Father and Daughter Bond on a Bicycle

Boris and Marianna Maltsev of Hillsdale, New Jersey decided that the best way to celebrate Marianna’s 16th birthday wouldn’t be behind the wheel of a car, it would be on two wheels. Last August, the Maltsev’s made a celebratory bike ride from Buffalo to Albany, becoming Erie Canalway Trail End-to-Enders in the process. We loved their story so much we chose them as the winners of our LL Bean gift card raffle.

According to Marianna, the best part of the trip was spending exclusive time with her father, Boris. In addition to great father-daughter bonding, the Maltsevs appreciated seeing and experiencing the Erie Canal’s lock system, an engineering sideshow that features both working and historical locks that raise and lower the water level as the Canal travels between Lake Erie and the Hudson River. They also enjoyed the peacefulness that comes with being off-road on the trail most of the way.

endtoend.jpgIf you have completed the Erie Canalway Trail End-to-End and would like to share your story, visit our website and register to become an End-to-Ender. All registrants receive an Erie Canalway Trail End-to-Ender decal and the chance to be entered into this year’s raffle.Marianna’s mother and sister helped to commemorate the end of the journey by streaming tape across the end of the trial in Albany to create an impromptu finish line. While the trip may have ended in seven days, the adventure continues this summer, as Boris and Marianna bike along the C&O and GAP Trails.



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