New Beginnings, Lake Erie & My Farewell

Photo courtesy of Bob Graham

Until today this blog has been a lot about saying goodbye, but with one big exception later in the blog, today was about embracing new beginnings and new adventures for the Emita II.  After a very cold night (did I mention there isn't any heat on the boat?) we got up early and were on our way by 7am. 

This sign marked the end of the Erie Canal for us, so we turned left and on to bigger and better things!

As we made a sweeping turn to port we joined the Niagara River.  You want to turn left, as turning right will eventually take you to Niagara Falls, and that is much better enjoyed from shore, not in a boat!  Buffalo has done a lot with its waterfront in recent years, and we passed many lovely townhouses and residences that I am sure are pretty pricey.  One concern in this area is the current, as it can be very strong and we were going upstream.  For the most part it was pretty easy today so it didn't affect our time in any way.  There were a few parts where the strong current was to our right, taking debris with it.  It was pretty fast!

When we made the turn we started to hear a helicopter.  It was Coast Guard and I know they were headed somewhere else, but they did come by to take a look.  It reminded me that in this area we were very close to another country (Canada) and International borders.  That's not something I considered during my daily lunch and dinner cruises on the Emita on the Erie Canal!

Buffalo also has some cool bridges!  I don't know what this one is called (whoever knows please leave the name in the comments) but it was pretty.  Again it was evident we were "Not in Kansas" anymore!  This was not a "low bridge".

Captain Dan Wiles took everything in stride.  Along with this being the first time the Emita II has navigated this route, it is also Dan's first time.  This is Dan 39th year with the Emita, so they know each other well. Navigator Captain Duane Morton was also in the pilot house with Dan during this part of the passage.

Black Rock Lock

We approached Black Rock Lock around 9am and had to wait about 25 minutes to enter.  As we waited to watched this crane and barge work.  It appeared they were taking dirt or small rock from the barge and placing it down to the right of the crane.  There was quite a bit of current so I would guess they have to deal with erosion, and perhaps this is what they were working on.  It was memorizing to watch!

Around 9:30 am they allowed us to enter.  Black Rock Lock is a Federal Lock and at 650 feet long and 70 foot wide it was much larger than the locks we encounter on the Erie Canal, which are 328 feet long and 45 feet wide.  It was a big lock, made to feel even bigger because we were the only vessel in it when they closed the gates! Please note the railroad bridge in the distance in this photo.

One of the strange things (I thought) in this lock was for as big as it is, and for the size of the boats that can traverse it, the lines on the walls they asked us to use (instead of our lines) were only regular-sized yellow, nylon ropes!  The rise in this lock is only 5 feet and there was no wind and they did their job.  After about 11 minutes we were on our way.

As we left the lock we became a bit concerned about the height of the railroad bridge.  With the radar now attached to the roof of the pilot house we needed to be sure we had clearance.  Dan asked me to stay on the upper deck and spot the bridge...and then we heard some loud bells and this happened!

It was a swing bridge!  Very cool!  I've never seen one of these operate from the water!

And as we moved forward we could see another low bridge in the distance.  But again, as we approached we heard loud bells, and this happened!  I was totally geeking out, but it was cool!

And as we cleared the last bridge, Buffalo was to our left, Lake Erie was to our right, and we were in the Channel on the way to enter the first Great Lake of the trip.

You can see Lake Erie to the right of the Emita here.

 

Lake Erie

As we made a sweeping turn right to follow the channel we could see a lighthouse marking the entrance in the distance.  We had a beautiful day to travel and you can see it was very calm.

Windmills

 

We passed by the lighthouse...

Said "Peace Out" to Buffalo in the distance...

And said hello to Lake Erie.  In my 6 year history with the Emita, we were always the "big boat".  We were almost always larger than everyone else.  I have never felt so small as when we got out on to Lake Erie.  It's big!!  That is a lot of water!

I'm not positive how far off shore we were for today's trip (I know at one point we were pretty steadily 4 miles off shore) but we could still see land.  But it was very far away!  I was excited to see big ships, and we did see a tanker way in the distance, but too far away to show anything with my cell phone camera.  I'm sure they will encounter ships along the way, however, and hopefully someone will take a picture.

Those of you who know me know I love animals, and one cool thing that was happening was the gulls.  They flew and hovered around the boat, getting quite close.  I would imagine boats stir up fish and they are looking for a meal, but I thought it was pretty cool to have them flying with us.  It was hard to get a good picture though, but I tried!

