069: Erie Canal Part 1: I've got a Mule Her Name is Sal

 Let's get the mood started off right:  

On May 26th we cast of the lines to head onto the Erie Canal, but not before catching these pictures of a stowaway muskrat wanting a free ride on a catamaran:

Unwilling to pay the fare, he/she got shooed off.

Waterford is home to the "Waterford Flight," a series five of locks "with the highest elevation gain (169 feet (52 m)) relative to its length (1.5 miles (2.4 km)) for any canal lock system in the United States."   So it was lock, next lock, next lock, next lock, and next lock all in a row.  Some pictures of the Flight:

We stopped for the night in Schenectady, so Nancy could tour the historic Stockade District, the "the oldest neighborhood in the city and which has been inhabited continuously for over 300 years! The Stockade is recognized on the National Register of Historic places with over 400 homes that are 200 years old!"   We had an ok meal at restaurant with a dock and then spent a few hours answering questions about our trip to diners/passers by on the dock.  All good.

Stockade District:

The "masses" have been asking for some of Nancy's "voice" in this blog so here is some NV:

We left Waterford and continued along the Mohawk River, passing through Locks 2-7 before arriving to the Schenectady area. I asked to make this stop because Schenectady has an historic "Stockade District"--a neighborhood on the banks of the Mohawk River that has been inhabited continuously for over 300 years. The Stockade District is on the National Register of Historic places and has been described by the National Park Service as "the highest concentration of historic period homes in the country," with over 400 homes over 200 years old. It sounded intriguing!

We looked about for a free dock to tie up to, with Scotia Landing shown on the Waterway Guide as being a possibility--floating docks at a public park off the main channel. We arrived at that location but the docks were simply not there--we were puzzled! As it turns out, they had not yet been installed for the season, so we had to go to a Plan B. 

I hopped on my bicycle immediately after we docked to search out the Stockade District, about a two-mile ride across the nearby bridge. I was pleasantly surprised to find an asphalt-paved bike path that took me most of the way. Historically, early Dutch settlements in New York were surrounded by a stockade, or fortification of wood, that was built onto raised ground. Although the outline of the stockade was no longer evident in Schenectady, there were many fine historic homes in various styles depending on their ages from Colonial to Victorian. Other than visiting the Stockade District, I did not see downtown Schenectady.

What is important to know about Schenectady is that it was once called "The City that Hauls and Lights the World" because both the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) and General Electric were both located here, and in fact, they were important business partners over the years. ALCO and its predecessors manufactured locomotives here from 1849-1969 and for 120 years they designed and sold high-quality, state-of-the-art locomotives to railroads and governments around the world. During WWII, the number of employees at the Schenectady plant doubled from 2,400 to 5,000 as production was expanded to fulfill government orders for heavy armor such as tanks, gun carriages, shells, bombs, locomotives, marine boilers and turret rollers, as well as a secret weapon called the M7 motorized howitzer nicknamed "The Priest." ALCO's production proved crucial in helping the Allies win the war.

In 1886, Thomas Edison moved his company Edison Machine Works, to Schenectady, and six years later, he merged with his competitor, The Thomas Houston Company, to form the General Electric Company. At that time, Schenectady was a transportation hub with the necessary canals and roadways to transport goods. By 1900 the population had more than doubled to 30,000 and GE helped transform the city from a "largely agricultural area to a top industrial manufacturer in the world." T Interestingly enough, we visited Thomas Edison's winter and museum in Ft. Meyers, FL--he was one of Floria's first snowbirds, although he lived in New Jersey and not Schenectady. Today, GE retains its steam turbine manufacturing in Schenectady but thousands of jobs have been relocated to the Sun Belt and abroad. In the late 20th century, due to industrial restructuring, Schenectady lost many jobs and suffered difficult financial times, as did many former manufacturing cities in upstate New York. However, today it is definitely considered to be a city on the upswing, with revitalization efforts all around.

On May 27th we headed over to Amsterdam, NY tying up at the free dock (yay!).   Amsterdam is an interesting place, unfortunately like a lot of these old mill towns, it has lost a lot of its economic base.  But it is trying.   

At the dock:

There is nice waterfront park at Amsterdam:

9-11 Memorial:

Birthplace of Kirk Douglas:

View from the bridge:

Rapids thru the town:

At the dock in Amsterdam we noticed some kind of oil slick from behind our boat.  Long story short, we had a leak in our trim tab (adjusts the pitch of the boat while underway) hydraulic system due to, IMHO, a poor installation.  I ordered some parts to meet up with us.  Not being able to trim out the boat just meant we couldn't go fast, not a big deal on the Erie Canal where 10MPH is the predominant speed limit.

NV:

Today was quite windy--with gusts up to 30 mph--but fortunately it was a relatively short run along the Mohawk River with only three locks--Locks 8, 9 and 10. We pulled up to the Greater Amsterdam Riverlink Park and a fellow boater came over to help us tie up. We later got to know Frank and his wife, Mona aboard "Summer Fling" much better. The docks here at Riverlink Park are managed by the Drifters Restaurant and Tiki Bar, which was closed due to the early season, but someone came by to collect our dock fees of $1/ft--cash only.

