Federal Lock #1 SUCKS!!

We made it through the whole canal system, and had one lock to go, Federal Lock Number 1. Through the whole damn canal system we had ropes, and cables. In the FED lock, we have nothing but pipes, and they are spaced so that our 44 foot boat can only access one. I can't tell you how hard it is to control a 44 foot sailboat in a lock with a strong west wind with only one stronghold. Morons can't afford ropes like the State locks! We got blown diagonally in the lock, and our mast wedged on top of the concrete wall before we were about to deep dive. I yelled to the tools to stop the process, and one of the morons gave me instruction over the radio to put a line around the pipe. "No shit Sherlock! What about the other two thirds of the fu#$ing boat! I tell you, it really took some throttle and spinning of the wheel to get us out of some really nasty stuff going down. Poor Deb, I thought she was going to pass out. We finally switched to the other side of the lock to avoid the wind and we settled down enough to descend. The jackwagon had the nerve to yell at me over the radio asking for my doc number as we left, which I didn't have handy at the time I was having an aneurism. Later, at the bar, I thought I should have used my best  Joe Pesci voice and said "You'll get my Fking number when you hang some fking ropes in the lock!"

Sorry for the outrage, but what we just went through was horrible. No damage, as far as I can see, just damn irritating. We tried to stop at Waterford, but some little friggin tugboats were in town, and we weren't allowed to stop there, so that the cute little boats had a place to dock. Ended up at the Troy docks behind a really excellent brew pub, so all is well now. The docks suck really bad, and the neighborhood is sketchy. The Dockmaster told me to throw some change in the mail slot for the nights stay. I'll be up all frigging night now, waiting for the shooting to start.

Cheers!