National Park Service Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor U.S. Department of the Interior Erie Canalway Map & Guide Waterford, Halldor Sigurdsson Waterford, The 20th anniversary of the Waterford Tugboat Roundup takes place in 2019. Experience New York’s A NATIONAL TREASURE Legendary Canals Built between 1817 and 1825, the original Erie Canal “I got a mule and her name is Sal, Fifteen miles on the Erie Canal.” traversed 363 miles from Albany to Buffalo. It was the – Low Bridge, Everybody Down (1905) CONTENTS longest artificial waterway and the greatest public works Get On the Water ........... 2 project in North America. eople from all over the world have heard the “Erie Canal The canal put New York on Canal Tours ................. 2 song.” Its catchy tune conjures images of trusty mules, the map as the Empire State— NYS Canalway Water Trail .... 3 the leader in population, friendly folks, long journeys, and low bridges. Even though P What is that? ............... 3 industry, and economic Sal went out to pasture long ago, America’s most famous canals strength. It transformed New Erie Canalway Map .......... 4 are still thriving and open for you to enjoy. York City into the nation’s Way to Go! principal seaport and opened The legendary Erie Canal, along with the Champlain, Oswego, and Cayuga-Seneca Enjoy the Canalway Trail ...... 6 the interior of North America canals remain in service as America’s oldest continuously operating canal system. You to settlement. Cycling with Kids ............ 6 can still board a boat in Albany and travel all the way to Buffalo. You can also follow Equally important, the Erie where mules once trod, riding your bike or hiking along the former towpath, now Canalway Challenge ......... 7 Canal became a central transformed into the Erie Canalway Trail. element forging our national Along the way, be prepared to experience the rich history, hometown hospitality, and 2019 Canal Festivals & Events ................... 8 identity. Built with a combina- numerous attractions that make the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor a tion of vision, determination, remarkable place to visit and live. Nowhere else will you find the celebrated low bridges ingenuity, and hard work, and mighty locks of the NYS Canal System. Nowhere else will you discover towns and the Erie Canal solidified these cities whose canal waterfronts open onto historic main streets with unique restaurants, central elements of our Erie Canalway Map & Guide shops, museums, and other attractions. American character. Explore fifteen miles or all five hundred! Your trip will leave you humming that old 2019-2020 tune and inspired to come again. Waterford, Stefanie Obkirchner Waterford, Get on the Water! What is that? Macedon, Sandi Osterwise New York’s canal system is famous for its engineering. As you travel, you’ll see locks, bridges, gates, and other structures used to operate the canal system today. You’ll also discover the remarkable remains of stone locks, aqueducts and other structures used in the 1800s. The NYS Canal System is comprised of the Erie, Champlain, Cayuga- Seneca, and Oswego canals encompassing more than 500 miles of interconnected canals, rivers, and lakes. The waterway is typically NYS Canalway Water Trail open to navigation from mid-May through October. Tolls for going Get close to the water and experience New York’s canals by kayak, canoe and stand-up Lock 1800s Lock paddleboard. With more than 140 public access points for paddlers, its easier than ever to through locks have been waived Locks are elevators for boats, lifting and Stone-walled locks used in the 1800s enjoy the waterway. Paddlers navigate century old locks, pass stunning stone aqueducts in celebration of the canals’ lowering them as they travel along the were replaced by much larger and fewer used to carry boats over rivers and streams in the 1800s; paddle alongside tugboats and bicentennial. waterway. Today, there are 57 locks on concrete structures between 1905 and cruisers; and experience narrow flatwater stretches and wider river segments. For a elax and enjoy the NYS Canal System There are more than 140 public access sites for boaters and New York’s canal system, including 35 1918. You can see many of them in parks paddlers along the NYS Canal System where you can launch your constructed waterway, the canal is surprisingly serene and natural. Paddlers can expect to on a canal boat tour, dinner cruise, The New York State Canal System on the Erie Canal, 11 on the Champlain throughout the national heritage corridor. own boat. The Erie Canal connects with Oneida, Onondaga, Cross, see a diversity of birds and wildlife, unique geology, and varying terrain. is operated by the New York State Canal, seven on the Oswego Canal, and or multi-day voyage. You’ll find tours Cayuga and Seneca Lakes where you can enjoy other water NEW YORK STATE CANALWAY WATER TRAIL 4 MAP SET WATER CANALWAY STATE NEW YORK four on the Cayuga-Seneca Canal. Canal Corporation, a subsidiary of 4 