 

Amsterdam is one of the many once-booming cities in New York State--an industrial powerhouse in the 1800's due to the arrival of the Erie Canal and the harnessing of the power of "The Chuck" or Chucktananda Creek, that rushes downhill through town. Amsterdam was known as "The Carpet City" and their major employer was the Mohawk Carpet Mills, which closed its manufacturing facilities here in 1968. I read that one of the big reasons the carpet industry left Amsterdam for good was the invention of the tufting process, which was much faster than the traditional weaving done at the Mohawk Mills. This new tufting machinery was too large and too heavy for the multi-storied mill buildings that the company owned, so all the buildings and the equipment effectively became obsolete. Cheaper labor and lower taxes were also found by moving south and overseas. Today, more than 50 years later, the hulking derelict complex still stands abandoned. After several buyouts and corporate reorganizations, the city is unable to locate or contact the owners--very fishy! No property taxes have been paid on the 5.4-acre mill site since 2005 and the city has been forced to foot the bill for fencing and police patrols to keep out trespassers. The $15-20 million estimated cost of demolition is half the City's yearly budget, so completely unaffordable, which causes a very unfortunate and unfair situation for the citizens of Amsterdam. If I win the lottery I will pay to have this building removed, owners be damned.

 

Another issue facing Amsterdam apparent to us boaters was the physical isolation of the town from the water, separated by a heavily-used rail corridor as well as several sets of arterial roadways--built during a period of urban renewal--which had the unintended consequence of destroying the downtown and making their water resources unreachable. In 2001, an ADA compliant pedestrian bridge was constructed that crossed over the tracks, roadways and rooftops of adjacent commercial buildings from the river to a shopping center parking lot--the only direct pedestrian access to the park from the north side of the River.

 

When the rain stopped, I got on my bicycle to further explore. The Riverlink Park had several nice amenities and public art works, including a playground, paved walking trails and a bandshell. There was a very interesting 9/11 Memorial--a concrete and steel column from the P3 parking level of the North Tower that had survived mainly intact. Much thought and symbolism was involved in the design and placement of this Memorial--read about it if you are interested. There was a sign pointing out a peregrine falcon nesting box on one of the bridge supports, and holy cow! I could see the adult as well as a chick standing on the edge of the box testing out its wings. In all my days, I have never seen more beautiful mosaics than the two Ann M. Thane installations in the park here. They have mirrored glass pieces throughout that reflect light differently depending on the time of day--magnificent. I googled Ann since I was enamored with her work, and learned that she was the former mayor of Amsterdam that just wanted to do art, and was using her art to educate others and help revitalize the city. I sent her an e-mail complimenting her on her beautiful work--very impressive.

 

It was then that I stumbled on the crown jewel of Amsterdam--the Mohawk Valley Gateway Overlook. The MVGO is an award-winning pedestrian bridge that is a "park over the water" which connects the north and south banks of the Mohawk River starting from the extreme western edge of Riverlink Park. Unfortunately, due to its location uphill from the Free Dock, most boaters don't even know it is here! The bridge is painted white and from the water, large gold block letters spell out AMSTERDAM. It is beautifully-landscaped and contains numerous artworks, mosaics, sculptures, information about the history of the region, seating areas, and overlooks. A beautiful mosaic inlaid on the ground was called "The Wheel of Life, a recreation of a mosaic by French artist Louis. This mosaic was reproduced by Mohawk Carpet Mills as a tufted chenille carpet, taking sixteen weavers eight months to complete, and set into the hotel vestibule of the Waldorf Astoria--a work of art of which the town was rightly proud. At this time of year, the weigela and lilacs, and rugosa roses were in bloom and it was truly a marvel that I hope residents and visitors alike are enjoying--if they can find it!

 

I continued on with my ride over the MVGO and was treated to another monumental artwork--Mother and Child at the Mohawk River--a bronze casting displaying "a miraculous orchestra of flora and fauna native to the Mohawk River Valley." I was on a quest to find the Empire State Trail (EST) and any historic canal-related structures, but there wasn't too much left--only the Sweet Canal Store, built in 1850, to service barges on the Erie Canal. I found the EST and headed west a bit along the tree-shaded trail before turning around. It was lovely and due to the rain, the trees were lush and dripping. I ran into a woman walking and she asked me where the trail went. My reply was "Buffalo!"

Our next stop was Canajoharie where we tied up to the free wall at Riverfront Park:

Here is a good lesson on guide books and internet reviews.   Somebody we met on the way didn't stop here because she read that the "wall was too high to get off your boat."  Hygge is probably in the 10th percentile of boat size of all loopers.  You be the judge on the wall being "too high" 

Canajoharie is home to the Arkell Museum and the "boiling pot."  The Arkell Museum ( https://www.arkellmuseum.org/  )   was founded by Bartlett Arkell, the first president of the Beechnut Company.  Where else are you going to see a 1/2 dozen original Homer Winslow paintings just steps from your boat?

Homer:

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and a Norman Rockwell:

On the way to the Boiling Pot:

The Boiling Pot is a circular feature in the rapids above Canajoharie, popular for bathers, but not today:

We do like a good set of rapids:

NV:

The Riverfront Park has a long cement wall with bollards and shackles along the mouth of the Canajoharie Creek, perpendicular to the river. Before going in, we asked a very helpful Lockmaster for his opinion, and he recommended that we stay close to the wall, since there was some shallower areas in the Creek. As we pulled in, we saw a minimum of 8.8 feet, which was plenty for us. We tied up and were the only boat there, just a few minute walk to the downtown area requiring a pass under the New York State Thruway which is close to the River here. We spent a few minutes getting shipshape and off we went to the Arkell Museum and to see what we could see.

Canajoharie is another of those towns with a rich history dating back to the 17th Century and George Washington did sleep here--he came to town to survey the damage caused by the Revolutionary War. The name is said to originate from the Mohawk language meaning "the pot that washes itself" a reference to the Canajoharie Boiling Pot--a circular geologic feature located in the Canajoharie Gorge. Luckily the "Boiling Pot" was only a mile or so walk from the Riverfront Park, so we checked that out. The Canajoharie Creek here was lovely and there was, in fact, a perfectly round "pothole" formed when water consistently swirled in a circular current. Unfortunately, the water was not boiling, it was cold like the rest of the river.

Dave

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