Wedding the Waters Canal Ride & Celebration

Saturday, August 14, 2021

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THANK YOU TO ALL WHO JOINED US FOR THE RIDE!

Join Parks & Trails New York, EDR, the Erie Canal Museum, and others for a bike ride to celebrate the completion of the Empire State Trail and the closing of the gap through Syracuse of the Erie Canalway Trail. Two groups of riders will start from either end of the former Syracuse gap, and ride to a meeting point at the Erie Canal Museum. We will carry water from watered sections of the Historic Erie Canal in both Camillus in DeWitt, and we will have a symbolic "wedding of the waters" to recognize the closure of the gap through Syracuse. After that ceremony, we will have light entertainment and refreshments.

Note: Helmets are required for all participants.

When: Saturday, August 14, 2021 at 9:30 AM

DeWitt Meeting Point: Old Erie Canal State Historic Park Trailhead, Butternut Drive, DeWitt, just south of DeWitt Town Hall. Riders from here will proceed west along the Erie Canalway Trail/Empire State Trail to the Erie Canal Museum, a distance of roughly 6 miles.

Camillus Meeting Point: Reed Webster Park, Warners Road/NYS Route 173, Camillus. Riders from here will proceed east along the Erie Canalway Trail/Empire State Trail through the NYS Fairgrounds and along the Onondaga Creekwalk to the Erie Canal Museum, a distance of roughly 10 miles.

Cost: No charge.

Additional Information:

Mostly off-road trail, with short stretches of on-road riding required. The ride from Camillus to Syracuse involves riding on stone-dust trail surface, the ride from DeWitt is entirely paved.

Helmets required for all participants.

Event Duration: 4 hours

Difficulty: Moderate
Not suitable for children under age 8.

Length: 12 or 20 miles roundtrip, longer rides possible to explore the other half of the trail.

Barrier Free or Wheelchair accessible? Yes - the ride is on accessible paths. However, the ride from Camillus requires both riding on stone-dust paths and involves some modest hills. The ride from DeWitt is entirely paved and generally flat.

Interested in doing the ride yourself? You can access the cue sheet for the ride from DeWitt here and from Camillus here.

Please contact Dylan Carey at PTNY (dcarey@ptny.org) with any questions.