What a great day on the Hudson  River! Rain and thunderstorms were predicted, but we only had a little rain. We left Troy this morning, thinking we would run until the storm(s) caught us, but here we are tied up in Fort Edward and only had a little rain.

So we are here. The city provides dockage with water and electric. So, what is a sailor to do? Spend money in the city…town…village. Kelley and I were walking and wondering where we were going to eat tonight. A mother and her two teenage daughters stop their car and asked if we are lost…well, where is the best place for dinner? with cocktails? yes. They sent us to the Anvil Inn. We looked over the menu and came back and told the other boaters here that it looked like a great spot.

Dinner was delicious. Kelley had steak and I had their prime rib that is a special on Friday through Sunday. And dessert, the cranberry pudding was to die for. We boaters need to support the towns that give FREE dockage by spending money in their towns. This is a must for anyone on the Champlain Canal. I might add, that one of the other boaters came by and said how great their dinner was also.

Tomorrow we leave for Whitehall. The weather should be fine in the morning, but, ugh, the afternoon… thunderstorms. Surprise, more weather!

We cruised up the river. It has been calm and beautiful. I think that I like the terrain here better that farther south. I like the forest, the hills. But, we look up and there are tall buildings – Albany, the capital of New York. We are not stopping in Albany.

Above is Troy. Once again it is a little more rural. The City docks are floating and against this huge wall. The dockmaster is friendly. Turns out there is a “party in the park” tonight. Every Wednesday in the summer there is a group that comes and plays and there are food vendors. I know where dinner is coming from!

The group is good, but in comes the rain and thunder. The 5 to 8 party lasts from 5 to 7. The residents rush to the local restaurants or to their cars to leave. We go into the boat and play cards…I won!

It is so beautiful on this part of the Hudson. The shores are dotted with homes, some old, some new, some large, and some small. Parts of this area apear to be summer homes and parts look year round. It is forested and lush. I like it a lot. The river is calm. There are hardly any boats out. I also like that.

We are spending the night at the marina here that sits in front of a restaurant. We hopped on our bikes and rode into town. This is a town that is dying a slow death. There was a small restaurant that was recommened to us but it was closed as of a week ago because taxes hadn’t been paid.

There are so many old homes here and they are falling apart. The young man that has just bought the marina is so nice; I hope that he can make it.

Tomorrow we shove off for Troy. The locks to Lake Champlain await.

Kelley took a long morning walk. We didn’t need to rush to the next spot because it was only about 6 miles. In fact, Kelley kept saying that we should just untie the boat and let the incoming tide move us north.

Right after we left the dock it started to rain. It felt a little chilly; I was pleased to grab a little jacket. With in this short journey were two of the biggest, and wholly unexpected gifts: light houses! The first one is being restored. WOuldn’t it be a charming spot to spend the summer? Of course in the winter you would be surrounded by ice….

And this one was at the entrance to Kingston. It looks like someone could be living there. There are curtains in the windows….This one was built in 1813….

We took a bus into Kingston. We should have done the “tourist’ thing, but instead hit the grocery store and hardware store and made it back on the next bus (on the hour). We are having a quiet afternoon. Tiger Woods is playing, in fact, he has just won the US Open.

There is a severe weather watch. not a surprise for us. It seems lately that where ever we go rain, thunderstorms and lightening are sure to show up. Better shut the computer down. I do love this weather.