to May 26 - Brewerton to Waterford NY

Our first week on the water has been one of weather contrasts.  Cool, cold, very cold at night with days gradually warming or not warming, and over six inches of rain falling this week.  Nevertheless, we have been comfortable and are thankful for the heater/air conditioner on the boat.

Crossing Lake Oneida was a non-event and when we arrived in Sylvan Beach we opted for the town wall.  There was enough time that afternoon to touch up the bare spots on the teak with a bit of 216, sandpaper, 216, and one coat of cetol.  Sylvan Beach is known for party boats.  Here is a photo of a group of boats rafted together behind us.  The red objects on shore are two Honda portable generators.

 
The next day we headed west and stopped at the Herkimer town wall. The white building is a store offering products by NY merchants.  It was a pleasant enough spot and we were delighted to be able to tap into the power for only a $10 bill.

We ended up spending two nights in Canajoharie. Again a wonderful town dock with power and water.  That's our boat behind the tree.  Two things stand out about our stay there.

First was Perruzi's Meat Market.  John Peruzzi is a third generation Italian area resident and opened up his meat market and store some years ago.  It was a gem.  You have to either be Italian or have grown up around Italians to understand that they take their food and food supplies seriously.  He had items that I would have a difficult time finding in Naples except at the pricey stores.  He had a slim selection of vegetables and fruits but it was all fresh and priced right.  The meat looked so good we bought a week's supply and then went back the next day and bought another week's worth.

Second was having a boat almost twice the size of ours raft up to us.  We don't raft up.  It is just something we have not embraced.  Well, it was getting late and with the locks on a reduced schedule, Art and Julie's HUGE boat could not get through the next lock and the Canajoharie dock was going to be it.  The dock was full and there was no room.  Rusty, bless his heart, invited them to raft to us. (I was out buying the second week's worth of meat).  I was gone only about 30 minutes and the entire process was started and concluded by the time I got back to the boat.  Within minutes, Art knocked on the door and handed us a plate of homemade cookies, just out of the oven.  In short succession, came two containers of homemade soup, just made, a bottle of ice wine (they were Canadian and heard I grew up in the Niagara peninsula), a bottle of Australian wine, and treats for Gigi.  They were so grateful to be tied up for the night.  What a class act! 

That night the weather turned nasty and we were just happy that it worked out for all of us.  The next few days we dodged debris.

 

We got to Waterford, NY on Thursday and ended up spending four nights at the town dock.  It was so cold and wet that all we could think about was keeping warm.  Below are the makings for split pea soup.  It was yummy.

 

 

Even Gigi was content to curl up under the covers.

It is Sunday evening and the rain has finally stopped.  Below is a picture of the floating dock that is about four feet higher than it was a few days ago.

 

We enjoyed the company of new boater friends while waiting for the weather to break and tomorrow we will head off in different directions to resume our respective adventures.