Waterford, NY the beginning of the Erie Canal

Island Hopper departed Kingston for Waterford, NY 66 miles up the Hudson at 8:30 to take advantage of a tidal current push of 1.6 mph all the way to Albany,

Typical of many boat clubs along the Hudson. Most are referred to as "Yacht clubs".  They remind me of our boat club in Cincinnati, the Ohio River Launch Club. LINK

Hazy humid day as we journeyed north.  Hard to believe it is a tidal river all the way to Albany some 150 miles.  Soon no more salt water!!!

Here is the capital building of  NY in Albany.

New bridge across the Hudson. The river now is much narrower than a few miles down river.

 We passed through the first of many locks in the upcoming days at Troy, NY, a few miles north of Albany.  Uneventful, we rose 16 feet.  We traveled north one mile to the famous sign to a boater, right to the Champlain Canal and left to the Erie Canal.

We turned to port, left, and we arrived at the Waterford, NY Visitors Center, the beginning (or end) of the Erie Canal.  You can see the docks on the right (free overnight with power) and the lock in the background.  This lock is the first of a flight of  5.  Check the Erie Canal Website.
LINK