We departed the Whitehall city dock along with Zendo (a fellow Looper) this morning. The lockmaster was ready for us and we both pulled right into Lock No. 12, the final one on the Champlain Canal. Upon exiting the lock we were officially in Lake Champlain. With this, the channel markers reversed to red on our left and green on our right.
On the channel markers, we began to see osprey tending to meager nests. They have been a rare sight since we left the Chesapeake. It appeared that the northern osprey could use a few lessons in home building from their southern cousins. Lake Champlain's navigation channel was narrow, winding and scenic. We also saw many other birds, including herons, egrets, and red-winged blackbirds.
After about three hours of travel, we rounded a bend and spotted Fort Ticonderoga on the hill ahead of us. We dropped anchor, lowered the dinghy, and headed off into the wind and waves for a splashy ride to the town boat ramp. We tied up the dinghy and then walked the 1.5 miles to the fort. Our lesson learned today is to pack bottles of water in our dinghy bag. The walk to the fort left us parched and then the drink machine ate our three dollars.
Fort Ticonderoga is an 18th-Century star fort built by the French to protect trade routes between Montreal and New York. The British and Americans also occupied the fort at different times in its history. It is a privately-owned National Historic Landmark and features a nice variety of artifacts, displays, and reenactors. The cannon collection is particularly impressive, being sourced from all over the world -- including one from Tappahannock, VA.
Our favorite part of the tour was the cannon firing demonstration. Living history actors displayed how Royal Navy sailors brought artillery skills onto land to defend the fort. They went through all the steps of loading and firing the cannons ... twice. I was psyched that I actually captured the "fire in the hole ... boom" sequence with my iPhone.
We are anchored just off the dock for the ferry that runs between Ticonderoga, NY and Shoreham, VT. A barge that holds three cars makes a seven-minute crossing along a submerged cable, while being propelled by a tug running beside. The best part of the ferry is that there is no horn and no wake. We barely know its there. The ride back to Crossroads was dry as the wind and waves had calmed down from our ride out.
We sat outside on Fiberglass Beach for a while and enjoyed the late afternoon scenery. One of the locals came by to welcome us. The temperatures dropped quickly along with the sun. We're looking forward to a peaceful night here on the hook.
Tomorrow we will head a few more miles north. Possible stops are the Crown Point State Historic Site, Lake Champlain Visitors Center, and the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse.
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