 to do so. Notably, Camillus Erie Canal Park preserves a stretch and plans to restore Nine Mile Creek Aqueduct, built in 1841 as part of the First Enlargement of the Canal. In Camillus Park and some communities, the old Canal has refilled with overgrowth and debris. Proposals have been made to rehydrate the old Canal through downtown Rochester or Syracuse, as a tourist attraction. In Syracuse, the location of the old Canal is represented by a reflecting pool in downtown's Clinton Square and the downtown hosts a canal barge and weigh lock structure, now dry.
In 2004, the administration of New York governor George Pataki was criticized when officials of New York State Canal Corporation attempted to sell private development rights to large stretches of the Old Erie Canal to a single developer for US$30,000, far less than the land was worth on the open market. After an investigation by the Syracuse Post-Standard newspaper, the Pataki administration nullified the deal.
The creation of a unified, statewide Erie Canal historic trail or greenway to attract tourism has been an elusive goal since it was first proposed in the 1990s. However, many communities along the Old Erie Canal have made progress in establishing parks, improving towpaths, and raising funds for restoration of old canal structures such as locks and aqueducts. Biking, hiking, snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, horseback riding, canoeing and fishing are among activities promoted.
The towpath is a good choice for an easy multi-day bicycle vacation. Many towns along the way have B&Bs, motels and campsites. The website of Parks and Trails New York Canalway Corridor has information on the Canal, and sells a guidebook (latest edition 2007) with waterproof trail maps and information on nearby places to eat, sleep, or visit spots of historical interest.
Parks and museums on the Old Erie Canal include (East to West):
The following list of locks are provided for the current canal, from east to west:
Note: There is no Lock 1 or Lock 31 on the Erie Canal. The place of "Lock 1" on the passage from the lower Hudson to Lake Erie is taken by the Federal Lock, located just north of Troy, NY, and is not part of the Erie Canal System proper.
|Lock #||Location||Elevation (upstream / west)||Elevation (downstream / east)||Lift||Distance to Next Lock (upstream / west)|
|14||Canajoharie||E15, data unavailable|
|15||Fort Plain||E16, data unavailable|
|16||Mindenville||E17, data unavailable|
|17||Little Falls||E18, data unavailable|
|18||Jacksonburg||E19, data unavailable|
|19||Frankfort||E20, data unavailable|
|20||Careys Corners||E21, data unavailable|
|21||Rome||E22, data unavailable|
|22||Rome||E23, data unavailable|
|23||Brewerton||E24, data unavailable|
|35||Lockport||Black Rock Lock in Niagara River,|