Little Falls

by Tom Larsen

Little Falls is a unique place on the canal. Housing the lock with the highest single lift on the canal, it’s one of the places that you look down into the town as you traverse the canal channel. When we arrived, we were greeted with open arms by Chris, the harbormaster, as well as a group of the local partners. Shortly after the Lois had docked, Ian Montgomery’s parents arrived on their boat, the Red Hook, bringing Ian some cold weather clothing and his guitar on their way to partake in the New York State Canal Conference.

The evening we arrived, the organizations that partnered to bring us to Little Falls put on a barbeque for the crew. With the weather still being nice, we were treated to a huge amount of great home cooked food, good company, and a wonderful setting.

The crew was given a day off after we arrived, and we all spent time exploring the area. Little Falls has some antique stores that caught the attention of many of the crew. Ship’s Carpenter Kerry Batdorf and Ian’s father, Dennis Montgomery, had a minor competition about who could find the best old woodworking tools.

Little Falls is also home to something called “potholes.” Not like the ones in a gravel road after a rainstorm, these are geologic formations created by sediments in the Mohawk River that got caught in an eddy. These eddies would wear away the stone, creating holes in the bedrock, and leaving the stone looking like an alien landscape. Located on Moss Island between Lock 17 and the Mohawk River, there are hiking trails through the woods that a handful of the crew explored. The scenery was something I had never experienced before. I couldn’t decide if it was something out of a Tolkien novel or a science fiction movie. Either way, it is something that will stick with me for a long time.

Special Thanks to:

• New York State Canal Corporation
• City of Little Falls
• Mayor Robert Peters
• Main Street First
• Rob Richard
• Kim Kelley
• Harbormaster Chris

Tom Larsen
First Mate