RobtheAggie
09-12-06, 09:15 AM
Anyone done the entire length of the canal from Buffalo to Albany? I am looking at June 07 as the time and I am trying to find anyone that has done it before.
Thanks in advance.
Thanks in advance.
Touring - NY - Erie/Barge Canal
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The Figment
09-12-06, 12:40 PM
Yes!! I rode the Erie Canal Trail last year...Great ride! Go from Buffalo to albany,slight downhill grade the whole way. Great Stops, wonderful secanery. any questions jus ask.
The Figment
09-12-06, 12:47 PM
This should help...Oh yea the Trail is stone dust for long portions...Bring a cleaning rag and some lube!!
http://www.nycanal.com/recreation/hikebikemain.html
http://www.nycanal.com/recreation/hikebikemain.html
RobtheAggie
09-14-06, 06:45 AM
What was to total mileage? How much of the canal has a towpath on it? How many days did it take?
The Figment
09-14-06, 12:47 PM
The total milage is about 425 miles if I remember right,From just east of Rochester it becomes towpath and stays that way all the way to Buffalo. It took me 6 days,But I went east to west (Slight uphill grade) and I tour on a Mt. Bike with a BOB Yak Trailer,so I'm slower than some.
meanderthal
09-14-06, 03:59 PM
How would unpaved parts be with touring (road bike) tires?
The Figment
09-15-06, 12:47 AM
Not bad if they wer'nt too skinny,the trail is a combnation of pea grevel and ground up stone dust,mostly hard packed but VERY dusty(1/2 inch of baby powder fine dust) that covers and gets into everything.
I saw riders on touring bikes having no problems,Be careful around the bigger citys (Albany.Syracuse,Rochester) bike theft is a *****,but other than that It was a great ride lots places along the way to stop and check out,nice in the spring or fall.
Another nice ride is a loop around the Finger Lakes,with Ithica as a layover adds about 200 miles, but is another good ride.
I saw riders on touring bikes having no problems,Be careful around the bigger citys (Albany.Syracuse,Rochester) bike theft is a *****,but other than that It was a great ride lots places along the way to stop and check out,nice in the spring or fall.
Another nice ride is a loop around the Finger Lakes,with Ithica as a layover adds about 200 miles, but is another good ride.
meanderthal
09-15-06, 06:25 AM
Thanks - I've considered doing the trail before but always wondered about the gravel part. I guess if it got too bad--sinking in, etc.--I could always escape to a nearby back road for the duration of the unpaved part.
RobtheAggie
09-18-06, 08:30 AM
Thanks for the info. Any and all info is helpful. I grew up in Victor but never rode along the canal. From what I have been able to find, from Lockport to Palmyra it is all paved? From there east it is alternating pavement, hard packed gravel and on local roads.
I just got a book that lists the mileage as around 360 from Buffalo to Albany.
I just got a book that lists the mileage as around 360 from Buffalo to Albany.