On Sunday August 12, enjoy a free 20-mile guided bicycle tour along the Champlain Canalway Trail between Hudson Crossing Park in Northumberland and Saratoga Battlefield in Stillwater.
This tour will take bikers past historic sites of interest related to the Revolutionary War and the Champlain Canal. Sites include Hudson Crossing Park, Champlain Canal Lock 5, the Schuyler House, the Champlain Canalway Towpath Trail and Saratoga National Historic Park. Read more
At the Historic Saratoga-Washington on the Hudson Partnership meeting yesterday, Hudson Crossing Park announced the release of the Champlain Canalway Trail Action Plan for the 62-mile corridor between Waterford and Whitehall in Saratoga and Washington
Counties.
The Action Plan is intended to help focus and coordinate locally-based efforts to complete the Champlain Canalway Trail. It uses narrative, maps and photographs to describe the existing conditions, issues and opportunities along the proposed trail route. Each segment of the Action Plan can be used as a stand-alone by an individual community, to help focus attention and prompt constructive dialog.
The 62-mile Champlain Canalway Trail, together with the 9-mile Glens Falls Feeder Canal Trail, comprise one leg of the planned statewide Canalway Trail system. The 348-mile Erie Canalway Trail between Albany and Buffalo is the longest trail in the system. Now more than three-fourths complete, it is actively used by people in local communities, and is rapidly becoming a world-class recreational trail, attracting visitors from across the country as well as from abroad.
In the Champlain Canal corridor, about 17 miles of trail are complete, and another 14 miles are either in planning stages or expected to be completed within the next few years. Similar to the Erie Canalway Trail, the Champlain Canalway Trail is envisioned as an off-road trail wherever possible, with some on-road linkages. Once completed, the trail will provide connectivity between residential areas, business districts,
schools, parks and communities while reducing emissions and fuel consumption.
The Champlain Canalway Trail will be used by bicyclists, walkers, historical tourists, cross-country skiers and others. Sections will also be used seasonally by snowmobilers.
The completed Action Plan was produced by the LA Group of Saratoga Springs. It was funded by a grant awarded to Schuylerville-based Hudson Crossing Park, Inc, (www.hudsoncrossingpark.org) from the Rails to Trails Conservancy, a national organization that supports trail development.
Planning assistance was provided by the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program of the National Park Service.
For further information contact:
Southern Champlain Canalway Trail representative:
Nelson Ronsvalle – [email protected]
Central Champlain Canalway Trail representative:
Marlene Bissell – [email protected]
Northern Champlain Canalway Trail representative:
Jeanne Williams – [email protected]
The New York State Canal System is comprised of four historic waterways, the Erie, the Champlain, the Oswego and the Cayuga-Seneca Canals. Spanning 524 miles across New York State, the waterway links the Hudson River, Lake Champlain, Lake Ontario, the Finger Lakes and the Niagara River with communities rich in history and culture.
On Sunday, October 10th between 2pm and 6pm, visitors to Hudson Crossing Park, at Lock 5 in Northumberland, NY will join in the world-wide 10:10:10 Global Work Party – green gardening,
climate solution activities and eco-fashion show.
Participants can start NOW with a Countdown to 10:10:10 Denim Recycling Drive and be part of the solution by donating your old denim clothing to be repurposed for the
10:10:10 Fashion Show and activities. Current drop off locations are The Ice Cream Man in Greenwich, Schuylerville Public Library and Greenwich Public Library. Email [email protected] subject denim drive or call Valerie Munson at 518.695.3104 to plan individual, business or organization collections.
Then, on Sunday October 10th there will be a 10:10:10 Global Work Party event. It’s a ”Day of doing.” When you arrive be a part of planting over 1,000 bulbs in the HCP gardens. See Master Gardener Martha Haynes demonstrate ‘green’ gardening and putting the garden to bed while she works. Help out if you’d like. Learn about Clothing Choices for Climate Solutions. There will also be interactive projects such as designing a t-shirt or apron to promote climate solutions. Displays, speakers and vendors will offer solutions as to how we can all take part to reduce our carbon foot print. Entertainment will include the premier of a music video inspired by the Park. The event comes to an end with the 10:10:10 Eco-“Jeanious” Runway Fashion Show on the Labyrinth at 5:30.
For more information about world-wide 10:10:10 Global Work Parties go to
www.350.org. For more info about Hudson Crossing Bi-County Park, call Marlene Bissell at 518.859.1462 or visit: www.hudsoncrossingpark.org.
Hudson Crossing is a bi-county educational park project centered on and near the Champlain Canal Lock 5 Island of the Hudson River.
On Wednesday July 28, from 10am to 5pm, the 90-foot canal schooner Lois McClure while will be docked at Hudson Crossing Park, located on Champlain Canal Lock 5 Island, off of Route 4 just north of Schuylerville, Saratoga County.
The schooner Lois McClure is a full-scale replica of an 1862 sailing canal boat. These unique vessels were designed to sail from lake cities to canal ports using wind power and then to lower their masts and sails when traveling along canals. The schooner staff will share stories about the boat and its role in New York State history.
Hudson Crossing President Marlene Bissell welcomes the Lois McClure back and says, “Seeing and boarding this exquisite replica of an authentic canal boat makes you feel like you’ve stepped back to another era. It’s an exciting way to experience the continuum of history that the Hudson River and Champlain Canal holds.”
Hudson Crossing is a bi-county educational park project centered on and near the Champlain Canal Lock 5 Island of the Hudson River. For more information about this event or to learn more about Hudson Crossing Bi-County Park, please call Marlene Bissell at 518.859.1462 or visit their website.