Tuesday in Tonawanda was a great day for accomplishing a few errands and house keeping tasks. We thankfully woke up a little later than normal, had coffee and Bob assembled our bikes. George did not join us on this ride as we needed his cart to hold our groceries. We rode a bit north first to Our Lady of Czestochowa Catholic Church to say a prayer and light a candle for a friend. Beautiful church in North Tonawanda, built in 1928.
Next stop Auto Zone for a 12V battery charger, just in case 😉 Before heading to the grocery store we took a few mile ride along the Shoreline Trail. Lovely views from this gorgeous bike/walk trail along the Niagra River.
Next stop groceries! We are trying to be mindful of our food on board as we do not have a ton of room in the galley. The biggest items to fit in George’s cart are the two water bottles. We decided to go with Primo brand water, which is available at many stores across the country. So far this method of having potable water is working great. Rode back to Robes, unloaded groceries, did two loads of laundry at the Harbormasters Shack and made it down to Main Street just in time to see the Canal Fest parade!
Wednesday we left the wall in Tonawanda and headed to Medina, NY. This was our first full day on the Canal System and boy was it a beauty. A lovely slow cruise (our speed is 8 mph) through neighborhoods, farmlands and small towns. We went through a few lift bridges where Bob contacts the bridge master to raise so we can squeeze under. We went through a double lock today in Lockport, NY. This is one of only two double locks on the Canal system, each lock today was a 25′ drop. Julie is in charge of the grabbing hold of the ropes or cable or pipe once inside the lock. She feels a bit unsure about all this now but as we make our way through the 35+ locks, she will hopefully feel more confident!
We ended our 35 mile run Wednesday at MM303, Medina, NY. We tied up at the wall and took a walk around this very pretty and thriving village. It was fascinating to us how this little village halfway between Buffalo and Rochester could be economically doing so well. It’s a mystery but made us smile to hang out for an evening
Heading to MM270, Spencerport, NY tomorrow, Thursday 07.20.23. Adios for now!
It’s nice to see you’re enjoying the locks, you’ll soon be a pro once you get past Rochester. Safe Travels ⚓️