The Erie Canal Towpath is is 36-mile portion of the Old Erie Canal that runs east of Syracuse. The path is intended for hikers and bikers and the surrounding lands are good for fishing and canoeing. The Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum, the Erie Canal Village, and the Canastota Canal Town Museum are all involved with preserving the land along the path and providing recreation for visitors.
Click here to view a slide show & listen to commentary about the history of the Old Erie Canal through Syracuse.
To canoe or kayak on the Old Erie Canal, pick up a copy of the guidebook “Take A Paddle – Finger Lakes New York Quiet Water for Canoes & Kayaks.”
You can also find maps of this and other bike paths in Central NY at http://www.hocts.org.
It would be real interesting to see this section of the old canal reopened for navigation. The stretch from Fayetteville to the New London Junction Lock is nearly navigable including a pair of aqueducts.
See the NY Canals page on what it might take. Perhaps a long term project should be initiated such that all built hence forth meet a minimum criteria.
If it were ever to be re-dug through Syracuse and connect to Onondaga Lake, it would be a great tourist attraction. Boaters would surely loop around Onadoga Lake, Seneca River, Erie Canal to Oneida Lake, and to New London and back to Syracuse; much like the Canadian Canals.
In England, we had a similar situation with our canals. Private people get out their boots and waterproofs at weekends and go restoring canals as a hobby.
Now, most of the English Canal system is either renovated and used for boating or in the process of being restored. All this under the auspices of the Inland Waterways Association. Perhaps the US could do with something similar.