43°3′29″ N 76°50′15″ W

Aug 16 – Erie Canal Lock 26

Today we travelled approximately 55 miles & are now well on our way to Buffalo.

We were up early and ready to leave at 7:00am but the river was covered in fog so we stayed on the dock until 8:30.

Catherine took advantage of the situation & got acquainted with the marina’s two cats, Max & Grommit.

Not sure which one is Max & which one is Grommit.

They are both very friendly – so friendly in fact that the marina has a note on their “Welcome Packs” that they give to each boater asking you to check for feline stowaways on board before leaving. Apparently they like to jump aboard boats tied to the docks.

We were also visited by a flock of swallows who were having a great time catching bugs off the river beside our boat.

The birds took a break on our bow railing while the fog was lifting.

We finally got underway as the sun burned off the fog. It was our first day “topless” (i.e. no bimini) & thankfully the sun was not too intense. We bought a beach umbrella in Brewerton yesterday & it helped provide some shade but was also a bit unwieldy as there was no way to secure it to the deck of the flybridge so we had to resort to holding on to it with one hand & steer with the other. In retrospect we would have been better off to buy a couple of golf umbrellas.

After about 3 hours into our journey today we came to the dividing point at Three Rivers Junction. This is the place where you turn right to go to Oswego or turn left to go to Buffalo.

We hung a left & started the 192 mile trip to Buffalo. We hope to make it there by Saturday or Sunday at the latest.

Cheers!