We traveled on with Erie, Pennsylvania being our target destination.  Dan, Duane and Captain Steve Wunder each took turns at the wheel, as well as cleaning, reading and napping. The sun faded during the day and the view didn't change too much.

Just around 6:30 pm we began our approach into the harbor at Erie.

 

As we entered the inlet to the harbor we passed this large ship.  Dan and Steve said this was the location where the Day Peckinpaugh had been.  This historic canal motorship is known and beloved by many canalers so it was interesting to know it was here for a time.

The harbor has a large dry dock facility.

And it is home to the Bicentennial Tower. Built in 1996 it commemorates the city's bicentennial year.  And at the base of this tower were my amazing parents and brother who had come to take me home.

They were too far away to get a good picture but I'm going to borrow one from Bob Graham which he took on Friday when we were traveling through the Fairport and Pittsford area.  They are so supportive, and had agreed to drive the 3 hours (one-way) from their home in Penfield to take me home so I could see the Emita on  Lake Erie instead of leaving her at the end of the Erie Canal.  I am very grateful to them. Here is my father Jack, my brother Joe and my mother, Kathy.

Photo courtesy of Bob Graham

My Mom was also able to get some great pictures of us entering the harbor.  We are not such a big boat anymore!

The harbor at Erie and Presque Isle State Park is beautiful. I want to come back for a conference!  (Hint hint AdvoCare!) 

And of course it has something to do with a canal, because I've learned the entire world revolves around canals!

My Mom got a video as we came in to dock that I thought you might enjoy.

Emita Docking Video

And so we docked for the first night on the Great Lakes, in Erie Pennsylvania.

And here is where it gets personal and I hope you will indulge me. This was my last day crewing on the Emita II and shortly after I took this picture I said goodbye and left with my family for Rochester, and then home to Syracuse the next morning.  I also said goodbye to the crew, and to my wonderful husband, who I will not see for another 10-14 days as he continues on to take her to her new home.  I've only been part of "Emita life" for 6 years and there are plenty of people who have been with her longer.  But I've never had an entity, outside of a person or a pet, own such a large part of my life, whether I wanted it to or not!  Many times the Emita has brought great joy with her, from meeting wonderful passengers, to seeing (and getting really good at spotting) Bald Eagles, to introducing my family to this amazing vessel and our trips, to spending work and home life together with my husband as we built our new life together.  I rode the Emita on our 3rd date, and she has been ever-constant in our lives.  I learned how to handle lines, how to "do" locks and a lot of boating things I never knew before.  Working with her has solidified my love of being on the water and made me more confident.  I've learned a lot about myself and how to deal with all kinds of people.  But it has not been all fun.  I have never been as cold as some of the times we had to stay overnight on the boat because we had an early cruise the next morning.  I'm not proud to say Dan and my biggest fights have all happened on the Emita.  We have missed time and experiences with family and friends because we had to work instead of going to a weddings or other important times in people's lives. Some people have not understood this and at times it has been hard. Dan sometimes calls the Emita his "mistress", and not in a joking fashion.  But overall she has provided happiness and wonderful experiences people could never have without her, and her leaving will create a big void.  I've honestly been surprised at how emotional I am to see her go, and I will tell you I cried when I left last night, and I've cried a few times since. BUT I'm very excited for the people of Michigan City because I know how excited her new owner is to have her, and how much work he has already put in to publicizing her arrival and making her successful.  I've heard the Mayor of the city and the local officials are equally excited because they haven't had a passenger tour boat in that location since 1949 and she will help to bring a fun and educational experience to many tourists and locals in that area.  As I understand it, Harbor Country Adventures already has bookings on the Emita for 2019!  So I know she will be well-taken care of, and most of all appreciated, and I am grateful for that.  And my husband has new opportunities to grow also, which will be wonderful for him.  Change is inevitable and good. 

As for the blog, officially Dan was supposed to take over when I left, but depending on his work load he may send me pictures and text and I will make it pretty and share it with you. I'm excited about seeing their next adventures too as they travel the rest of the way.  As a reminder, here is their route.  And thank you for reading this blog and sharing it with others!  

 

Goodbye Girl, we've had a lot of good times together and you have taught me a lot!  I look forward to seeing you in your new role in Indiana.  (Dan promised we would visit!) Until then...