Erie Canal with 2 year old

[chad.lawie]

Erie Canal with 2 year old

This summer we traveled the entire length of the Erie Canal. It was pretty fun. I'd have to say my favorite stop was Fairport, but we also really enjoyed Buffalo if you consider that part of the Erie Canal.

It's amazing how well maintained the whole canal is. Some of the lock walls are rough, but other than that, everything is meticulously maintained and we found all the lock tenders to be really friendly.

As far as having a toddler on the canal, it was pretty nice. Most of the docks are free or very low cost in nice park areas where he could run around after we stopped for the day.

[MarkSF]

I was hoping to see some good shots of the scenery, maybe some descriptions of the surroundings and local history. Instead most of it is interior shots and the few shots of the scenery are ruined by being sped up. See "keep turning left" to see how it should be done.

[chad.lawie]

Thanks for the feedback! Will do.

[chad.lawie]

Originally Posted by MarkSF

See "keep turning left" to see how it should be done.

I checked out "keep turning left". Good stuff. I don't believe there is only one way it "should be done" but I enjoyed his post-recorded narration. It reminded me of "Hold Fast" which I really liked as well.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by chad.lawie

This summer we traveled the entire length of the Erie Canal. It was pretty fun. I'd have to say my favorite stop was Fairport, but we also really enjoyed Buffalo if you consider that part of the Erie Canal.

It's amazing how well maintained the whole canal is. Some of the lock walls are rough, but other than that, everything is meticulously maintained and we found all the lock tenders to be really friendly.

As far as having a toddler on the canal, it was pretty nice. Most of the docks are free or very low cost in nice park areas where he could run around after we stopped for the day.

I wish I saw your child living in a PFD.

[ALAIN97133]

Originally Posted by MarkSF

I was hoping to see some good shots of the scenery, maybe some descriptions of the surroundings and local history. Instead most of it is interior shots and the few shots of the scenery are ruined by being sped up. See "keep turning left" to see how it should be done.

I did the Erie Canal from Buffalo to the Hudson river last July with my 22 year old son: Here are some pictures:

https://plus.google.com/photos/10591...47753163517201
https://plus.google.com/photos/10591...39470927341361
https://plus.google.com/photos/10591...21611177488481
https://plus.google.com/photos/10591...31840706311121
https://plus.google.com/photos/10591...35997796699041
https://plus.google.com/photos/10591...08733939832081
https://plus.google.com/photos/10591...28274296949057

[valhalla360]

Loved the erie canal. We are planing to spend most of next summer on the canal as we slowly make our way east before shipping to europe and trying the canals over there.

[chad.lawie]

Original video deleted. Updated video:

Erie Canal

[chad.lawie]

Originally Posted by Cadence

I wish I saw your child living in a PFD.

Federal Regulations mandate children under 13 wear an approved PFD whenever a recreational boat is underway, unless below decks or in a cabin.

In addition to wearing a life jacket, we often put Hobie on a tether as well.


If you are some how implying that "boats are dangerous" or that we are "bad parents" for not having our child in a life jacket 100% of the time (including while asleep down below) I can easily point you to research detailing all the dangers found in your home. For example, twice and many toddlers will die from choking on hot dogs this year than they will from boating related accidents.

Drowning accounts for about 1/3 of toddler fatalities, 70% of those deaths occur in the home. Of course the leading cause of unintentional death is driving in a car.

So if you are being judgmental, I'd suggest you alter your judgement from telling me to "put my child in a life jacket" to "all parents everywhere should put their children in a bubble and feed them baby food until at least 13 years of age."

Sorry if I seem defensive. but I am defensive.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by chad.lawie

Federal Regulations mandate children under 13 wear an approved PFD whenever a recreational boat is underway, unless below decks or in a cabin.

In addition to wearing a life jacket, we often put Hobie on a tether as well.


If you are some how implying that "boats are dangerous" or that we are "bad parents" for not having our child in a life jacket 100% of the time (including while asleep down below) I can easily point you to research detailing all the dangers found in your home. For example, twice and many toddlers will die from choking on hot dogs this year than they will from boating related accidents.

Drowning accounts for about 1/3 of toddler fatalities, 70% of those deaths occur in the home. Of course the leading cause of unintentional death is driving in a car.

So if you are being judgmental, I'd suggest you alter your judgement from telling me to "put my child in a life jacket" to "all parents everywhere should put their children in a bubble and feed them baby food until at least 13 years of age."

Sorry if I seem defensive. but I am defensive.

No offense meant. Just caution. It only take a minute for a child to make an unexpected move.

[chad.lawie]

Very true. Totally agree.

Docks scare me more than the boat. Child safety is one of the reasons we were interested in switching to a catamaran. The boat is essentially a center cockpit with several barriers including lifelines (we added netting) before the edge, and there is always a parent on "toddler watch".

Docks on the other hand just have an edge, and parents are not only chasing a toddler but carrying backpacks, groceries, laundry, whatever it might be.

[rwidman]

Just a suggestion:

When you add music to a video that's not related to the video you take the chance of offending some of your potential viewers, both by the volume of the music and the style of the music. Best to keep it low key and remember that while you may like a certain type of music, your potential viewers may not. Something generic and instrumental is probably the best choice.

[chad.lawie]

Originally Posted by rwidman

Just a suggestion:

When you add music to a video that's not related to the video you take the chance of offending some of your potential viewers, both by the volume of the music and the style of the music. Best to keep it low key and remember that while you may like a certain type of music, your potential viewers may not. Something generic and instrumental is probably the best choice.

Good point. Thanks for the feedback!

[chad.lawie]

I'm going to assume you were talking about the song "ain't no rest for the wicked" I hadn't thought about how that song might offend someone.

I don't think the song is promoting bad behavior as much as it is saying "isn't it sad that people in the world live this way"

... but yeah that song was probably a bad choice.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by chad.lawie

I'm going to assume you were talking about the song "ain't no rest for the wicked" I hadn't thought about how that song might offend someone.

I don't think the song is promoting bad behavior as much as it is saying "isn't it sad that people in the world live this way"

... but yeah that song was probably a bad choice.

I wasn't really paying attention to the particular song or listening to the words, it's just that the music turned me off.

My point is, you should consider your audience which is likely a wide variety of people.