I think I found her

Hello everyone. I think I found my trawler (very happy).

Trying to figure out how long it takes to get the boat throught the new york canals. The boat is located on lake ontario about 6-8 hrs to the oswego locks. I believe it is there that i will start my journey to providence rhode island.

Im pretty sure 1 day (24hrs) will be sufficient to get me from new york harbor to providence but the canals is what i have no experience with. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks
Eli

Eli27 said:

Hello everyone. I think I found my trawler (very happy).

Trying to figure out how long it takes to get the boat throught the new york canals. The boat is located on lake ontario about 6-8 hrs to the oswego locks. I believe it is there that i will start my journey to providence rhode island.

Im pretty sure 1 day (24hrs) will be sufficient to get me from new york harbor to providence but the canals is what i have no experience with. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks
Eli

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Congratulations!

I traveled that route in reverse last year.

Figure a day from Lake Ontario to Brewerton. Without checking the log, I believe it was 3 days to Waterford. Have done 5 or 6 trips up and down the Hudson. 3 days gets me from Waterford to the anchorage behind the Statute of Liberty.

Now I do longish days and take advantage of the tide going up and down the Hudson River. I typically travel at 6 knots, sometimes 7 to take advantage of the tide.

If you need some anchorages or favorite places to tie on the Erie canal or the Hudson River, just ask.

Ted

I agree with Ted's timing provided you run long days and don't hit hold ups at locks. If you get to Oswego in time you can tie up above lock 8. No power but it is better than down below unless you prefer a marina.
You can't get an early start as lock spacing is very close.
From Brewerton you can get an early start as its a long way to the first lock..

My Bacchus website ( signature link) has some NY canals tips as well as some stop over info. Any specific questions ask away.

How fast does this boat go? NYC to providence in a day sounds really fast to me.

twistedtree said:

How fast does this boat go? NYC to providence in a day sounds really fast to me.

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Its a gb36. 7-8 knots. Ill have a helper for that run. If not,,, 2 days. The new york to prov run i was thinking doing it straight. Its about 170nm so i figure a 24hr run should be fine.

Assuming a 7 kt cruise and running the longest days you can, I'd expect 4 days from Oswego to Waterford. 3 might be possible, but I wouldn't count on it.

Realistically, if you can, take a little more time on the canals and the Hudson. It's an enjoyable trip.

Out of curiosity, where on Lake Ontario are you starting from?

rslifkin said:

Assuming a 7 kt cruise and running the longest days you can, I'd expect 4 days from Oswego to Waterford. 3 might be possible, but I wouldn't count on it.

Realistically, if you can, take a little more time on the canals and the Hudson. It's an enjoyable trip.

Out of curiosity, where on Lake Ontario are you starting from?

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henderson harbor

Realistically plan on more time. A delivery trip won’t go as fast as you plan. Weather and a new to you boat will see that you don’t make as many miles as you think you can. Add in exhaustion, you don’t do this regularly do you? So you will get more tired than you think. How many crew will you have onboard? We have done 2 major deliveries of boats we bought, and several shorter ones. On one long delivery we ran a boat from Seattle to LA. I had 4 other guys onboard so watches were pretty easy. 2 on and 8 off during the days. 3 on with 2 crew during the night. The other long delivery was with my wife and I. From the Potomac River to Saginaw Bay on Lake Huron. We took 45 days to do that one. There were multiple delays, weather, high water, wind, extremely heavy rain but fortunately no mechanical breakdowns. Add in the locks which can be shutdown at any moment with no notice.

Eli27 said:

henderson harbor

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In that case, you're probably looking at 5 - 5.5 hours to Oswego (assuming 7kt cruise). You could get a good bit of the way into the canals on day 1 if you start early, but at the same time, Oswego is a decent stop if you have the time.

I have to ask, why the rush? Understandable if you can only manage limited time off, but otherwise I'd suggest scaling back the hours and enjoying the trip if at all possible.

