Shoreham, Vermont - July 23, 2009
Set foot on the Carillon and journey back in time to the days of the American Revolution.
Paul Saenger is the captain of this time travel vessel-- the only boat around offering cruises on the southern half of Lake Champlain.
Carillon cruises depart from Shoreham and head south toward Whitehall, N.Y.
"There's more history here. There's more wildlife here and you can see there's fewer camps and fewer houses," Saenger said.
Passengers gaze out at the scenery as they sit in seats from Burlington's old Memorial Auditorium.
The boat travels the water route followed by Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys when they captured Fort Ticonderoga more than 200 years ago.
"When I talk to the people on the boat I'm living that. I'm not really trying to relay Ethan Allen's story, I'm Ethan Allen." Saenger explained.
"This is great fun and we love history," said Tom McGowan of Sudbury, Mass. "We live right next to a historical area so this is perfect. It's right up our alley."
But if history puts you to sleep-- the scenery will serve as a jolt of caffeine.
So will the interesting stories about the people who have lived along the lake's shore.
Poultney's J.T. Bewell invented the fishing lure.
"He was fishing through the ice," Saenger recounted. "He dropped his mother's silver spoon. It went fluttering down the column of light, a northern pike swings by, swallows the spoon, he gets the idea, goes home, grabs another spoon and attaches it and invents the modern-day lure."
And then there are the ship wrecks.
Sonar imaging on the boat allows passengers a view of the floor of the lake-- revealing everything from sunken boats to railroad cars.
"It's about an 80-foot long canal boat and it's right in the middle of the channel where it sank," Saenger said.
The boat turns around in Orwell Bay-- site of the latest invasion on the lake.
Zebra mussels were discovered here in 1990 and have been multiplying ever since.
"You learn ecology, you learn about the zebra mussels. That's something people need to know," said Rene Saenger of Carillon Cruises.
It's a cruise for young and old alike, no matter what your interest.
Gene Bitz of Syracuse, N.Y., said, "And the mermaids we saw, they were awesome! Woooh!! I never thought I'd live to see a live one."
A trip bound to leave you smiling long after you step off the boat-- setting foot back in reality and present day Vermont.
The one and half hour cruises depart five days a week from Shoreham and once a week out of Whitehall, N.Y. Those trips take you south through Lock 12 before heading north into Lake Champlain. All of the cruises cost $14 a person, $10 for kids 11 and younger.
Click here for more information about Carillon cruises.
Keagan Harsha - WCAX News
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