Sunday, September 13, 2009

Widewaters Canal Park


Widewater Canal Park in Palmyra, NY. is the newest boat launch on the Erie Canal that we've tried, and so far our most favorite one. It is located about 40 minutes east of Pittsford going down Rt. 31. We have been spending a good chunk of time there for the last two afternoons/evenings exploring the surroundings. The boat ramp is at one end of a lake called Widewaters, little over a one mile long with some small houses and fishing huts on one side and a wooded trail on the other. It takes me about 45 minutes to get through the lake going west and get into the narrower part of the canal. The area is rather rustic with many fallen trees and branches on the edges. Lots of great blue herons live here. They seems to be annoyed and fly away while making loud duck noises when we come within 50 meters of them. Once we saw a really mean looking one walking down a tree branch in Fairport. There are also countless schools of bait fish swimming around at the eastern end of the lake going into the canal. They can be easily spotted from the rough patches of water on the otherwise calm surface. If we sneak up on them quietly we can see the little fishes swim around our boat often going in circles uniformly just like the huge bait balls seen on the Discovery channel. I've never seen anything like it. At times they all jump out of the water simultaneously making a splashing sound and leaving bubbles on the surface when they fall back down.

Knowing that there are many fishes here we brought our fishing pole along this afternoon. I rowed four miles east from the dock to Galloway's Rd bridge. The water is more stagnant here but with so many bait fish around it almost looks like the surface is boiling especially under the bright sunlight. I started to cast my lure into the rough patches and within minutes I got a big one on the hook. A bit unsure, I passed the pole to Rob hoping he would wheel it in. As I reached for the camera the big fish gave a good jolt just as it came close to the surface and broke the line. We probably had a 8-lb bass on the line and almost a delicious fish dinner. Too bad he took everything and now he's got a lip piercing with a minnow attached to it. I paid good money for that cute hand-painted French-made minnow! :(
The sun was setting quickly and we were loosing daylight. It was dark by the time we finally got back to the dock. The mosquitoes were out and so were the bats. I trust that they would not fly into us with their advanced radar system but still, at times they speed by just a bit too close for my comfort. Luckily by now we've gotten more experienced with launching and loading the boat, doing it in the dark wasn't too bad. Although no fish dinner were caught I really enjoyed being out on the water and getting some upper body exercise. Definitely a spot we will be coming back soon.

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