Tug Restless Almost Home
Capt Roland Schultz has sent us the last entry from his jurney around the loop. I will give you the last three installments over the next week, enjoy.
Much like anyone else, lockmasters can have egos, which in their status, can be proportional to the dimensions of the lock they command. Some year’s back, I was making a round robin cruise with my son and daughter, from Hessel MI, thru Georgian Bay, and the Trent Severn Water Way, with return via the Welland Canal, and Lake Erie.
Arriving at Port Weller, for lockage west bound, the lockmaster had an issue regarding the height, weight and age of my crew. Although we met the requirements in numbers (minimum of 3) his interpretation of the regulations required their ages to be in excess of the 12 & 13 years they were at the time.
Explaining to him, that these two have had “Lake Water,” in their blood since they were born, (at this writing: one is in the Navy and the other in the USCG) and that we had just completed transiting the 44 locks of the Trent Severn Waterway, which probably have the most diverse set of locks of any waterway in the world; ranging from Manually operated to Hydraulic Lift and the famous, “Big Chute,” meant nothing.
Personally, I felt that his lock’s were a, “Walk in the Park,” and that we could have done “Donuts & Figure Eights,” during their flooding, but his word was law, and I was handed a slip of paper, containing a phone number to call for the purpose of: “Hiring a Crew,” for 8 locks and twenty six miles of canal.
As luck would have it, this incident occurred near the end of a shift change, and the on coming Lockmaster was more understanding of the situation.
Doing the Loop single handed, was never in my original plans. My deckhand, having, “Jumped Ship,” at Kentucky Lake Dam, after coming to the conclusion that the concept of the voyage, and the Captain were both, “Nuts!” pretty much left me to the elements. Actually, I was surprised that she lasted that long.
Lockage from then on became solo, and was never an issue with respects to my abilities in boat handling, or the attitude of the lockmasters. With the exception of one lock on the Okeechobee Waterway, where a Lockmaster asked; “Can you Manage Alright Alone?” no concern had been voiced otherwise.
Approaching Lock #1 of the Erie Canal at Troy NY May 6th, I had a premonition that the lack of a deckhand was about to become a major issue. Figuring that the key was getting thru the first lock, so that I could point east thereafter, making the claim: “They did not have a problem with it back there,” I took on the part of a, “Quick Change Artist.”
After coming to a halt inside the lock, I arrived on the front deck to grab one of the lines hanging from the wall and loosely secured it about the bitts. Reentering the wheelhouse from the opposite side, I ran thru the rear cabin, shedding my yellow colored foul weather jacket, sunglasses and ball cap, to arrive at the stern, in what I hoped to appear as; the “Phantom Crewmember.”
The ruse proved unnecessary, and I probably fooled no one other than my- self. The attitude of the lockkeepers on the Erie Canal, pretty much gives you a free hand, provided you don’t ram their lock doors, or another boat that might be in there with you.
Once you enter the canal, and have the Hudson behind you, there is a common misconception of being done pushing against currents. Water pressing on the stem however, will remain until locking thru #20 and passing Rome NY, to starboard, where the Mohawk River enters the system. From there on, it’s downhill to Oswego with a tailwind.
The lockmasters on the Erie Canal System are, “First Class.” In addition to being courteous and friendly, they are a wealth of local information, and readily volunteer advice in terms of: “Notice to Mariners.” Don’t get the impression that they are being overly inquisitive, or personal about your plans and intensions, should they ask if your continuing on to the next lock, or securing someplace in between. This is necessary for the purpose of, sequencing, and additionally, keeping a handle on who is where within the system. Misplacing a boat, somewhere between locks, is not taken lightly.
In 1967, the USCG was moving the homeports of several ships on the Great Lakes. The Cutter White Lupine to be relocated in Rockland Maine, and the Cutter Maple located at Buffalo NY, moved to Ogdensburg NY on the St. Lawrence River, to fill the vacancy of the Lupine. Upon arrival in Maine, the entire crew of the Lupine was flown to Buffalo, to become the new crew of the Maple.
After getting underway from Buffalo, and headed for Port Colborne, to enter the Welland Canal, the Captain made contact with Welland Control by radio, to establish our identification, position and intentions. During this initial contact, he correctly gave our correct call sign, which was the CGC Maple. In subsequent transmissions however, and out of habit, he occasionally misused the call sign of his previous command: the White Lupine, which lead Welland Control to believe that they were talking to two separate ships.
