Good News and Smooth Sailing Friday!

Yesterday, we reported that the Canal System had issued a Mariners Alert that they anticipated that one section of the Locks may be open on Friday, and tonight at 8:30 PM we received notification that 4 locks would open at noon tomorrow. We were relieved to know that our window to travel forward was opening. All the other boaters here had the same feeling. A couple boats are heading eastbound to the Hudson River and then planning to travel north, to Lake Champlain and onwards to their home ports in Quebec. Others are heading to various places including Philadelphia, Florida and the Bahamas. For us we simply want to get to NYC.

We confirmed our modified reservation at the Hudson Point Marina for next Tuesday to Sunday so given that we can leave Little Falls tomorrow, it gives us 4 days to take our time getting to New York. After our arrival we will spend the week exploring the city and then Captain Paul will escort Kyle to Toronto via Air Canada and then return to New York to complete the trip home. We are excited to be able to take our time on the way home, and visit other sites on the Hudson River enroute to Trenton. At this point, we do not have a timetable for a return date but an anticipated arrive should be by the long weekend in September.

Yesterday, we rented a car for our road trip today and it turned out to be a great visit to an historic town. We left Little Falls at 9 am today, and headed down the country roads to Cooperstown New York where the Baseball Hall of Fame is located. This is one place that Captain Paul has always wanted to visit and he was thrilled with the outcome. The only disappointing factor was we had to have the car returned to Enterprise by 4 pm and that cut down on our time in Cooperstown.

On the way to Cooperstown we drove along a country road that wound around Otsego Lake and it was a beautiful drive and a stunning lake. Many people associate Cooperstown with the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, but the area and lake is equally as impressive. Lake Otsego is one of the cleanest and most crystal clear lakes. It is located in the foothills of the Catskill Mountains, and the glacially-formed Otsego Lake serves as a giant water basin for the Village of Cooperstown and the source of the mighty Susquehanna River. It is 8 miles long and provides clean, drinkable water and an avid playground for swimmers, kayakers, and boaters alike.

The Cooperstown area has so much to see and do, both in the town and in the surrounding area. There are Museums, Opera Theatres, a Baseball Stadium, the Hall of Fame and a Farmers Market with a Carousel. Along the roadway to the town, was a golf course so there is certainly something, for everyone. We actually saw the Farmers Market and Carousel but we did not have time to stop and get any further details on it as we had to get the car returned.

We agreed that Jan and Kyle would visit the many stores along the main street while Cynthia and Captain Paul would visit the Baseball Hall of Fame. They did pick up some souvenirs and Kyle managed to get a "Deal" on some spiffy shoes. Jan picked up some items and Paul got some shirts.

The main Hall of Fame building was three stories and jam packed with so much baseball trivia, memorabilia and information on the players, baseball teams, founders of baseball and the builders of the game. It was an impressive place and easy to have spent more time reading all the info on the various displays. Historic bats, collectable balls and uniforms that players wore were all displayed throughout the HOF site.

There were so many displays it is impossible for me to include them in this blog but I will provide some to give you an idea of what they posted throughout the building.

One of my favorite parts was the display about Women In Baseball and it outlined the women that owned MLB teams and they had no issue firing many famous managers nor contracting players for their teams. I was not aware that several MLB teams were owned by women. After going through the upper two floors I went to the Gallery where the inductees and their plaques were displayed and this was an impressive area.

I took several photos of the players that were in the Hall of Fame and thought I would include some for your viewing. Overall there are 346 people inducted including 274 players, 39 executives, 23 managers, and 10 umpires.

It was a good visit for everyone in Cooperstown and a memorable day for the Captain.

After the Hall of Fame visit I went to the baseball stadium and watched two adult teams play and I managed to video a bit of one inning. The stadium is old and not very large but being in Cooperstown it is a memorable day for those that get to play there.

After the Cooperstown visit and the return of the rental car, we landed at our marina and had a nice reception at the Little Falls Rotary Marina. Every Thursday evening in the summer, they have a Crusin' Car Show and tonight was a special day because the Rotary Club provided dinner, drinks and dessert for the stranded boaters. We all met in the clubhouse and sure enough, Pasta Dinner, Salad, Chocolate Brownies, Beer, and Wine were provided to all nine boaters and their crews and rightfully so, we were so thankful. What a great town and warm considerable people. Even the Mayor and her husband dropped by to say hello and wish everyone a safe journey from Little Falls.

To our surprise they had all the locals and the Crusin' Car Owners vote on which boat they liked the best and Out To See came out a winner. They took our picture with the winning trophies and we opted to let them keep them both because we didn't have a mantle large enough on the boat to display them. We were proud Canadians to be chosen as the winner.

Tomorrow morning we tentatively leave and head down the Erie Canal and we are hoping that nothing changes overnight. But remember what Yogi said......................

See you all soon, on the Erie Canal, enroute to NYC