MAP SET WATER & TEAR RESISTANT R sports, beaches, and sailing. Marinas and public docks provide MAP SET within an hour’s drive of every major city in the NYS Canalway Water Trail Guidebook Whitehall ERIE CANAL OSWEGO CANAL CHAMPLAIN CANAL the New York Power Authority. Rochester N G B C H I ERIE CANAL D F M services and overnight accommodations. Many communities A J K CAYUGA–SENECA CANAL E Syracuse Little Falls L Buffalo Waterford Canalway Corridor. You can also rent a boat and MAP 1 MAP 2 MAP 3 MAP 4 offer showers, laundry facilities, hook-ups, and other boater For current information, a full and Navigational Map Set JOIN THE CONVERSATION! www.facebook.com/groups/NYSCanalwayWaterTrail take your own self-skippered vacation. Rental calendar of events, and up-to-date This map set was developed by the Erie Canalway National 4 MAP SET amenities right in the center of town. Heritage Corridor and its not-for-profit partner the Erie Canalway A SERIES OF FOUR MAPS WITH Heritage Fund, Inc., in partnership with the New York State Canal VITAL INFORMATION FOR PADDLING The NYS Canalway Water Trail Guidebook Corporation and the National Park Service Rivers, Trails and Notices to Mariners, visit Conservation Assistance program (RTCA). THE NEW YORK STATE CANAL SYSTEM boats are well-equipped with sleeping quarters, If you are yearning for a longer journey, look no further. The The NYS Canalway Water Trail and Navigational Map Set are indispensable Guidebook is an indispensable resource for paddlers. This mile-by-mile guide includes NYS Canal System links the Hudson River with Lake Champlain, canals.ny.gov. launch sites, amenities, and places of interest for the entire resources for paddlers. The mile-by-mile 524-mile NYS Canal System. a galley, and plenty of deck space for relaxing. For guide availability, please visit www.eriecanalway.org/ Lake Ontario, and Lake Erie via the Niagara River, allowing boaters guide includes launch sites, paddler- watertrail. You’ll get lessons in steering, docking, and locking to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the upper Great Lakes. Rivers, Trails, and Conservation friendly facilities and amenities, and places Assistance Generous financial assistance was provided by: Market NY through I LOVE NY, New York State’s Division of Tourism, as ErieCanalway.org/WaterTrail before heading out. a part of the State’s Regional Economic Development Council initiative; the of interest along the Erie, Cayuga-Seneca, ISBN 978-1-7336901-1-9 National Park Service; New York State 90000 Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation; the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties, Inc.; The NYS Canalway Water Trail features paddler-friendly Rome Community Foundation; Mohawk facilities along the 524-mile New York State Canal System, Valley Collective; and individual donors. including the Erie, Champlain, Cayuga-Seneca and Oswego Oswego and Champlain canals. It will 9781733 690119 Canals. The trail welcomes paddlers of all abilities to explore and enjoy this scenic and historic waterway. ®NYS DED help you get on the water for a few hours, ErieCanalway.org/WaterTrail ErieCanalway.org/WaterTrail an entire day, or to plan an overnight trip or paddling vacation. NEW Lift Bridge Movable Dam Built between 1905 and 1918, 16 lift Eight movable dams between Schenectady CANAL TOURS No boat, no problem! To request guidebook and bridges still carry traffic over the Erie and Fort Plain regulate water flow on the map set, contact us at You’ll find rental outfitters and tour Canal in western New York. When a boat Mohawk River. Dam gates are lowered [email protected] or Capital Region, Hudson River and Greater Rochester Area, Erie Canal Finger Lakes, Cayuga-Seneca Canal Vacation Boat Rentals and operators at numerous locations along approaches, the operator stops traffic on into the river to form navigable pools visit eriecanalway.org/watertrail Champlain Canal • Colonial Belle—Erie Canal Cruises, • Canalside Experiences, Waterloo, Multi-Day Cruises the canal. Find a complete list online at the roadway and raises the deck of the during the summer but are pulled out of to download. • Captain J.P. Cruise Line, Troy (Hudson Fairport, colonialbelle.com canalside.net • American Waterways Cruise Lines, eriecanalway.org/watertrail. bridge 15 feet to give clearance for the water in winter to clear the way for ice River), captainjp.com • Cornhill Navigation, Pittsford, • Captain Bill’s, Watkins Glen, cruiseamericanwaterways.com passing boats. Stairs and walkways allow and debris-filled floodwaters. pedestrians to cross while the bridge is up. • Dutch Apple Cruises, Albany (Hudson sampatch.org senecaharborstation.com • Blount Small Ship Adventures, River), dutchapplecruises.com • Discover Cayuga Lake, Ithaca, blountsmallshipadventures.com Western NY, Erie Canal, Buffalo • Mohawk Maiden Cruises, Champlain discovercayugalake.org • Canal Princess Charters, River, Niagara River, Lake Erie Canal Lock 5, Schuylerville, • Finger Lakes Boat Tours, Waterloo, N.