We biked a section of the Erie Canal Trail near Little Falls, NY recently. The 363-mile canal was completed in 1825 and offered a much shorter route between the Great Lakes and New York City. The state has worked since 1985 on a multi-use recreational path paralleling the canal as part of the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor.
This is a region steeped in history. On our bike ride, we stopped by this house, built in 1764 for Revolutionary War General Nicholas Herkimer. He led local militiamen and allied Oneida warriors to defend Fort Stanwix during the bloody Battle of Oriskany in August 1777.
This pleasure boat is typical of the craft that ply the waters of the Erie Canal now. Parts of the canal utilize the Mohawk River as “in-river” canalways.
The canal uses 57 locks to allow watercraft to navigate between Lake Erie and the Hudson River. Lock E-17, in Little Falls, has the highest lift at 40.5 feet, making it one of the highest single-lift locks in the world.
Further west on the canal, the Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum offered this bucolic view of an historic section of the canal from a bridge. Thunderstorms were prevalent this August day, making for a dramatic background in this photograph.
Dave Thompsen Photography 