Schenectady Yacht Club is a full service marina with a swimming pool, but that's not why we stopped there. Terry likes the name and likes to say it so that's why we stopped in SKA-NEC-TA-DEE. Glenn Bruyn is the dock master and he was great. The yacht club has utilized the old Erie Canal as a boat lift. We walked down to see it. There was a 100 year old boat that was just pulled out of the water for a small repair. The owner, Clarkston , 91 years old himself, was happy to pose for us next to his boat. The boat was built in 1912 and used as an inspection boat on the Canal. Clarkston is still navigating her with help through the Canal today.
As we come to the end of our Erie Canal journey we thought it was time to share some "Canal Facts" (complimentary of Skipper Bob publications).
The Erie Canal was a real engineering marvel in it's day. Originally 363 miles long, it connected the Hudson River with Lake Erie and the other Great Lakes. The canal opened the entire population in the center of this country to shipping to and from the rest of the world. Construction began in 1817 and was completed in 1825. The original Erie Canal was very different from the Erie Canal today. It was designed as a ditch filled with water. Mules and horses could walk beside the ditch on a towpath and pull the boats through. The Canal was normally a ditch dug alongside the river. When it came time to cross a river or creek, it was necessary to build an aqueduct across the river or creek to carry the canal water and the path for the horses and mules. The original canal was only 4 feet deep. Today the minimum depth is 12 feet from Troy, NY To Buffalo, NY. The Canal rises and falls and rises from sea level at Troy to 565 feet above sea level at the Niagara River. There are a total of 34 locks on the Erie Canal (Buffalo to Waterford).
We completed the eastern half of the Erie Canal. Our lock completion included, Welland Canal with 8 locks, the Oswego Canal with 7 locks and the Erie Canal with 23 locks. These are all part of the New York State Canal System. There is one lock in Troy, on the Hudson River that is a Federal lock. Including the Federal Lock, we will have completed 39 locks!!!! We started at 577 above sea level in Lake Michigan, and when we complete the Federal lock on Friday we will be at sea level in the tidal waters of the Hudson River.
"The great accomplishments of man have resulted from the transmission of ideas and enthusiasm." Thomas J. Watson
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| Glenn Bruyn, Dock Master |
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| Old Erie Canal used as boat lift |
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| Boat Lift |
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| Clarkston , 91 y.o. and his 100 y.o. boat |
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