Although the Skipper Bob's book said Lock 8 was noisy with train and highway traffic, we found it quite quiet. The sound of the dam drowned out the noises. We slept soundly.

The "low" high dock.

 

We pulled away from the lock wall at 0900 and met Diana and Gilbert at the end of the island as they were pulling anchor. It was another gorgeous day, ditto to the previous. Lock 7 was uneventful. There was more boat traffic, homes and towns along this part of the canal making the day much more enjoyable. However there were still a few dead heads to watch out for but nothing like the previous two days.

 

Locks 6 to 2 as well as the Guard Gates 1 and 2 were extremely close together and took no time locking through as they knew we were coming and were open. I must say the lock staff have been very friendly and accommodating however they do NOT help with grabbing the lines or aiding in tying up. You are completely on your own.

 

We finished Lock 2 and tied up in Waterford. We grabbed the first available spot on the wall only to discover it was reserved for tour boats and had to move. We then tied up in the shade of the bridge only to find out that people on the bridge throw their butts over which tend to land on the boats tied up below. One boat had a hole burned in their bimini. We then moved the boat away from the bridge and secured the lines for the third time around 1400. Ok, liking where we were, we finally had lunch.

 

We registered at the Welcome Centre. Electricity was a one time price of $10 for as long as you stayed. Washroom key for after hours was $10 with $5 returned at the end of your stay (showers included) and the 48 hour maximum stay was well, not enforced. We chatted with the volunteer and some other boaters and then scouted out the town. Diana and I found the laundromat and ice cream store. We found the diner for eggs and toast for $2 the following morning and then proceeded walking with the guys to the bridge leading to Troy (and the grocery store). We returned to the boats. Jorge and I chatted with a couple from Maine, now on a trawler but he previously had been a sailor. It was a Monk 36. (Bob and Rett, if you decide on power, this is the boat for you.) Lovely boat and lovely couple! They gave us some good pointers on a book for tides aand currents and a lady on another power boat gave us a good website for currents. The locals are a wealth of information!

 

Jorge and I continued with our plans of celebrating completing the Erie Canal by dining out. McGreivey's, about 2 blocks from the dock, supplied a wonderful meal of calamari, fresh buns, main course scampi, salad with chicken and a bottle of wine for $60. This trip so far has not been kind to the waistline or liver!

 

Back to the boat and ready for bed by 2130. Not sure how long we will stay here (it sure is inviting) but looking forward to putting the mast up and getting on with what we set out to do - sailing!