Day 4 - Weedsport to Canastota - Erie Canal - Buffalo to Albany Bicycle Trip

June 10, 2024

Day 4 - Weedsport to Canastota

Biking in Memphis

We had a good evening in Weedsport. It was a bit chilly and damp when we woke up, but we had dry clothes and it wasn't raining. The breakfast at the Red Roof Inn was meh, but we weren't too picky and made the best of it.

The trail early on was very rural with some green tunnel sections and a few little towns. We even hit the halfway point at Memphis NY.

The canal was adjacent to the trail, but it was hard to tell in places since it was overgrown.

Great milestone today by completing half of the original canal route.

Original Canal Route vs Existing Route

The Erie Canal had several iterations over the years. Yes, you can still navigate the entire trail by boat, but you there are large sections that were replaced especially on the eastern parts of the canal as you can see below.

The offical path that we followed seemed to primarily cover the original canal alignment. Sometimes the canal was completely or mostly covered up by a road or development. Other times the canal was swampy with extensive growth along the edges. Yet other times it was just a dry ditch full of trees. Some areas a town or private citizen may have adopted a section of trail and made a park out of it. But no matter what the canal looked like, we enjoyed the journey and learning about the history of the canal.

Map of the original canal versus the canal today.

Better than fair Dinosaur BBQ!

After passing the halfway point of the canal, we were were fortunate to follow part of the old canal for a bit. But we also encountered areas where the canal was covered over as we approached Syracuse. There was even a section with some short up and down hills as we made our way over what appeared to be an old and well manicured landfill.

While I'm not sure if the original canal is under the New York State Fairgrounds, the official trail took us through the unlocked gates of the fairgrounds. The fair takes place in mid-August to early September, so not much was going on as we biked through some of the grounds.

The section approaching downtown Syracuse had a mix of road, sidewalk and pathways and there are many turns, but we didn't encounter any issues. Overall, our first impressions of Syracuse were good.

Doug riding adjacent to the old Erie Canal in Syracuse

But that turned to great while sitting at a light on a road section when we looked to the left and a restaurant called Dinosaur Bar-B-Que enticed us in.

We ate way more food than we should have and may have had a beer to wash it down. The place was packed, but we were lucky enough to get a table where we could "sort of" see our bikes safely parked outside.

After lunch, I told Doug I was going outside to unlock our bikes. Perhaps he was ignoring me or maybe he was in a food coma, but he didn't hear me. So I'm outside for a few minutes unlocking our bikes when suddenly Doug comes rushing out of the restaurant and yells "HEY, what are you doing" thinking I was a Syracuse bike thief.

Erie Canal Museum

Also in Syracuse was the Erie Canal Museum. It was well worth the visit with lots of historical information and even an old boat you could explore. They work on the donation system with a minimum amount required of $10 at the time of our visit.

Syracuse to Canastota

Leaving Syracuse, the trail mostly followed Erie Blvd. where roads and strip centers replaced the old canal. They did a good job of signage and the trail was easy to follow, but it was a bit louder with more street crossings than other sections of the trail.

On the outskirts of Syracuse, we met up with the old canal again in its varying conditions. But the riding was easy, quiet and enjoyable.

This was one of the many aqueducts we encountred on the trip. In this case, this was built so the canal could cross over a stream.

One of the historical signs along the path. Mules rule!

This was a service area and dry dock for the boats on the canal. They did a good job restoring some of the buildings.

Boxing, mice and beers in Canastota

As we looked ahead for a place to stay, Canastota seemed like a good distance to end the day. We took things more leisurely today getting BBQ and visiting the Erie Canal museum, but still managed to bike around 50 miles. The skies were gray but I don't recall if we had any rain.

We didn't know anything about Canastota except that it had a Days Inn hotel about 3/4 of a mile from the canal trail. It was the only hotel in town and was adequate for a night.

We had to walk the 3/4 of a mile back to the main part of town to Three Pines Restaurant, the only restaurant open other than the McDonald's.

It was a small place and we were greeted by a friendly woman we think was the owner. We sat at the bar and decided on a few appetizers and beer since we had such a great BBQ feast in Syracuse.

Adjacent to our hotel we noticed the International Boxing Hall of Fame and we were like WTH is that doing in this little town. As it turns out, the woman serving us told us the story of her uncle and another relative who were instrumental in establishing the museum in 1989. She shared a few great stories and left us to our food and a little mouse who visited from behind the bar.

Another great and memorable day on the Erie Canal.

Today's ride: 49 miles (79 km)
Total: 213 miles (343 km)

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