This one goes out to my good friend, Young Andrew

Copperheaded Water Moccasin

Artist's rendition of a Copperheaded Water Moccasin

Every time we'd see a snake when I was fishing with my dad, he'd tell me it was a Copperheaded Water Moccasin. I really don't know if there is such a thing, but I do know my dad wouldn't let me join the Boy Scouts because he once got in an argument with a Scout Master about whether there were any Copperheads native to Kentucky, where I was born.

Of course, he played it off saying that I wouldn't want to be a Scout, because all they did was make coin purses and earn Merit Badges, but I knew the real story. He was just pissed about that stubborn Scout Master.

Doug Fry and his Border Collie, Emmie, found some Copperheads on a walk just outside the marina at Midlakes. Doug has 1968 Bristol sailboat that he's rehabing and plans on taking it down to the Florida Keys later this season.

We had to double check and see whether Copperheads really were native to New York State, and guess what? They are! Sure, they mostly tend to work out of Albany, but at least we won't have to argue with any Scout Masters.

So, anyway, watch out for snakes!

Camelot Launches

Camelot makes it's slow way to the water

Jean and Paul Miller's Holiday Mansion Camelot launched this Friday. You may have noticed Jean and Paul's boat moored in Fairport, they're regulars and in fact they were the first folks I got to know when I started boating on the Canal.

Their houseboat is one of the larger craft along the quay and they can usually be found sitting up on the rear deck. They're the boat with Canalligator sitting proudly on their swim platform, don'tcha know. It works as a pretty good scarecrow, and keeps the ducks from making a mess on the deck.

The original Canalligator was quite the attraction, especially for the younger kids walking along the quay with their parents after having gotten lucky with an Ice Cream cone. Alas, the first Canalligator disappeared one night, and we kinda suspect foul play. Or maybe the ducks ganged up and it was Fowl Play! Anyway, they've since replaced the old Canalligator with a new model, but we still miss the original.

Welcome back Jean and Paul!

Birdie James gets Wet

Don Cartwright on the stern of Birdie James as she launches

Don Cartwright's boat, Birdie James was dropped back into the drink this Saturday, all 13 tons of her. Don has done a boatload (heh) of work on Birdie over the winter, including replacing a considerable amount of deck and ceiling.

Birdie James is a relative newcomer to the canal as Don purchased her last year and brought her down from Connecticut. She's a Bluewater Yacht with an impressive amount of room on board. Her open deck plan really allows passengers to spread out and Don has lots of plans for more custom upgrades in the future.

Midlakes Launches New Boats

Harriet H. Wiles

Hanging out around marinas can be a lot of fun, especially ones like Midlakes in Macedon, NY. Midlakes is home to Midlakes Navigation's fleet of Canal hire boats, which you can rent for cruises up and down the canal. The houseboats are styled after European Narrowboats, and are what amount to floating condominiums, or at the very least a floating luxury apartment.

Midlakes has been providing this service with boats that they design and build for generations. In fact, Midlakes built the Sam Patch, but that's another story. Peter Wiles, owner and operator explained to me that they had built around twenty boats, and have been in the process of buying back several boats that they had sold over the years, so that now their fleet is around 14 boats in all.

Peter Wiles

One of the boats that had been purchased back from an individual has been re-built and was recently launched as the Harriet H. Wiles, named in honor of Peter's mother.

Designed as a single-couple rental, with deluxe appointments, Harriet is both spacious and modern. The boat also has some updated features, including an enclosed cockpit, which will make for more comfortable navigation, especially in inclement weather.