We slept until 10 at the house. After all, it was the first day of vacation! Morning Coffee Time was relaxed, but too short. I wanted another cup but Mia and I didn’t want to wait for another pot to brew (and Fender the Dog doesn’t drink coffee).
The pace of the day kicked up in a hurry. We packed for the trip, closed up the house, and drove to the marina.
Mia loaded No Losses with enough supplies for an army while I did the pre-flight checks and warmed the engines.
Neither of us realized that we had forgotten to bring two very important items …
The first leg of our journey lasted all of five minutes as we pulled around to the gas dock at the marina to top off the tanks.
The Western Terminus of the canal is technically 16 miles south in Buffalo, but the protected section of the waterway terminates here in the Tonawandas. The junction’s sentinel is this wonderful piece of history: The second-oldest man-operated swing bridge in the world, built around in 1892. (The oldest is just around the corner in the Little River.)
“Tonawandas Gateway Harbor”, as it’s called, is the divider between Erie and Niagara counties and the cities of Tonawanda and North Tonawanda.
Docking at the Gateway walls means you are within walking distance of party bars and great restaurants. like Dwyer’s Irish Pub, restaurants like The Dockside Bar and Grill, and several and several other party spots. They sell beer at the outdoor concerts on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, which makes this area a hugely popular destination for locals. Live music at Dwyer’s Pub goes until the wee hours on weekends, and the bars close even later. No wonder they call it “Tie-One-Onda”!
The two walls are in different counties, so there are two harbormasters and the money goes to two different places. There is no reciprocity agreement. If you pay on the south side and move to the north, you have to pay again.
Closer to the city (west of the main wall), this section of wall is at the mouth of Ellicott Creek. Water depth is slightly shallower than other sections, but generally you can count on four feet.
These are considered to be prime local spots and are usually among the first to be taken. They are closer by several hundred yards to the supermarket, drug store, fast-food dispensers, bank, liquor store, and beer store.