If you read PropTalk, you live, work, and play here. You know. The Chesapeake Bay is an awesome cruising ground. But sometimes you ‘cheat’ on the Bay. You charter in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) or maybe you cruise your boat to Long Island Sound. It’s okay. We all do it. The Bay is a very forgiving mistress. And so it was, this past July, that a fleet of 11 sturdy cruisers out of the Annapolis Yacht Club (AYC), headed north to explore the Hudson River and circumnavigate beautiful Lake Champlain. Doing so, we traveled a thousand miles, from salt to fresh, and from the modern skyscrapers of New York to some of the most important stops on a tour of American history.
Headed to New York
The trip from the Upper Bay to New York requires a transit of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, which itself is a piece of history. This 14-mile man-made waterway between the two bays was privately built and initially opened in 1829. Some 90 years later, the federal government purchased the canal. Since then, it has been expanded several times by the US Army Corps of Engineers to its current ‘big ship’ dimensions.
Slower boats may stop in the canal, but for faster cruisers, the first stop is Cape May, NJ. Most of us monitor offshore New Jersey conditions on the way to the Cape. With luck, a good wind and wave forecast keeps Cape May a one-night stand.
There are several places to stage and enjoy a lay day in New York Harbor before a trip up the Hudson. Our fleet chose the well-known Liberty Landing Marina in Jersey City, NJ. One of the advantages of Liberty Landing is that it is within spitting distance of Ellis Island and Lady Liberty herself.
While on our lay day, our cruisers toured the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, learning again how prior generations arrived in our country. It is hard not to feel the impact of these two historic sites. Most of us simply can’t motor past Lady Liberty without slowing for a photo or two.
Because we had a lay day, other slices of history, conveniently located a ferry ride away in New York City, were available and visited. We capped the day with a group dinner at the venerable New York Yacht Club.
Boating up the Hudson River from New York to the entrance to the Champlain Canal is almost too much to take in on one trip. Passing through Manhattan to starboard with its seemingly endless rows of skyscrapers and moving into the scenic hills and cliffs above the Tappan Zee Bridge is a contrast to savor. The river is wide to these points, making for comfortable, scenic cruising.
Up the Hudson River
Our first stop, headed north up the Hudson, was Newburgh, NY. Watching the weather, we had some early warning about wind and waves at the Riverfront Marina, but nothing prepared us for the current pushed upriver by 15 to 20 knot winds. Three of our fleet, scheduled to be on a windward side tie, moved on to our second stop, Kingston, as waves crashed over the floating dock at their assigned slips. The rest of the fleet had a very rocky night that miraculously transitioned to a calm, still morning.
The highlight of this stop was worth enduring the marina conditions as the group took a tour of the West Point Military Academy that calm morning. We were fortunate to have a tour guide with over 40 years of experience who provided detailed explanations of “that other service academy.” A highlight of this tour was the West Point Chapel with its beautiful architecture and stained-glass windows. All of us were moved by the history and pathos as we toured the Academy grounds, facilities, and cemetery.
After a stop in Kingston, we headed for Albany and Troy, NY. Soon after passing Troy, the cruisers left the Hudson River and entered the Champlain Canal, which provides a pathway to Lake Champlain.
Champlain Canal
The 60-mile-long Champlain Canal opened in 1823 and has been expanded since to accommodate larger commercial and recreational vessels. The dozen locks traversed by the AYC fleet are themselves historical artifacts, with some machinery in place for a century and still operating daily. ‘Locking through’ became a well-developed skill and gave cruisers an opportunity to experience the uphill and downhill path used by so many earlier generations.
For many, this was their first experience transiting locks. Despite the excellent tutoring from one of our seasoned cruisers, nerves were on edge in the first lock. While it can get you dirty, transiting locks is not such a big deal if you take them slowly and follow directions. Lessons learned in kindergarten!
The 60 miles, a dozen locks, and speed limits in sections make it nearly impossible to transit the Canal in a day. Both ways we planned a stop in the Village of Fort Edward, a reasonable midpoint. Fort Edward was ready for us!
The town maintains a 500-foot free dock with power and water. There are a few restaurants and the Slickfin Brewing Company, a nano-brewery, with a nice selection of craft beers. The first night we visited, there was a food truck out front serving lobster rolls. By the time we were done, they may have sold out!
Lake Champlain
On Sunday, July 14, most of the group traversed the final locks above Fort Edward and entered Lake Champlain proper. The winding, narrow approach to the main body of the lake provided a scenic entrance to the Vermont landscape, with rolling hills getting higher as we moved north. Soon, the lake widened out, and we entered a serene body of water with hills or cliffs on either side and mountain views in the distance.
As expected, Lake Champlain continued to deliver beautiful scenery and many opportunities for discovery. At our first stop, Westport, NY, the marina owners provided vehicles for the cruisers to drive to and tour Fort Ticonderoga. We learned that Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys took the fort and its cannon in the early stages of the American Revolution.
The fleet spent a mostly blissful week on the lake. The overly hot weather and higher humidities we experienced farther south took a break, as you might expect that close to the Canadian border. Our two favorite stops were the town of Burlington and the Basin Harbor Resort.
Burlington, VT, is a charming college town of about 45,000. It is blessed by a most excellent marina, adjacent to a very walkable downtown, just a few blocks from the waterfront. A lay day here was an opportunity to relax after the canal passage, clean our dirty fenders, and do some laundry (free at the marina). The town boasts some excellent dining establishments, including one of the best Cuban restaurants we have ever enjoyed.
Basin Harbor Resort and Boat Club is an all-around resort and marina on the Vermont shore. It is an updated reminder of the seasonal, multi-purpose lakeside attractions that dotted lakes in the decades gone by. While there, we could almost see back in time and watch the crew from the movie Dirty Dancing entertaining the summer residents.
During the multi-day stop at Basin Harbor, the cruisers toured the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, highlighting actions on the lake during the American Revolution and the War of 1812. This museum has numerous buildings and ships and provides detailed information on the events and the people who influenced our wars for independence.
The Journey Home
On the return trip down the Hudson River, the fleet stopped in Albany. There, our cruisers toured the USS Slater, the last floating US Navy Destroyer Escort from World War II. She has been fully reconditioned and is the sole survivor of approximately 568 Destroyer Escorts built during the conflict.
The final historical stop of the cruise was at the Franklin D. Roosevelt home, presidential library, and museum in Hyde Park, NY. This U.S. Park Service-operated site provided information on President Roosevelt’s life and a detailed history of the Depression and WWII. A delight to the cruisers was the ability to view many of the 400-plus ship models in the Roosevelt collection on display and in viewable storage at the Presidential Library.
From there, our cruisers headed in various directions to different stops, although some ended up in the same marinas. The friendly gatherings continued all the way to Cape May on the route home to Annapolis.
This cruise was a lot of things. For all, it was an adventure. For most, it was a first-time experience with locks, the Hudson River, and Lake Champlain. It was surely a skill builder.
It was a challenge in some ways. Riverfront marinas without breakwaters presented difficulties with fenders, lines, and, in some cases, paint jobs. Approaching the locks was initially stressful, but after a couple of successful transits, it was old hat. Some days it was six- to eight-hour days piloting. Some days were short, easy runs.
Above all, the gorgeous scenery and important history captivated the cruisers, regardless of their prior experience. Most importantly, it left plenty of memories. What more can you ask for anyway?
By Mike Pitchford, Alan Shearer, and Jim Kizziar