Upside down bridges in Erie Canal? [Cal_Boats] CAL-20(Chris H.)

--- On Tue, 2/10/09, John Boyce <je… [at] gmail.com> wrote: From: John Boyce <je… [at] gmail.com> Subject: RE: 14 Days on the Erie Canal was: Re: Trip from Cape Cod? was:RE: [Cal_Boats] CAL-20(Chris H.) To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Date: Tuesday, February 10, 2009, 8:22 PM  The state set a requirement that the road bed be 20 feet above the water, however the railroads realized that there was no requirement for structure above the water so they built their bridges upside down with the superstructure under the bridge. This keeps the clearance significantly less than 20 feet. Sounds reasonable, but then they should have added in a requirement that the trains to cross the upside down canal bridges upside down as well! Jerry. PS: On the other hand, if you can sail your boat upside down then you only have to worry about keel clearance. Unfortunately, I understand the original requirement from the early 19th century was for a canal just four feet deep. From: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com [mailto:Cal_ Boats@yahoogroup s.com] On Behalf Of Bob Ellison Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2009 10:25 PM To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com Subject: Re: 14 Days on the Erie Canal was: Re: Trip from Cape Cod? was:RE: [Cal_Boats] CAL-20(Chris H.)  Mast comes down in Albany and back up in Oswego (or Buffalo if you go the entire length). No lift bridges, I thinks it's about a 20' clearance. Bob ----- Original Message ----- From: Chris h To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2009 8:20 PM Subject: Re: 14 Days on the Erie Canal was: Re: Trip from Cape Cod? was:RE: [Cal_Boats] CAL-20(Chris H.) On Tuesday 10 February 2009 20:14:39 Lord Nougat wrote: > Low bridge! Everybody down! > Does that mean you have to unstep your mast to get through the Erie Canal, > or have they fixed that since the inception of that song? As far as I know the bridges are now all either lift, tilt or twist. However you need to meet a schedule. Here's an interactive map that lays out the entire system; http://www.nyscanal s.gov/maps/ index.html Enjoy. Mules are optional. -- /ch

The four foot clearance was for the Erie Canal the present canal is the Erie Barge Canal with a slightly different route and much different dimensions _____ From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Gerald Sobel Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 3:16 AM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: Upside down bridges in Erie Canal? [Cal_Boats] CAL-20(Chris H.) --- On Tue, 2/10/09, John Boyce <je… [at] gmail.com> wrote: From: John Boyce <je… [at] gmail.com> Subject: RE: 14 Days on the Erie Canal was: Re: Trip from Cape Cod? was:RE: [Cal_Boats] CAL-20(Chris H.) To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Date: Tuesday, February 10, 2009, 8:22 PM  The state set a requirement that the road bed be 20 feet above the water, however the railroads realized that there was no requirement for structure above the water so they built their bridges upside down with the superstructure under the bridge. This keeps the clearance significantly less than 20 feet. Sounds reasonable, but then they should have added in a requirement that the trains to cross the upside down canal bridges upside down as well! Jerry. PS: On the other hand, if you can sail your boat upside down then you only have to worry about keel clearance. Unfortunately, I understand the original requirement from the early 19th century was for a canal just four feet deep. _____ From: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com [mailto:Cal_ Boats@yahoogroup s.com] On Behalf Of Bob Ellison Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2009 10:25 PM To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com Subject: Re: 14 Days on the Erie Canal was: Re: Trip from Cape Cod? was:RE: [Cal_Boats] CAL-20(Chris H.)  Mast comes down in Albany and back up in Oswego (or Buffalo if you go the entire length). No lift bridges, I thinks it's about a 20' clearance. Bob From: Chris h To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2009 8:20 PM Subject: Re: 14 Days on the Erie Canal was: Re: Trip from Cape Cod? was:RE: [Cal_Boats] CAL-20(Chris H.) On Tuesday 10 February 2009 20:14:39 Lord Nougat wrote: > Low bridge! Everybody down! > Does that mean you have to unstep your mast to get through the Erie Canal, > or have they fixed that since the inception of that song? As far as I know the bridges are now all either lift, tilt or twist. However you need to meet a schedule. Here's an interactive map that lays out the entire system; http://www.nyscanal s.gov/maps/ <http://www.nyscanals.gov/maps/index.html> index.html Enjoy. Mules are optional. -- /ch