorite marina, Rock Hall Landing Marina in Rock Hall, Md. We've become great friends with the owners, Chris, Mary, Joe and Ann. There is a cute little motel on the property, were we stayed. Click here for their website. We enjoyed a tasty meal at a local restaurant and shared a lot of laughs.

Oct 4-7, 2008 - Up the Erie Canal

On October 4, 2008, we left Albany, NY to head up the Erie Canal. Our good friend, John Peterson, joined us in Albany to help with passage through the locks.

There are not many directional signs on the water, however, heading up the Hudson from Troy, we came to a "turn in the road". We chose to leave the Hudson and to turn left into the Erie Canal. We had 21 locks to go before we reached our destination in Brewerton, NY.

In this picture, we are heading up the Erie Canal toward a lock. On the right side is a wall where boaters can tie up for the night or to wait for a lock to open. In October, 2008, we did not have to wait for any locks. Diesel was over $5.00/gallon and people were not on the water. We only had one other boat with us in the 22 locks we traversed. Approaching a closed lock. To the right is a dam. While the lock gate is closed, the approaching boat will see a red light. When the gate opens and the lock is ready, the light turns green.

On our passage through the Erie Canal, we were going west and thus in all but the last two locks, we were going up. When we came into the lock, John and I would each grab a rope that was hanging down. We would use the rope to keep the boat stable while the lock filled with water. Captain Robert would stay at the helm to make adjustments to our position. The lock walls were slimy and very wet. Some had very rough walls with holes and cracks containing a whole ecology of life forms. We wore gloves that kept our hands from slipping on the rope. John would usually hold the forward rope and I would grap the rope towards the aft.

Once we are in the lock and holding the ropes, water comes into the lock if you are going up or goes out of the lock if you are going down. In this picture, we are going up, so water is coming in. The water comes in from down below. The water you see coming out of the gate is not where the water comes in. This is a leak.

As water comes in, the boat goes up the wall and the rope gets shorter and shorter. In this picture, we are near the top and I am holding the very top of the rope. When a boat is going down, you start the trip down with the rope at the top. It is hard to grab the rope in this position, so you use a long pole with a hook on the end. This pole is called a boat hook.

Since we are now at the top of the lock, Captain Robert checks on John and I. Good news! The Grand Fromage team has fulfilled all tasks successfully for this lock.

The lock is now filled with water and we are now at a higher level. The locks vary in height raised or lowered based on the elevation. A few are only 8-10 feet. However, one lock is over 40 feet.

Since the lock has now filled with water and the boat is at a higher level, the gate is opening to let us out of the lock.This is the little boat that shared a lock with us. An east bound boat is waiting for the green light to enter the lock and go down. The lock master.We successfully made it through the 22 locks. I have to say that it was a lot of fun and scenic as all get out. Since this was early October, the weather was quite brisk, but we had little rain.

Sept 17-18,2008 - Up the Hudson, Kingston

The ride up the Hudson is very scenic, dotted with many lovely homes and quaint villages.

In the middle of the Hudson is an island with a ruined castle. We learned this mysterious place is called Bannerman Castle. It was built in the early 1900's to store mutitions. Eventually a fire destroyed a sizeable portion of the structures. You may read about this intriquing place by clicking here. We rented another car in Kingston to take in more sights, plus play another round of golf. We drove across to the east side of the Hudson to tour the Vanderbilt Mansion. Click here to learn more about the Vanderbilt Mansion.

The landed gentry await an invitation to tea

The Hudson from the Vanerbilt MansionMany loopers recommend a meal at the Culinary Institute outside Hyde Park. It was hard to get a reservation, but persistence was rewarded. You have a choice of several resturants. We chose to eat at the American Bounty. The meal was very tasty indeed. We were disappointed in the service however. We were told that each student spends the last portion of culinary training working as a server. The guy we had as our server was not getting this part of his education. To read more about the Culinary Institute, click here. After our lunch, we went outdoors to find a multicultural festival, complete with band. You can't keep Sandy off the dance floor.Team Finnegan cuts the rug.

Sept 12-16, 2008 - Up the Hudson - Haverstraw

We left Liberty Landing Marina on Sept 12, 2008. It was fun seeing Manhattan from the water. We tried to recognize the many buildings we had seen on land. Here is the skyline of NYC from under the George Washington Bridge. Already the city is fading into the distance. As soon as you pass under the George Washington Bridge, suddenly and magically on the port side, the scene changes from city to woods, cliffs and granite. There is a lot of commercial traffic on the Hudson.

The Hudson was extremely scenic

We spent a few nights at a marina in Haverstraw, NY. It was a convenient place to rent a car and do some shore exursions. Haverstraw Marina has renovated all of the slips for the smaller boats. The new docks are floating with all new electric and water hookups. Because of the size of Grand Fromage, we were told we would be in a "luxury slip". I was quite enthused to hear about the luxury slip. Could it be we'd have a paper delivered each morning with maybe fruit and muffins? The luxury slip concept had to be a joke because we were directed to these old fixed docks that presented severe docking challenges and electrical woes. However, in the early morning, the luxury slip did present a very nice sunrise.
We took a tour of West Point, situated in a most scenic spot on the Hudson. During the Revolutionary War, the colonists strung out a heavy chain rope across the Hudson to prevent the British from advancing up the river. This narrow part of the river, right below West Point is the site where they strung the chain. Thirteen links of the chain, representing the 13 colonies, were saved.
We used the rental car to drive out to a very lovely golf course.
We scored a couple of birdies.
Being from California, we did not recognize the animal below. I had to call my Vermont daughter, Daria, to discover the identity of the groundhog. They are huge.

Sept 8-12 2008 - NYC with Jim and Sandy -

I don't know if other people get nine months behind posting a blog, but it has happened to me. Instead of feeling overwhelming guilt at my posting sins, I'm just going to catch up so I can start with our current adventures.

On Sept 6, 2008, our friends Jim and Sandy from Murphys, CA joined us on Grand Fromage. Jim and Sandy were our neighbors in Forest Meadows.

There are very creative parks in Manhattan. The park where the little ferry from Libery State Park lands is called Battery Park. During the day, staff puts out toys. Here are some children playing with soft toys.

With Jim and Sandy on the subway

The Chrysler Building

Big buildingsHere is the mandatory picture of the "naked cowboy", a must see in Times Square. You know it is a must see when you are asked at least ten times, "Have you seen the naked cowboy yet?" Yokels on the lose in midtown Manhattan.

A statue at the Rockafeller Plaza. During the summer, the area is filled with resturants. During the winter, it is a skating rink.

Jim and Sandy at the top of the Rockafeller building. Let Robert pour you a beer at the Rockafeller Plaza.My friend, Sandy Our last night in NYC was 9/11. Directly across from our marina is the Trade Center. Every year on 9/11, search lights are lit to commenorate the buildings that were destroyed.