Revisiting the Fork in the Road of Life 8-27-09

Do you ever wonder what your life would be like if you had made the other choice? I do. Maybe it’s because I have had too many rainy days lately to think about stuff. Most likely it is due to the fact that we are back in the Lake George/Lake Champlain area where Bob and I spent our early years recreating as a couple.

We travelled here as twentysomethings with our trailerable sailboat to island hop and enjoy the cool clear healing waters. It’s almost like we’re passing our young selves along the way and nodding “hi” as having a liveaboard boat was our dream even back then.

So why did we up and leave and move to Minnesota in 1976 if we were so happy? I think we are hard-wired for adventure and have a bad/good case of wanderlust. Is it because 3 or our 4 parents are immigrants and set up a pattern to move—they did so because they had to; we do it because we can.

We have had a wonderful 30+ years in Minnesota and then we up and leave for Colorado. Again our lives have been wonderful there filled with great friends and a great life, but it’s like a 30 year time bomb is counting down and we have to move on. Doing the Loop is a great segue into that and I must admit I love being in new places and trying on new experiences.

As I sit by Lake Champlain tonight watching the beautiful sunset, I realize that if I had stayed in the New York/Vermont area, I would probably be right here on these very shores enjoying this very same sunset. Life’s funny that way.

The Narrows of Lake Champlain 8-24-09

We left Westport Sunday (8/23) to explore the western palisade section with steep granite cliffs and secluded tree-lined anchorages but the north wind and storms kicked up and we had to cancel our plans and head across the lake for the protection of Point Bay and picked up a mooring ball.

Here is our rainbow appearing through a light rain and sun as we swung on the mooring and are surrounded by sailboats with their gently-clanging halyards and rain falling softly on our bimini. It is a great time to read until the light fades or get lost in your thoughts with the help of the hypnotic power of the rain. If I become one with the rain, will it stop?

The sun peeked out and the seas calmed down on Monday so we decided to travel 7 miles up Otter Creek to Vergennes. For our boating friends, I will note that flat calm is helpful to navigate the entrance which has some shallow shoals to the south so you don’t want to make a mistake. The creek is about 50 yards wide, has depths of 14-20 feet in the middle except for an 8 foot section by Dead Creek, and has ½ knot current. Deadheads are marked creatively with milk jugs. It is home to osprey and water fowl and is dotted occasionally with small houses and private docks.

When we rounded the last turn, we not only found the sun at the end of our rainbow, but also a spectacular waterfall display. Vergennes welcomes boaters with a free dock with electric and water and has a number of restaurants, small grocery, shops, liquor store, pharmacy and summer playhouse. Its City Hall is located in the Old Opera House which still functions as a theatre in the upstairs area. With a town green and Farmers Market, it is a delightful New England place to visit.

Bob and I have had a running discussion about how to pronounce “Vergennes.” I took a little French years ago so I did an Inspector Clouseau pronunciation; Bob thought that the “g” should be pronounced with a “j” sound. I was passing the library so ducked in to consult the reference librarians about this burning question. I explained the above and the 3 female librarians noted that “Vergennes” is pronounced with a “j” sound but I should not tell my husband “as you know how men get when they get one thing right.” I am letting you in on this little secret but don’t tell Bob.

We spent a wonderful evening with boaters from Chipman Point and got lots of helpful information about the lake. Nightcap for the evening was the falls being lit with rainbow colors. In the still of the night, the cascading falls roared like the ocean and lulled us to sleep.

Lower Lake Champlain 8-22-09

I went for a walk early on Thursday (8/20) and saw a small runabout in the canal. I assumed it was waiting to lock through at 7 am, but found out later that vandals had cut its dock lines and it had drifted perilously close to the dam adjacent to the lock. This type of thing happens so rarely but can be so dangerous.

We locked through #12 and entered the lower end of Lake Champlain, but with its narrow width and army green water, it did not look much different yet from the Champlain Canal. As we rounded its twists and turns, it reminded me of an amusement park kiddy boat ride---wheee.

Then the Green Mountain of Vermont on the east side and the Adirondacks on the New York west side came into view and we knew we were entering another world. Lake Champlain is 120 miles long and 10 miles at its widest and missed designation as the 6th Great Lake but it is next in line. It has 70 islands (ok-that includes some rock outcroppings), secluded anchorages, wildlife preserves and parks and clear, deep water when you journey further north. It seemed to us like a hybrid of a small Lake Superior and a large Colorado alpine lake.

You are going to have to take my word on that for now as we again have less than optimum photo conditions with fog, haze, humidity and/or rain. Didn’t we just have a month just like this in the Chesapeake? Locals assure us that when Hurricane Bill passes and the stalled wet fronts can roll through that the sunshine will return.

Here’s whose sharing the lake with us today. The Peckinpaugh is a 259’ historic canal barge making its way south to celebrate Samuel de Champlain’s European discovery of this lake in 1609. It’s not getting as much press as Henry Hudson’s voyage but some local college kids were intrigued and are doing Lake Champlain on a homemade raft.

We had hoped to anchor by Fort Ticonderoga but those darn t-storms were threatening. Look close in the picture and you might see also that Colonial soldiers were setting the cannon to fire and we were right in their crosshairs so definitely time to move on. The book 1776 comes alive in this area when you realize the amazing feat of young Nathaniel Greene and the ragtag Continental Army who moved the cannons from this fort overland to Boston in the dead of winter to turn the tide of the war. We’ll be coming back here by car to visit this fort as well as Fort St. Frederic and Fort Crown Point. It’s amazing how many battles took place here on these quiet shores.

We pulled into Westport Marina on the NY side on late Friday morning (8/21) and were greeted by the Carroll family. This is one of the best run and friendliest marinas on the Loop with the entire family (Mom, Dad, grandparents, kids of all ages and extended family) making sure you have a good experience in the marina, gift store, and restaurant, and if you need engine work, Larry is your guy. The town of Westport is also worth a visit and has 2 vintage small grocery markets that reminded us those in the Bahamas where you can find a little bit of everything. The town reminded us a bit of Bayfield, our home port in Lake Superior, with its hilly streets, one of a kind shops and a great bakery café, Me and My Girls.

Time to get some work done also between rain showers so we put up the mast, cleaned the fenders and started some wax projects. Poor Bob had to redo our whole computer which crashed for unknown reasons and our Verizon Air Card and Wi-Fi were not working either. We’re back online so the fix worked.