(Our eight-day, 400-mile Buffalo to Albany Cycle the Erie Bike Tour with Parks & Trails NY began in 9/11, 9/18, 9/25, 10/2 columns.)
We are in the Finger Lakes, and off the Erie Canal trail which is not restored in this area and we ride on roads through the beautiful rolling countryside (and hilly). In fact, this, the 17th Annual Cycle the Erie bike tour is organized by Parks & Trails NY, a nonprofit dedicated to raising funds and awareness of the need to complete the trail. It would be one of the longest multi-purpose trails in the country. More than that, the trail carries you through the history of the nation, from colonialization through the Revolution, Civil War, Industrial Revolution, the major movements (progressivism, abolition, civil rights, labor rights, women’s rights), right up to the current challenges. And are route takes us through towns and neighborhoods we would never encounter otherwise.
At the morning rest stop arranged at the Port Byron Middle School (Mile 14.1 en route to Syracuse), I meet Donna and Lyle Sheldon, of Havredegrace, Md., grandparents who are squiring their seven-year old granddaughter Jordan Isattlo, and I meet a woman from Germany who said she heard about the Erie Canal ride on the radio. One of the best aspects of this ride are the people you meet – we come from 36 states and half-a-dozen countries. Our bikes have license plates so as you come upon a rider, you know who they are and where they have come from.
We ride into the quaint village of Jordan, distinctive for the lovely murals of historic scenes of the canal on a 19th century brick building. We are greeted by the Mayor who passes out pens and invites us to use the restroom in the Town Hall. The towpath comes through but the Erie Canal was moved away when it was enlarged – the lock was turned into a small park. Here, you can see what it means to lose the canal. A historic marker notes: Opened 1819, abandoned, fall 1917. Aqueduct built 1841 when the canal was enlarged. Canal park built 1932.”
Though the canal no longer runs through here, the ditch still collects water naturally, so appears as a pleasant stream that we ride along.
Just up from Jordan, on a particularly scenic potion of the trail that passes Memphis, locals greet us with ice pops; one of the ladies is responsible for creating a gorgeous garden right on the trail in memory of her son and tells us that she tenders it 6-8 hours a week.
While munching the pop, I chat a bit with the Caldon family from Albany – each of the parents (the father is an Air Force pilot) has a 7-year old twin in a pedal trailer while their 10-year old is on his own bike doing 50 miles a day.
We come to Camillus, where we are greeted with signs “Half way!” as we cross the 200-mile mark (it is midpoint of the original Albany-Buffalo canal route, too). The rest stop has been set up for us here, but inside the Sims Store, they offer us refreshments, as well.
The Sims Store is a replica of the original canal store which would have been located two miles east. You enter the store where a woman in period dress shows off the sort of stuff that would have been on sale to serve the boats. There is an excellent local history section, an Erie Canal Barge display, an 1800’s room, and a section describing the building of the canal including some of the tools used. There is also a wonderful wall-mural of a boat traveling over the Nine Mile Creek Aqueduct on the second floor.
The artifacts on display are very interesting. The docent shows a map of New York State which shows why the Erie Canal was the only route to the West: a relatively flat, open portion cutting through a space between Adirondacks and the Appalachians.
The Sims Store is part of a 164-acre Camillus Erie Canal Park, a town park that preserves a seven mile stretch of the Erie Canal and includes the Nine Mile Creek Aqueduct, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. From the Sims Store you can take a boat ride on the old canal (they offer dinner cruises as well), and many of the cyclists are taking advantage of this (www.eriecanalcamillus.com/museum.htm)
At this point, we ride along the trail (the original towpath), but this part of what would have been the canal is no longer part of the Erie Canal – what looks like a stream now is where the original canal would have been and the water what is naturally collected.
We come to Nine Mile Creek Aqueduct, which is a stunning example of engineering. The aqueduct is a water-filled bridge that carried canal boats over rivers, streams or valleys. This 144 foot waterway enabled the first enlargement of the Erie Canal to be carried over Nine Mile Creek and is listed as the smallest of the larger aqueducts. Four stone arches made of fine Onondaga limestone quarried from Split Rock supported the towpath. Of the 32 original aqueducts on the First Enlargement, only about seven remain intact..
I try to ride in a rush because want to make it to camp in time to also visit Zoo, which will close at 4:30 pm.
I make it to our campground in Syracuse, which is in Burnet Park alongside the Zoo. At the park, we can use the swimming pool and “indoor” campers can set themselves up on the hockey rink. Instantly, a whole tent city rises in front of houses across the street from the park. I set up my tent in a hurry and walk down to the Zoo (free admission for us).
I get to the Zoo just as they are putting the animals inside for the evening (so miss out on seeing the baby elephant who has already been taken inside). There’s still a lot to see.
The Zoo is the venue for our All American dinner – bbq franks and hamburgers and fixings – to the accompaniment of guitarist Chris Farrar who plays in the gazebo. It is a delightful setting.
After dinner, there is a lecture in the Rosamond Gifford Zoo’s auditorium by Ben Willis, of the Erie Canal Museum in Syracuse, who discusses the engineering of the Erie Canal.
Meanwhile, there are shuttle buses available until 9 pm to take us into downtown Syracuse.
The ride today was fairly hilly ride and the canal trail was in relatively poor condition until Jordan (our 400-mile Cycle the Erie ride is a fundraiser for Parks & Trails NY to raise awareness and funds to complete the trail, which is only 70% finished).
The 18th Annual Cycle the Erie Canal ride is scheduled July 10-17, 2016. In the meantime, you can cycle the trail on your own – detailed info is at the ptny.org site, including suggested lodgings. For more information on Cycle the Erie Canal, contact Parks & Trails New York at 518-434-1583 or visit www.ptny.org.
Next: Syracuse’s Erie Canal Museum Highlights Day 5 on 400-Mile Cycle the Erie Bike Tour
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