Somewhere around the second lock, Welland Control came to the conclusion that they had lost a ship, somewhere within the twenty-six miles of the canal. Only one of the two Coast Guard Cutters they had been directing within the system was showing up on the TV monitors in the control room. This in turn resulted in a communications search for each vessel, which was answered by the same voice.
After having been read everything but the; “Riot Act,” by the Controller at Welland Control for this deception, I got the impression that they were a bit embarrassed themselves, in the fact that we had gotten that far.
Height of bridges, which span the Erie Canal, average about 20 feet, and are usually more the limiting factor of vessel size making its transit, than draft. As a result of their ferrous composition, and close proximity when passing beneath, your compass will definitely be affected. In locations, such as west of Rome NY, where the canal is as straight as an arrow for quite a distance, and allowing you to engage an autopilot; be prepared for a fair amount of, “Dangles & Jangles” when coming out the other side.
Arriving at Brewerton NY May 9th, after crossing Lake Oneida - a two day delay was necessary awaiting the opening of Lock #23. Although disappointing, I had already learned during conversations with various lockmasters, that it is a rare thing for the Erie Canal to meet its target opening date. It was obvious that I was pushing the system, as I had been alone in every lock of the canal up to this point. Three days after leaving this lock astern, it would again be temporarily shut down as a result of high water on the system.
I spent but two nights at Oswego NY, getting underway early May13th with the full knowledge that the Trent Severn Waterway would not open for nearly a week. In view of the long-range forecast for dirty weather, I decide to be in place at Trenton Ontario, early to be certain of making its target opening date of 18 May.
The Trent Severn Waterway Commission guarantees a minimum of five-feet of water within the channels of the canal system, and while tied up at Fraser Park in Trenton, awaiting the waterways opening date, I got an idea of how serious they take the matter.
The Canadian Ministry of Parks, Research Vessel: Red Bay, would tie up, opposite my position May 17th. Having a towed Sonar Array, the likes of a Fast Attack Nuclear Submarine, she is in her final season of completing a bottom survey, of the entire Trent Severn Waterway. Her next assignment; off King William Island in Cambridge Bay of the Northwest Territories, in search of the lost Franklin Expedition. Two ships, and one hundred and thirty four men, who sailed from England in search of the Great Northwest Passage and disappeared into the oblivion of the Artic, in 1845.
On the surface of the water however, there is a bit of a different attitude that prevails within the administration. With the elimination of 185 charted buoys from the Trent Severn Waterway, beginning with the 2007 season, one might get the impression that, Parks Canada, has decided to jump start the Ontario Industry of Propeller, and Shaft Repair.
While I fully acknowledge that the old system may have had a certain degree of redundancy in various areas, in light of the numbers involved; one has to ask, “Why were they then placed there in the First Place?”
Paper charts of the waterway lack a Latitude Breakdown Scale, which make obtaining, or the plotting of accurate coordinates, a rather gray area. As a result, interpolation is left to the users imagination, and the tools they have available.
Transiting the Trent Canal between Balsam and Mitchell Lakes, May 21st, is thru an area, which you do not wish to meet someone going in the opposite direction. Having been blasted out of solid rock, it averages only 45 feet in width, and a proportional depth, having a mean of only: 5 feet 6 inches. With my 5-foot draft, I ghosted along thinking that perhaps awaiting the monsoon might have been a better idea. The slightest bottoming here, of what is probably Canadian Shield, would have the most unforgiving consequences. Looking over the side of the boat is enough to make one close their eyes in fear of pending doom. As a result of the water’s clarity, a depth of 6 feet looks more like 6 inches.
After clearing the Hydraulic Lift Lock at Kirkfield, the colors of aids to navigation on the canal swap sides, as if there is some significant meaning to being 49 feet closer to sea level. By my reasoning, if such catch phrases as,
Much like anyone else, lockmasters can have egos, which in their status, can be proportional to the dimensions of the lock they command. Some year’s back, I was making a round robin cruise with my son and daughter, from Hessel MI, thru Georgian Bay, and the Trent Severn Water Way, with return via the Welland Canal, and Lake Erie.
Arriving at Port Weller, for lockage west bound, the lockmaster had an issue regarding the height, weight and age of my crew. Although we met the requirements in numbers (minimum of 3) his interpretation of the regulations required their ages to be in excess of the 12 & 13 years they were at the time.
