Canalside Pleasures

Who would have thought that the project once dubbed "Clinton's Ditch" would bring such purpose and pleasure to thousands and thousands of travelers? Completed in 1825, the Erie Canal followed the course of the Mohawk River in Montgomery County, its gap through the Appalachians at "the Noses" allowing the first commercially successful connection between America's east and west.

Not only people but ideas and passions flowed from this engineering marvel, changing the course of history: the canal spurred industrialization and immigration in the Mohawk Valley; it opened the Midwest to settlement and trade; and it enabled New York to become "The Empire State."

Today, travelers from far and wide cruise the smooth waters of the Erie Canal, enjoying the activities of the river while reliving more than 450 years of American history in sights and scenes along the way.


At Schoharie Crossing, which marks the confluence of the Mohawk River and the Schoharie Creek, there are remnants of the original Erie Canal (1825) and the Enlarged Erie Canal (1841), with its impressive stone aqueduct remains.	Montgomery County has seven locks on the Erie Canal, each with a park where tourists can stop and picnic along the river. The Erie Canal operates for navigation from early May to late November.

Attractions

Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site
Dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the Erie Canal. The site gives a real touch of life on the canal with a restored trading post, a historic lock from the 1850s, and mule-drawn wagon rides. Picnic area, hiking and biking, fishing, boating. 129 Schoharie Street, Fort Hunter, 518-829-7516, May 15-end of October, call for hours. Includes:
·Erie Canal Aqueduct Ruins
·Erie Canal Trail and Bicycle Path
·Yankee Hill Lock/Restored Trading Post
·Schoharie Crossing Boat Launch

Lock Locations
There are seven locks on the Montgomery County portion of the Erie Canal, each with a park, picnic area, and nearby boat launch. Call toll-free at 800-4CANAL4, for more information.
Lock 10; Cranesville
Lock 11; Guy Park Manor, Amsterdam
Lock 12: Fort Johnson
Lock 13: Fonda
Lock 14: Canajoharie
Lock 15: Fort Plain
Lock 16: St. Johnsville

Lock 11 Park (Guy Park Historic Site)
1773 home of Guy Johnson. Currently the offices of Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce, but a romantic place to watch the workings of the canal. Route 5W at Evelyn Street, Amsterdam, 518-842-8200, weekdays, 8:30 am-dusk

St. Johnsville Campsite and Municipal Marina
Tie up for the evening and enjoy a stay in this quaint town located on the Barge Canal. Boat launch with fuel, water, gas, and diesel. Camping and bed and breakfast nearby. South Bridge Street, St. Johnsville, 518-568-7406 (seasonal), 518-568-2221 (yearly).
May-November, 7 am-9:30 pm.

Riverlink Park
Amsterdam's 9-1/2-acre Riverlink Park opened in Spring 2000. An elevated walkway with breathtaking views links downtown Amsterdam to a canalside plaza area with open-air stage, children's playgrounds, a roller/hockey rink, gardens, 300 feet of transient boat docking, the Riverlink Cafe and Concerts Under the Stars. Call City Hall, 518-843-9406, for information

The Village of St. Johnsville maintains a beautiful municipal park and marina, one of several in the county. River travelers can stop at the boat launch, fill up, have a picnic, and be treated to a summer's evening concert. If you dock, camping is nearby, along with a secluded romantic treasure of a bed and breakfast.

Riverlink Park reconnects downtown Amsterdam with the riverside that spawned the city; its 9-1/2-acre expanse of amenities opened in Spring 2000.

Lock 33-enlarged double lock

This enlarged double lock is located on the Erie canal on the south side of the barge canal across from the village of St Johnsville NY, in the town of Minden. You must travel 3/4 of a mile down Dump road to get to it. A sign on Bridge street marks the entrance to the road. Terry Potoczny and his team of volunteers have spent countless hours cleaning out the old lock. It is under restoration and was once filled with water and the floating cargoes that made the Erie Canal commercially successful, in November 1999 these double locks instead held tons of garbage including 125 tires, one snowmobile, a motorcycle, assorted bicycle parts, refrigerators, kitchen stoves, and a television. Like other segments of the Erie Canal across the state, these locks are being rescued and restored by local preservation groups, businesses, and governments. Connected by paths and trails, they serve as links to the past and recreational respite for the present.

The locks history, as researched by Tom Grasso. It was lengthened during the Winter-Spring of 1887-1888. The contract was awarded to Soule and Raynor of Syracuse who also lengthened Lock 32 at Fort Plain. Their bid was $24,620.50 for Lock 33 and $24,111.50 for Lock 32. It was lengthened at the head of the berm side instead of the foot probably because Lock 33 is located at the end of a curve and lengthening it at the foot would make the lower end of the lock stick out into the curve taking away from the arc of the bend rendering it sharper and for double headers this could be a big problem. Here again that is my interpretation as I have not found that in writing as of this message. There must have been a good reason for lengthening at the head because it is more difficult and expensive to lengthen at the head than the foot because of the greater excavation required into the upstream canal bed as opposed to the downstream end where all that is required is excavation for footings. Compare bids for Locks 32 and 33.