Seven Locks Lead You Right to Phoenix

Oswego to Phoenix – 7 locks and 18 nautical miles.

I was up at 6am after a terrific sleep and got busy prepping the boat for today’s operation – mast removal. I disconnect all the electrical cables at the mast, loosened the shrouds, and a few other things to get her ready for her denuding.

 

We were told to be ready to go by 8:30 but they were busy with another boat and didn’t get to us until closer to 11:00. As we were getting ready to help them I asked Ana if she was going to change clothes as she was wearing some fabulous luxury brand fashion choices, looking like she was on her way to Champs-Elysees for lunch with the ladies.

 

“No,” she said. “I don’t have anything that can get dirty.”

 

“What? You didn’t bring any work clothes? What do you think this is, The Love Boat?”

 

“I was told it was going to be a Caribbean cruise.”

 

That may have been my fault. Perhaps I oversold this vacation a bit. Anyway, she found some shabby chic outfit and got to work with me helping the Oswego marina boys lift the mast and drop it onto the perfectly engineered horses Mike and I built the day before. Before long we had the mast plastic wrapped (using up an obscene amount of the stuff, like enough for 700 bologna and ketchup sandwiches), ratchet-strapped down, and we were ready to tackle the Oswego Canal.

 

We motored out of the marina and down the Oswego River a short ways before slipping into Lock 8. As the lock doors closed we realized we hadn’t really thought much about this part and had no plan at all so we fumbled around with fenders, boat hooks, work gloves, and lines as we scraped the side of one of our solar panels against the slimy concrete wall, then did the same with one of the spreaders at the bow. We finally managed to grab the slimy ropes hanging down from walls and get the boat into position as the water started to fill up the lock. On the way to Lock 2 we had a quick crew meeting and adjusted our technique and were pretty much okay from there, but clearing these locks was a bigger job than expected and it would have been very difficult with just the two of us if Mike wasn’t there to help. Mental note for the return trip – need some recruits!

The miles we covered between the locks took us through some beautiful country and seemingly deserted, quiet forests. The lockmaster at the final lock was a happy, jovial dude, and from the top of the concrete walls he gave us a rundown of the town of Phoenix – where we could dock, eat, drink, and party. We grabbed a wall slip (completely free, including water, electrical, and wifi – I LOVE THEES COUNTRY), got tied up, then enjoyed a lovely sundowner as we unwound the tension from our first day of locks.

 

Ana and I went for a walk to explore Phoenix while Mike chilled at the boat. It is a lovely little town, but we had no need to buy anything as we had boat dinner already planned (minestrone soup courtesy of our friend Linda) so we just walked the streets and enjoyed being somewhere new on a warm October Tuesday evening before returning to SeaLight's comfy cockpit for fab soup, fab wine, and fab conversation.