Day 308: Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Port to Port: Houghtaling to Mechanicville, NY
Underway: 7:30 am Motor Off: 5:55 pm Miles Traveled: 37/34 Stayed At: Town Dock
First Things First: First night without docktails in a long time.
Mile 25 to Mile 0 to Mile 9: After a quiet, uneventful night we woke to overcast, foggy skies. We would have had to wait until 1 pm to get a favorable tidal current – too risky at this time of year with the afternoon thunderstorms. So we resigned ourselves to a slow slog north for most of the day and got going early to get the most miles in that we can. It will be good practice for when we get to Canada.
We were passed by Adagio and Daybreak late morning – they had stopped at a marina north of our anchorage. It was fun to see them again. I think everyone is glad to be moving again.
Except for the heat and humidity, it was a nice travel day. The scenery along the Hudson is surprisingly beautiful and we soon passed through Albany and Troy before encountering our first lock. (We passed by Shady Harbor Marina where Spiritus, Miss Darlin II and Oyster were tied up but it didn’t look like anyone was home. We waved anyways.) The water below the lock was churning like crazy – a lot of water was flowing over the dam – but we crabbed our way into the lock and things calmed down and we soon were raised up 14 feet – more elevation gain than the entire Hudson River from New York City to the Troy Lock. Amazing. I like going uphill like that.
After two more (much easier) locks we arrived in Mechanicville to park for a night at their free dock. Luckily there was space for us and we set to work on boat projects – get gas (an nice gentleman fishing by the pier offered me a ride which was immensely appreciated on such a hot tiring day), clean up, fill the water bottles and get ice cream. This is probably the most convenient spot we have ever stopped. Free electricity and water plus everything is close by including restaurants, a Laundromat, drug stores, gas stations, and even a dollar store. All within 10 minutes. Maybe we will spend more time here next time.
