Bicentennial Bucket List

Relax and enjoy great scenery while cruising through history on a boat tour or board your own vessel and discover the best way to experience upstate New York.

Take a day trip or go the distance from Buffalo to Albany for an epic adventure with easy access to communities, attractions, and amenities along the way.

Rent a kayak or bring your own and "lock through" as you're lifted or lowered through a massive steel and cement structure, often referred to as an "elevator for boats." One of the most unique recreational experiences in New York State!

Be sure to see at least one lock, lift bridge, or movable dam up close. To see extraordinary structures, visit the Lockport Flight of Five, Medina Falls & Aqueduct and Culvert Road in Medina, Lock 17 in Little Falls, and the Waterford Flight.

Visit the “100 Must See Miles” in villages from Medina to Clyde, hunt for antiques in the Mohawk Valley, or head to the larger “canal towns” of Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, or Albany for a fun weekend getaway.

Try regional specialties like Utica greens, chicken riggies, tomato pie, Syracuse salt potatoes, Buffalo wings, or a Rochester garbage plate. Grab a pint at a brewery—many have brews that pay homage to the Erie Canal.

Canal festivals, concerts, performances, and historic talks are happening all season long from Buffalo to Albany. Don't miss the Voyage of the Erie Canal boat Seneca Chief, beginning September 24.

Discover the remains of the Enlarged Erie Canal from Montezuma to Rome, at the Old Erie Canal Heritage Park at Port Byron, Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site near Amsterdam, and at Enlarged Erie Lock 60 in Macedon.

Many of New York's best falls are all here! Find them in Cohoes, Rochester (High Falls), Holley, and Medina or in state parks throughout the Finger Lakes, including Taughannock, Buttermilk, and Watkins Glen.

The Erie Canal has deep ties to influential art, culture, and history, including social reform movements like abolition and Women's Rights. Discover these connections at museums, historic sites, and cultural centers across the state.