It is best to not plan on making more than 40 or so miles in a day. Subtract at least 10 miles per day for every lock you encounter. (So. two locks and 20 miles would be a good day)

And you also better plan on a couple "no travel" days. Bad weather, boat problems, closed locks, etc.

pete

Pete Meisinger said:

It is best to not plan on making more than 40 or so miles in a day. Subtract at least 10 miles per day for every lock you encounter. (So. two locks and 20 miles would be a good day)

And you also better plan on a couple "no travel" days. Bad weather, boat problems, closed locks, etc.

pete

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In my opinion, that's a very conservative estimate. Personally, I find that with no wake zones accounted for, I'm usually pretty accurate with an estimate on the canal of 6 kts average speed and 20 - 30 mins per lock (depending on time of year and resulting traffic level).

For the Oswego Canal, for example, I've always been between 4 and 5.5 hours (usually close to 5) from Oswego to Phoenix (just below lock 1). That's about 21 statute miles (18.25 nautical miles) and 7 locks. Knowing that my 6 kt average speed is pretty accurate unless there's been a lot of rain and more than normal current, that's only about 15 minutes per lock on average (but none of my transits have been in peak traffic season).

Pete Meisinger said:

It is best to not plan on making more than 40 or so miles in a day. Subtract at least 10 miles per day for every lock you encounter. (So. two locks and 20 miles would be a good day)

And you also better plan on a couple "no travel" days. Bad weather, boat problems, closed locks, etc.

pete

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Pete
That seems overly conservative to me as well. Not bad if lots of time and wanting to keep days short but that is up to the boater.
We figure one day from Oswego to Baldwinsville (heading W) or Brewerton or Pirates Cove (heading East) is very doable.

On the Oswego the lock tenders do a decent job notifying / coordinating with other locks. There can be an occasional hold-up for opposing traffic but isn't the general rule. Also locks 23 & 24 to Baldwinsville & Brewerton run longer hours in season.

When are you planning to do this trip? The NY canals are closed now.

David

DavidM said:

When are you planning to do this trip? The NY canals are closed now.

David

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As soon as we do sea trial. If everything checks out im going to stay for a week or 2 and go through boat best i can to learn important systems and any small repairs that would stop me from going.

Im taking the owner of the vessel at his word the boat is mechanically ready for anything. But ill be the judge of that when the sea trial is over and has passed.

I figure a week or 2 to get me acquainted with the new boat should be fine. And then ill make the run.

As far as when, well, henderson harbor is frozen right now and the boat is in the air. They say mid april or so it should be fine. I would imagine by then the locks will be open or soon after. Im thinking middle of may


Eli

We were entering the Oswego Canal from the Erie Canal early in the morning. We were the first boat into the canal. Got in the first lock and then waited almost 4 hours while they worked on the lift bridge that is just outside the lock. They couldn’t get it to raise more than 3’. You have to plan on unexpected delays. No way to know what they will be. And no way to know how long they will be either.

I would like to thank everyone for there replies. Very informative! Im not in a rush, i just want and idea of how long i should plan for. 4 days, 9 days, 2months a couple years??

After reading a helpful NY lock info page on Bacchus website and the replies im thinking its a 2 week run. I think i can do it in 9-10 days but figure weather, possible break downs or other issues i think 2 weeks will be good.

I am geared to getting it over with ASAP which basically means i dont mind running 12 hr days. The last leg, from SOL to providence im trying to plan to have a helper. Id like to make that run in 1 shot. Depending on weather I see that run to be a 24 hr run. So 6hrs on and 6hrs off seems good.

Eli27 said:

As far as when, well, henderson harbor is frozen right now and the boat is in the air. They say mid april or so it should be fine. I would imagine by then the locks will be open or soon after. Im thinking middle of may

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The canals are scheduled to open May 19th this year, so that's the earliest you could get going. If you have the time, you could always spend a little extra time traveling around on Lake Ontario before the canals open and the first few days of heavy traffic flush through.



As far as the boat and condition goes, if this is the GB36 I think it is, I've seen it out on the canals in the past and the owner is a member on here.

Keep in mind that early in the season there is more water flow so they may close the locks without warning and you have to wait until the flow slows down. We had that happen just as we got out of the last lock for the day. The lockmaster told us they were closing the canal near us for the day. It may or may not be a problem depending on you plans.

The lock schedule can vary by weeks depending on the weather and the preceding winter. When we were bringing out boat home through the Champlain Canal, it was delayed a few weeks due to unusually high water levels from a lot of melting snow. You should certainly be able to do more than 2 locks/day, especially if you are in a hurry and not interested in the sights along the way. Personally, I'd make it a more leisurely vacation, but it sounds like you have other priorities.

