The Erie Canal opened on this day in 1825.

“There’s an app for that” now applies to the Erie Canal.  Hot off approval, you can use this app to find your nearest Erie Canal kayak access point.  Search by Map, Municipality, or Distance and quickly get directions and/or detailed access point information.

Available in the iTunes Store Now! (It’s Free)

The canalway water trail map was released last year as part of the New York State Canalway Water Trail initiative.  The Canal Corporations website says the initiative hopes to “establish a coordinated ‘trail’ with boat launches and campsites along the shores of the 524-mile New York State Canal System, encouraging more types of motorized and non-motorized boaters [...]

The 6th annual Canal Clean Sweep is the weekend of April 15-17th.  I say this every year, but its amazing what finds its way into the canal.  This is a great opportunity to help clean it up.

More information about the Canal Clean Sweep can be found on the PTNY website: http://www.ptny.org/canalway/sweep/index.shtml.

Find your nearest event [...]

Where do I find the best Erie Canal maps?

Nautical charts, topological maps, electronic, paper…  The answer usually depends on what your doing, but hopefully the information on this page saves you time and helps you find the answer.

Here’s what I found useful:

Google Maps
NOAA Chart #14786
The Canal Corporations Cruising Guide

Google Maps:

Google Maps is a [...]

I always like reading about trips on the Erie Canal.  I feel like I always pick up on something new and there’s just something more authentic about the story that you may not find in a book.  So I thought I’d pass this along. Jay and Shannon recently finished a long trip from [...]

Jacob Stachovak is nearing the end of his paddle around the eastern half of the United States (Mississippi, Gulf, Atlantic, Canal and Great Lakes).  And thats if you consider a thousand or so miles left to go as near the end.  He’s around 3700 miles of his estimated 5000+ mile trip.  I’ve enjoyed reading [...]

I recently took a refresher lesson at Bay Creek in Penfield.  Lou Singer of the Democrat and Chronicle happened to be there doing a piece for the Penfield Community blog.  Check it out…here.

Links:

Cool Photoshop kayaking photo – [Kayak Yak]

Erie Canal Tour of Cayuga County – [New York Outdoors]

Nice Helmet Cam – [Paddle California]

One of my favorite blogs, section hiker, has been spotlighting peoples light weight hiking stories for the past month. It’s all the result of a contest that had people submitting their gear list and answering some questions on their light weight journey. I’ve been finding it really interesting [...]