Explaining to him, that these two have had “Lake Water,” in their blood since they were born, (at this writing: one is in the Navy and the other in the USCG) and that we had just completed transiting the 44 locks of the Trent Severn Waterway, which probably have the most diverse set of locks of any waterway in the world; ranging from Manually operated to Hydraulic Lift and the famous, “Big Chute,” meant nothing.
Personally, I felt that his lock’s were a, “Walk in the Park,” and that we could have done “Donuts & Figure Eights,” during their flooding, but his word was law, and I was handed a slip of paper, containing a phone number to call for the purpose of: “Hiring a Crew,” for 8 locks and twenty six miles of canal.
As luck would have it, this incident occurred near the end of a shift change, and the on coming Lockmaster was more understanding of the situation.
Doing the Loop single handed, was never in my original plans. My deckhand, having, “Jumped Ship,” at Kentucky Lake Dam, after coming to the conclusion that the concept of the voyage, and the Captain were both, “Nuts!” pretty much left me to the elements. Actually, I was surprised that she lasted that long.
Lockage from then on became solo, and was never an issue with respects to my abilities in boat handling, or the attitude of the lockmasters. With the exception of one lock on the Okeechobee Waterway, where a Lockmaster asked; “Can you Manage Alright Alone?” no concern had been voiced otherwise.
Approaching Lock #1 of the Erie Canal at Troy NY May 6th, I had a premonition that the lack of a deckhand was about to become a major issue. Figuring that the key was getting thru the first lock, so that I could point east thereafter, making the claim: “They did not have a problem with it back there,” I took on the part of a, “Quick Change Artist.”
After coming to a halt inside the lock, I arrived on the front deck to grab one of the lines hanging from the wall and loosely secured it about the bitts. Reentering the wheelhouse from the opposite side, I ran thru the rear cabin, shedding my yellow colored foul weather jacket, sunglasses and ball cap, to arrive at the stern, in what I hoped to appear as; the “Phantom Crewmember.”
The ruse proved unnecessary, and I probably fooled no one other than my- self. The attitude of the lockkeepers on the Erie Canal, pretty much gives you a free hand, provided you don’t ram their lock doors, or another boat that might be in there with you.
Once you enter the canal, and have the Hudson behind you, there is a common misconception of being done pushing against currents. Water pressing on the stem however, will remain until locking thru #20 and passing Rome NY, to starboard, where the Mohawk River enters the system. From there on, it’s downhill to Oswego with a tailwind.
The lockmasters on the Erie Canal System are, “First Class.” In addition to being courteous and friendly, they are a wealth of local information, and readily volunteer advice in terms of: “Notice to Mariners.” Don’t get the impression that they are being overly inquisitive, or personal about your plans and intensions, should they ask if your continuing on to the next lock, or securing someplace in between. This is necessary for the purpose of, sequencing, and additionally, keeping a handle on who is where within the system. Misplacing a boat, somewhere between locks, is not taken lightly.
In 1967, the USCG was moving the homeports of several ships on the Great Lakes. The Cutter White Lupine to be relocated in Rockland Maine, and the Cutter Maple located at Buffalo NY, moved to Ogdensburg NY on the St. Lawrence River, to fill the vacancy of the Lupine. Upon arrival in Maine, the entire crew of the Lupine was flown to Buffalo, to become the new crew of the Maple.
After getting underway from Buffalo, and headed for Port Colborne, to enter the Welland Canal, the Captain made contact with Welland Control by radio, to establish our identification, position and intentions. During this initial contact, he correctly gave our correct call sign, which was the CGC Maple. In subsequent transmissions however, and out of habit, he occasionally misused the call sign of his previous command: the White Lupine, which lead Welland Control to believe that they were talking to two separate ships.
Somewhere around the second lock, Welland Control came to the conclusion that they had lost a ship, somewhere within the twenty-six miles of the canal. Only one of the two Coast Guard Cutters they had been directing within the system was showing up on the TV monitors in the control room. This in turn resulted in a communications search for each vessel, which was answered by the same voice.
After having been read everything but the; “Riot Act,” by the Controller at Welland Control for this deception, I got the impression that they were a bit embarrassed themselves, in the fact that we had gotten that far.
Height of bridges, which span the Erie Canal, average about 20 feet, and are usually more the limiting factor of vessel size making its transit, than draft. As a result of their ferrous composition, and close proximity when passing beneath, your compass will definitely be affected. In locations, such as west of Rome NY, where the canal is as straight as an arrow for quite a distance, and allowing you to engage an autopilot; be prepared for a fair amount of, “Dangles & Jangles” when coming out the other side.
There are no comments for this post.
Add a comment:
