Marooned in Fonda

Marooned in Fonda

With some light rain and glimpses of sun we made our way through a few more locks and pulled up to the wall after lock 12. The purpose of this stop was to visit some ruins/remains of earlier versions of the Erie Canal.  At this spot, the three main periods of the canals evolution can be seen.  The very earliest small locks are nearby like the ones we saw near Schenectady as well as the next size up. Also at Schohaire there are remains of an aqua duct that carried the canal over the Schohaire Creek – this historic site is therefore called Schohaire Crossing!  Other than a few houses, the lock, and the visitor center, this is a remote and peaceful stop – unless trains are a concern? We sat next to a very busy set of tracks – but their “noise” just added to the dam and birds as background.  We were lucky to have some sunshine for a walk up to the park and visitor center to see the aqua duct since shortly after our return the skies darkened and darkened and darkened, and then it poured with dramatic flashes of lightening.  We turned on the weather channel to discover we were under a tornado warning and of course a danger from lightening. While the storm was exciting – we were not too impressed coming from Florida – but then we were IN Florida according to the sign we passed on the way to the aqua duct! Go figure!

In the morning we had noticed all the logs and debris in the river but did not realize the water had come up enough to make the locks dangerous. (I guess we missed that flash flood warning?) As we were pulling away from the dock after waiting for the fog to lift, the lock tender kindly called us to say the lock ahead was closed, so we would have to wait it out in Fonda.  Here we sit, marooned in Fonda. This is actually a dock inside the canal maintenance facility, is gated and comes with free power.  The workers also kindly offered to drive us a few miles up the road to a big supermarket if we needed more supplies than are available at the convenience stores a few blocks away. We are not sure if they treat everyone this well or if they just feel sorry for the two boats stuck here until the water levels fall.  Thankfully we are in no hurry and have enjoyed a little sunshine to explore and sample local Chinese food for lunch. Fonda apparently really is the ancestral home of Henry Fonda, but we saw no evidence of his life or any connection here.  Fonda in fact is so small that we crossed into several other cities as we rode our bikes around – in few short blocks we visited Fonda, Mohawk, and Fullerton. A stop in the post office was a trip back in time – all original boxes and service windows making the modern display of express boxes seem out of place. The antique store felt like a complete 1950s era five and dime shop – fortunately with some buttons for me. There is a little of the 21st century in the area since we can see the golden arches across the river and at least three pizza joints. Suffering here in Fonda we aren’t.