Yesterday, the Albany Bicycling Coalition, a local advocacy organization, offered a historical tour of Erie Canal artifacts between downtown Albany, the Canal's original terminus, and Cohoes, about 12 miles to the north. Many of the 18 former locks in this stretch have been nearly lost or forgotten, and the original canal long since paved over. But with a little research, it's possible to find them, and our leader did just that.

We probably saw stonework or other evidence from at least 12-14 of these old locks, and many were far off the beaten path and covered with weeds. Others, like Lock 1 in North Albany, have been excavated somewhat and preserved as historic sites. This one was actually a "weigh lock", one of only 3 on the system, where canal boats and their cargoes were weighed to determine the appropriate canal toll.

Continuing northward and passing many of the other 17 locks, we finally arrived in Cohoes, where the falls of the Mohawk River were running high and were spectacular. (Read more)

This route and area is well covered in our book,  Cycling Along The Canals of New York State.  

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Cohoes Falls photo by Bobistraveling

Another spot that Louis Rossi, author of Cycling Along The Canals of New York State, recently revisited during his bike tour along portions of the Erie Canal was the Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum.

The museum is located within the Old Erie Canal State Historic Park in Central New York State. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 96-foot long cargo boats were built and repaired on this site. The Museum tells of the construction of these boats, the workings of the restored dry docks and the social history of the canal area.  It's another wonderful part of the history along the Canalway bike trail.

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photo by Louis Rossi    More photos are here

Louis Rossi, author of Cycling Along The Canals of New York State, recently revisited the Camillus Erie Canal Park.  Established in 1972, the Park is part of the Town of Camillus Park system as well as the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor.  Rossi was impressed with the restoration of the aqueduct, calling it “the most impressive aqueduct on the entire Erie Canal.”

The 1844 Nine Mile Creek Aqueduct has just been restored.  An aqueduct is a water-filled bridge that carries canal boats over rivers, streams or valleys. It provided a way for the first enlargement of the Erie Canal to be carried over Nine Mile Creek. This 144 foot waterway is listed as the smallest of the larger aqueducts. Four stone arches made of fine Onondaga limestone quarried form Split Rock supported the towpath. Now that restoration is complete, it is the only restored navigable aqueduct in New York State. Of the 32 original aqueducts on the First Enlargement, only about seven remain intact.

We have posted more photos by Louis Rossi of the aqueduct here.

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Have you got - or are you getting - a Kindle?  We have some of our titles available as eBooks through Amazon.com.  There's a money-back guarantee so take a look.  We'll be putting some of our vintage cycling titles up soon.

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Pick a fall day, pack a lunch, check the bike and take a nice 25 mile ride along the Mohawk-Hudson Bikeway, part of the Canalway Trail,  a great paved, off-road pathway that extends from Cohoes to Schenectady. This article is adapted from Louis Rossi's Cycling Along The Canals of New York State.

However, it does follow the south shore of the Mohawk River and misses some important historic Erie Canal sites on the north shore. I’ll outline this option in this post and then later, describe a similar ride if you are comfortable riding on-road, that follows the newly designated Mohawk Towpath Byway, a new scenic byway that closely follows the original Erie Canal.  This can also be a nice fifty-mile round-trip which we’ll also describe in later posts.

So you’ll have to figure out car drops for this one way trip.  Probably the Visitor’s Center in Waterford is one option and somewhere within the Stockade Historic District for the other.

Start   Waterford's Canal Harbor Welcome Center

This new visitor’s center overlooks the harbor and the grand entrance to the present day NY State Barge Canal system. An additional short hike along the waterfront will bring you along side Lock 2 where, during the busy warm months of the year, you can see, up close, how a lock works.

Stop 1: Cohoes Harmony Mills District

Cycle west on Broad Street and then south on State Route 32. After crossing the bridge over the Mohawk take a right on Cortland Street which becomes North Mohawk Street.  It’s about two miles to the Harmony Mill District.

The first mill was erected in 1837 between the Erie Canal and the Mohawk River. Construction of other mill buildings followed. When completed in 1872, Harmony Mill #3 was the largest individual cotton factory in the world. Locals know the mill as "Mastodon Mill" because of the complete skeleton of a prehistoric mastodon discovered during construction of the building. A brochure containing a "Self Guided Tour: Harmony Mills Historic District" is available from the Spindle City Historical Society by phoning 518-237-7999.

Lock 18, a National Register of Historic Places site, is the best-preserved lock. It is easy to find being near the Cohoes Falls, just off Mohawk Street, before the turn up Manor Street to the Mohawk-Hudson Bikepath. Lock 18 brought the Erie Canal to an elevation of 188 feet above sea level. This was high enough to enable the canal to be carried over the Mohawk River on a stone aqueduct up ahead at Crescent

Stop 2: Cohoes Falls

Continue west on North Mohawk Street, turn right on Front Street, left on Cataract Street. Be sure not to miss the fall overlook-- it is at the intersection of Cataract and School Streets.  These falls were a sacred place to the Mohawk Indians.  Indian lore explains that the Mohawk Indian Hiawatha conceived of the Iroquois Confederation while meditating at this spot.  Since the Mohawk is the source of water for today’s canal locks, the falls can only be seen in full splendor during the spring.  In the autumn after a dry summer, all the water is diverted for canal usage, leaving the falls dry.

