Day 195

Daily stats
Start: 5:30 AM - Hudson River Island State Park - Near Colombiaville, NY
Finish: 3:00 PM - Entrance to the Erie Canal - Troy, NY
Time: 9:30 Hours
Daily dist: 30 miles
Total dist: 3600+ miles
Companions: Bill Quick, Alan, and John
Weather: Very calm, hot, and sunny
Notes: Locked through at the Troy Lock leaving “sea level” for the first time since locking into the Industrial Canal in New Orleans last January.

With 30 miles to cover during the day, much of it upstream against the last of any tidal current I will see on this trip, Bill and I got an early start on the water. We were rewarded for the early start by a couple hours of the end of the incoming tide and absolutely mirror smooth water shrouded in morning mist.

Beautiful start to my last day on the Hudson

After about four hours and fifteen miles into the day we met up with Alan Mapes and John Ozard, two Albany area paddlers that had put in from above and paddled down to meet us. Alan I had met at a BCU Level 2 coach training in may of 2009 and John I’d already met at the Sweetwater Kayak symposium this last February. After a few quick hellos and handshakes, the four of us worked our way north through the downtown area of Troy, NY and on up to the Troy Lock.

Entering the chamber of the Troy Lock

After pulling into the lock, the huge doors of the lock swung shut behind us and, ever so gently, the four of us were raised about fifteen feet in the flooding lock chamber. At 2:00 PM when the lock gates opened on the north end of the lock it marked the first time I was above “sea level” and free of the push and pull of the tides since I locked down into the Industrial Canal outside of New Orleans early last January. Even though I’ve been paddling on fresh water for the last two days, it was a strange feeling to cut the last tie to the ocean after so many miles.

A couple miles above the lock we came to the boat ramp where John and Alan had left a car earlier in the day. The plan was for me to stay the night at Alan’s house and to do a slide show at the nearby nature center. Bill had planned on camping at a nearby spot but we twisted his arm and convinced him to come back with us. Waiting for us at the boat ramp were two TV camera guys from the local news stations. Alan had put out an e-mail telling them about my adventure and expected arrival in the Albany area. While the guys started loading their boats on John’s car, I paddled a couple loops on the water and answered a few questions in front of the cameras.

That boat ramp happens to be right at the beginning of the Erie canal itself as indicated by a giant blue sign on shore. It is at that point, tomorrow that I will return to the water and start paddling west for the first time in the trip. As I looked at the huge lock gate towering over the water a few hundred yards upstream on the canal, the thought also hit me that, except for a small exception on the canal itself, it’s all up hill from here.