Oswego Canal and Phoenix, NY

August 18-19, 2017

Yesterday we left Oswego and Lock 8 to transit the approx. 24 miles of the Oswego Canal to the charming canal town of Pheonix, NY. After transiting the 8 locks of the Welland Canal with all the commercial freighter traffic and the shear size of the locks, the Oswego and Erie Canals should be a “cake walk!”

The original Oswego Canal opened in 1828, three years after the Erie Canal was completed. Today the 23.7 mile Oswego Canal connects the Erie Canal at Three Rivers (Oneida River, Seneca River, Oswego River) to Oswego, a port city on Lake Ontario. The Oswego Canal currently follows the Oswego River its entire course, either using the river basin itself or artificial channels constructed using one bank of the river. It contains 7 locks: Lock 1 through Lock 8 (there is no longer a Lock 4), which combines for a total change in elevation of 118 feet. The Oswego Canal, along with the Eastern Erie Canal, has an air draft clearance of 20-21 feet at normal pool for taller vessels, unlike the Western Erie Canal (Three Rivers to Lake Erie) that has an air draft clearance of 15.5 feet. Our air draft is 19 feet which restricts us from transiting the Western Erie Canal with its numerous bridges with a vertical clearance of 15.5 feet. This is the reason we transited the Welland Canal into Lake Ontario to Oswego, NY and the Oswego Canal.

Oswego Canal Profile

Yesterday was a gorgeous day and we had a very pleasant 4 hour cruise with beautiful scenery! Phoenix, NY is a great little town on the Oswego Canal where docking is located at a pretty park with free power, water and pump-out facilities. But the best part about Phoenix is the Bridgehouse Brats!! The “Brats” range in age from 8 to 18 and can be seen running errands, greeting boaters, tending the grounds and helping out at the Lock 1 Bridgehouse Museum on the Oswego River Canal. Under direction of the founder Cathy Lee, they spend their summers learning teamwork and leadership skills while maintaining a pleasant and clean environment. They have performed community service in the village of Phoenix for 15 years….what an awesome program!!

From Bridgehousebrats.com: “We are a group of local volunteer kids who help make our community better. We serve food from our local restaurants to boaters and anyone who wants to come join us from land. We host events throughout the summer for all to enjoy and we keep our streets clean and filled full of fresh flowers. Come join us down on the canal, sit on the dock and enjoy Music and some of Phoenix’s finest local foods!!”

We met up again with two couples on motor yachts who we met in Oswego and enjoyed the free Friday night concert in the park and breakfast in the morning served by the Bridgehouse Brats! We decided to stay an additional night and today met a great group of boaters who were on a weekend boat club trip from the nearby Oneida Lake. We were invited to join their awesome potluck/barbecue dinner and party on the dock!