Lost At Sea(way)!

    We spent the final day of our mini
vacation in New York's 'Thousand Islands'
Thursday.
    Although we spend a few days there most
every year we are still, technically, 'tourists.'
    So we made sure we did the obligatory stop
in most of the stores along Main Street in
downtown Clayton. Since the street only
covers about three blocks it doesn't take long
to make the rounds!
    And there are interesting things to see!
    One store, a self proclaimed art gallery,
did have plenty of artistic treasures. And it
would have taken a treasure to purchase
most of them! We did find a 500 piece
puzzle of a Lake Freighter sailing along the
Seaway. It was only $26.  I figured it
would be more cost effective to get a
postcard with a similar photo and cut it
into pieces for reassembly at a later date!
     Another store, which featured hardware,
did tempt my buddy and I with a novelty
fishing lure about the size of a sofa! The
$400 price tag prompted us to give up
our shopping tour in favor of one last
cruise on the river.
     We headed in the general direction of
Lake Ontario which is basically west of
the Village of Clayton.
      Channel markers serve as a road map
for sailors. The secret is to keep the red
ones to your right when you're returning
from the sea. If the green ones are on your
left..... you'll in the middle of the
channel!
      We wondered why all the markers
were so far off to our Starboard...that's
the right side for you land lubbers...when
we could clearly see the shortest route
to  our Cape Vincent destination was
to simply follow the shoreline. That's
where the highway is that takes you
there.
     Our question was answered a
couple of miles downstream when we
noticed the boat's depth finder dropping
from 60 and 70 feet to about 3feet.
     The bottom was coming up to
meet us! Seems, in this case, the 'shortest
distance between (our) two points was not
a straight line!
     We decided to trade our 'logical
thinking' for deeper water. We turned
around!
      Though we didn't reach our intended
destination the cruise, under a sunny sky
and in calm waters, was a delightful way
to end our visit to New York State's
"North Country."
      I'm still not exactly sure how many
islands there really are.
      But I do know where the life
preservers and flares are stored!
      Hope you're ready to set sail for
the Labor Day Weekend and that all
your NEWS is good!