A sentimental journey made in 'floating art' A Cayuga County man's gondola odyssey ends as trip begins for international team of gondoliers.(Capital Region)

Byline: CATHY WOODRUFF - Staff Writer

Autumn in New York this year looks a bit like it might if DeWitt Clinton and Henry Hudson had been Italian.

Instead of mule-hauled barges and the Halfmoon's full sails, perhaps our iconic images of the Erie Canal and Hudson River would feature Venetian gondolas gliding along serenely, propelled by striped-shirted gondoliers in straw hats.

Joe Deverell says it's the only way to go.

The 41-year-old Cayuga County industrial engineer spent two weeks traveling from his home on Cross Lake to Waterford on a retired Venetian gondola he purchased five years ago.

"It's been the greatest," he said as he sat at a picnic table at the Waterford Visitor Center shortly after finishing the 180-mile trip. "The gondola is like the pinnacle - the most ornate and artistic. …