Almost every boat seller is going to claim the boat is mechanically sound, so take that with a grain of salt (or 2).

Comodave said:

Keep in mind that early in the season there is more water flow so they may close the locks without warning and you have to wait until the flow slows down. We had that happen just as we got out of the last lock for the day. The lockmaster told us they were closing the canal near us for the day. It may or may not be a problem depending on you plans.

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Good points, but also worth mentioining that upon seasonal opening, there is a lot more debris in the water than later in the season. Proceed with a little extra caution.

Eli27 said:

I am geared to getting it over with ASAP which basically means i dont mind running 12 hr days. The last leg, from SOL to providence im trying to plan to have a helper. Id like to make that run in 1 shot. Depending on weather I see that run to be a 24 hr run. So 6hrs on and 6hrs off seems good.

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I find 8 hour days to be max. That's with 2 on 2 off. Early May weather will be cool so you be running from noisy inside helm station.

Running at night requires reliable radar and AIS receiver. 6/6 is a long long shift. 3/6 is doable. Highly recommend a 3rd person for 24 hr segment.

SoWhat said:

I find 8 hour days to be max. That's with 2 on 2 off. Early May weather will be cool so you be running from noisy inside helm station.

Running at night requires reliable radar and AIS receiver. 6/6 is a long long shift. 3/6 is doable. Highly recommend a 3rd person for 24 hr segment.

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After boat checks out from survey and sea trial that is first upgrade. New
Radar and AIS. I already have a toughbook with nav and ais. Looking into those as we speak.

Eli27 said:

After boat checks out from survey and sea trial that is first upgrade. New
Radar and AIS. I already have a toughbook with nav and ais. Looking into those as we speak.

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You might also want to think about some night vision, covered currently in another thread. The Sound is not too complicated, but cruising from sunset to sunrise in a new boat in waters you don't travel regularly, is a differnt animal. If you are planning a couple weeks anyway, why not plan 2 days from NY to RI?

Greetings,
Mr. E. Many moons ago (40 yrs perhaps?) we did a delivery trip from Mystic CT to Ontario, Canada. Long Island Sound, Erie Canal, Oswego Canal, Lake Ontario. Even in my 30's, an 8 hour day was exhausting. Some nights, too tired to eat dinner. Even with another crewman, I can't imagine anything longer. Even though YOU may not be on watch, your nervous system will be.

RT Firefly said:

Greetings,
Mr. E. Many moons ago (40 yrs perhaps?) we did a delivery trip from Mystic CT to Ontario, Canada. Long Island Sound, Erie Canal, Oswego Canal, Lake Ontario. Even in my 30's, an 8 hour day was exhausting. Some nights, too tired to eat dinner. Even with another crewman, I can't imagine anything longer. Even though YOU may not be on watch, your nervous system will be.

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Agree 100%. We have done several long, 1,400 miles plus, deliveries. One was down the west coast. I had 4 other guys so during the day we did 2 on 8 off, that was pretty easy. During the night I put 2 crew on and 3 off. We did 3 hours on watch and then switched. It was very demanding to do 3 hours at the helm during the night so we would switch between the 2 guys on watch. The longest run we did was 36 hours. It was grueling but doable with 5 crew total.

My wife and I did a 1,400 mile delivery by ourselves. 8 hours was too much but a couple of times we had to do it because of logistics. 5 hours was a nice travel day with just the 2 of us.

7-8 knots in a 36 GB is very optimistic. 7-8 STATUTE MILES PER HOUR is realistic. 15 percent difference between knots and mph.

Eli27 said:

Its a gb36. 7-8 knots. Ill have a helper for that run. If not,,, 2 days. The new york to prov run i was thinking doing it straight. Its about 170nm so i figure a 24hr run should be fine.

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I delivered a GB36 up that way few years back. What was the name?

Running 8-10 hour days isn't too bad for a day or 2, but doing it day after day can get pretty exhausting. I did a few 10-12 hour days back to back when we first brought our boat home. About half of that was in the canals. 3 of us on board, but I was at the helm 90 percent of the time. Wasn't too bad until the end of 3rd day, by which point we were all pretty tired and cranky. I wouldn't willingly run that long for more than 1 day at a shot if I could help it.