Erie Canal 2019 Trip: Days 1 Tugboat roundup

After so much research and preparation the time has come for me to set out of my trip. I took two weeks off as my summer job started to wind down and loaded my boat up and headed out. For my first stop I decided to attend the annual tugboat Roundup - an annual event held in Waterford New York that includes many different kinds of tugboats and working vessels that ply the Hudson River and Erie Canal. The event is an annual three-day weekend Festival which includes a Friday night arrival Tugboat parade, Saturday fireworks,vendors, educational displays, and the availability of the public to visit all of the boats at the event. While the overall concentration is on Industrial and Commercial size vessels such as tugboats that work the Hudson Canal pushing barges and other cargo, the event organizers have encouraged smaller vessels that are in the tugboat class to attend. All together there almost 40 different vessels who participate in the weekend events. Over 20,000 people attend and there are all sorts of activities for people to participate in. I reached out to the event organizers before and they were more than gracious and accommodating a small 21-foot tugboat in addition to all the other vessels.

I am the little tiny tug way in the back of the line just before the two giant tugs!!

Friday came and after trailering 2 hours from my home, I arrived in Waterford New York. Having launched my tug at the Waterford boat ramp, organizers allowed me to park my truck and trailer at a nearby Municipal DPW garage for the weekend. This is when the fun started! That afternoon all the vessels that were participating in the weekend events rallied in Albany on the Hudson River and started a parade led by the fire boat John J. Harvey - a recently decommission New York Fire Department fire boat which is staffed and restored by volunteers. As the vessels headed up from Albany through the federal locks, boats of all sizes joined in and we operated up the Hudson River to Waterford New York where the Erie Canal Visitor Center is located. This was to be the headquarters for the event for the weekend.

Not having extensive hours on my boat and being alone made me nervous for the event. Directions were given over the VHF radio by the parade coordinator and all boats fell into line in a prescribed position. I was tucked between two large tugboats behind me and in front of two other giant tugboats -but the little Ranger tug kept up and the parade was awesome. People gathered along the shore and as we entered the Waterford Harbor local fire departments had jet streams of water from their ladder trucks going to welcome us to the parade end. It was one of the best times in my boat so far. All the other captains of even large vessels we're welcoming and accommodating to our small vessels and this friendliness would continue throughout the weekend.

After securing all the vessels in prescribed water at the dock, each of us got off our boats and started to introduce ourselves to follow participants.. It seemed like many of the captains of tugs, owners of small mini tugboats, and general Tugboat enthusiasts were old friends and had been attendingthe roundup for many years. As a newbie I was welcomed by them all. After a long day hauling my boat. launching, and the parade I settled in at the end of the evening for a well-deserved beer. This was to be my first night sleeping on the boat.