Sometimes lucky and sometimes not so much

On our day off in Oswego we had the luck with us, but not 100%. Yes, the weather was perfect – brisk with sun but not hot. We rode our bikes out to Fort Ontario park for a walk about even though the fort itself was not open.  From the outside the fort looks to be worth another visit when we can explore the inside.  This area has been home to numerous fortifications as possession exchanged hands more than once. The earlier forts were often burned as troops retreated only to be rebuilt.  This stone fort was still in use until the early 20^th century. From the fort we were lucky to find the maritime museum open with several vessels to tour. The LT #5 was especially interesting as the only one of these WWII large tugs to still be floating as a tug. We enjoyed poking our noses into all the open cabins as we marveled at the workmanship of this “hastily” built WWII boat that participated in D-Day in June 1944. Although more roomy than our engine room, it was not nearly as spotless as ours. The galley, however, was considerably larger – but then they had a crew of 11 to feed. We also got a look at a NY Canal derrick barge – just like the ones we passed on the canal. The Eleanor D reminded us of the fishing tugs we saw for the first time last year in Leland MI. She is currently being restored by the museum so we didn't get a look inside her.

From Oswego we ventured out on the lake for the 40+ mile trip to Sackets Harbor on Black River Bay in the northeast corner of Lake Ontario.  Our luck with the weather held – sort of – we had strong winds but mostly from the south and by keeping to the edge of the lake we safely made the trip, albeit taking a little longer than the direct route. From our anchorage in Sackets Harbor we had a great vantage point to appreciate this well protected harbor which figured in our country’s early naval history.  Providing a deep water port just 30 miles from Canada and the St Lawrence River, this area saw several battles during the War of 1812. While both sides claimed victory in the second battle, the significance of the outcome probably influenced the final border with our neighbors to the north. Today the village has been reborn as a tourist destination – preserving the history of the battles here with a state park. Many homes and buildings have also been restored and re-purposed keeping the early charm of this village intact and providing lovely venues for shops and restaurants.  We can highly recommend the Tin Pan Galley on W. Main Street. The old army post – Madison Barracks has a marina and the old post buildings have been converted to modern residences although from the distance they look like a military installation. Our luck with sunny weather did run out as most of our tour in Sackets Harbor was on the damp side – probably keeping our walking tour and photos to a manageable size!