 

With a vertical drop of more than 70 feet, the Falls extends approximately 1000 feet across the Mohawk River between the City of Cohoes and the Town of Waterford. Water power provided by the falls was significant in the development of several large knitting mills that became leading manufacturers of cotton textiles, thus earning the name 'Spindle City' for the municipality.

Heading away from the falls, look for Manor Street. Make the left. After another short climb, you will come to the Bikeway. Turn right.  You will follow this excellent trail all the way to Schenectady.  

The Mohawk-Hudson Bikeway offers a beautiful ride along the Mohawk River and the Erie Barge Canal. Town parks in Colonie and Niskayuna are open to bicyclists. Also, there is a small park at the old Niskayuna rail depot and one at Canal Lock 7. Most of these spots offer water and restrooms but no food is available between Cohoes and Schenectady on this route.

This segment of Canalway Trail is built atop the roadbed of the Troy & Schenectady Railroad (opened in 1842). This railroad was built to connect the first railroad bridge across the Hudson River, at Troy, with the predecessors of the New York Central Railroad at Schenectady.  The plan was to place Troy astride this famous railroad route.  However, shortly afterward, the first railroad bridge at Albany was built — the railroad main line remained through Albany, and this little railroad to Troy became a branch line.  As you travel westward, you will see the close intertwining of canal history and railroad history.

Stop 3: Aqueduct/Rexford

Up ahead, along the Mohawk-Hudson Bikeway, you’ll find another small canal park just before Schenectady at Aqueduct/Rexford. Here, you can see portions of the Rexford Aqueduct which once carried the original Erie Canal across the Mohawk River to the south shore again.  This was one of the longest aqueducts ever built in New York (610 feet long with 14 arches) and it’s definitely worth a stop. This site is a popular spot for canoeists and scullers. There are a number of sculling boathouses and a commercial store, “The Boat House,” which rents canoes and offers sculling lessons. You may spot a local boat race as you cycle past.

The aqueduct was built of cut limestone in 1842  Remnants of the aqueduct foundation are visible alongside the State Route 146 Rexford Bridge over the Mohawk.

This view shows the two remaining towpath arches and the prism supports which are on the south side of the Mohawk River (the Niskayuna side ). Originally there were 14 arches and the aqueduct was 610 feet long. It remained in use until 1916 when the modern Barge Canal was opened. To accomodate the barge traffic on the Barge Canal the center arches were removed. Later in 1964 all but three ( these two and one on the Rexford side) of the remaining arches were dismantled . These stones were numbered and stored on the south side of the Mohawk River at Aqueduct Park. The piles of stone are along the old towpath, in the prism of the canal. The single remaining arch on the north side of the Mohawk River is near the Schenectady Yacht Club. Just beyond the aqueduct you can see a portion of the Route 146 Bridge which crosses over the Erie Canal / Mohawk River.

Stop 4: Historic Schenectady Stockade District

Proceed west on Schenectady County Route 10 (Aqueduct Road) which gradually turns southerly. Upon entering City of Schenectady limits the road bears right and becomes Maxon Road. At Erie Boulevard intersection, watching for traffic, take a left and follow the path of the original Erie Canal. Take a right after passing under the railroad bridge onto Union Street. You are in the Stockade. Cruise around and stop here and there to explore the community and its architecture.

A 17th century Dutch settlement, founded by Arendt Van Curler in 1661, located at the junction of the Binnekill and Mohawk River. Burned in 1690 by the French and allied Native Americans, the area was rebuilt with help from Albany settlers and Mohawks. The Erie Canal made this area an island between the canal (now Erie Blvd.) and the Mohawk River. The Stockade became New York State's first National Register Historic District in 1965 and retains the ambiance of an early colonial village.

Aqueduct by dennieorson       Stockade by jeeptick 

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"Enjoy great scenery, fascinating history, and unparalleled cycling along the 365-mile Erie Canalway Trail. The paved and stone dust trail follows both active and historic sections of the Erie Canal..."  So says the web site for The Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor Commission.

The group lists resources available for cyclists.  They say:

We also recommend CYCLING ALONG THE CANALS OF NEW YORK STATE (2nd edition) by Louis Rossi, which includes over 1,000 miles of rides along New York’s canals; 208 pages; fifty photos, 25 maps; extensive resource section.

 The demand for Louis Rossi's book has been strong this spring and summer.  Copies can be ordered online or found at numerous venues along the Erie Canal.

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photo  from sailorbill