FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 15, 2006
CANAL CORPORATION TO EXTEND FALL HOURS OF OPERATION
Longer Hours Provide Boaters More Opportunity to Experience Historic Canals
During Peak Foliage Season
Carmella R. Mantello, Director of the New York State Canal Corporation, today announced that the Canal System will be open for business an additional two hours – from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. – beginning Saturday, September 16 through Sunday, October 15. The extended hours will allow boaters along the 524-mile Canal System to enjoy two additional hours per day of cruising on the historic waterway during the peak fall foliage season in New York.
Traditional hours of operation on the Canal System have been from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. from September 16 to November 15, when the System generally closes for winter maintenance.
“This has been a challenging season for boating on the Canal, and many families have yet to take their first Canal trip of the season,” Director Mantello said. “Fall is a great time to visit the Canal System and extending our hours will allow boaters to maximize their time on the Canal, especially in nice weather, and enjoy the hospitality of canal communities and some of the most spectacular fall foliage anywhere in the United States.
Heavy rains and severe, record flooding forced most of the Canal System to close in late June with a section of the Erie Canal between Lock E-9 and E-11 remaining closed for nearly two months. These closures, combined with high fuel prices and poor weather, has had a detrimental impact on recreational boating on the Canal this summer. Lock E-9 through E-11 reopened on Saturday, August 19 and the entire Canal System is now open to boating traffic.
“We stayed open later in the spring and waived recreational tolls on the Canal System this year in an effort to attract more visitors and help reacquaint New Yorkers with this historic, cultural and recreational treasure that is in their own back yard,” Mantello added. “There is still some great boating left in the season, and we want to encourage people to come out and take advantage of all of the wonderful events and attractions along the Canal System this fall.”
Richard Powell, Owner of Erie-Champlain Canal Boating Company, said, “New York’s Canal System affords some of the best views of the most spectacular fall foliage in the northeastern United States. These extra hours will enable my clients to more fully enjoy their Canal boating adventure, and come away with a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
The Canal System opened early this season, the first time the Canal has opened in April in more than 30 years. Also, in the spring of 2006, the Canal Corporation announced it was extending its hours of operation during the first two weeks of the navigation season from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., an increase of two hours per day.
Summer hours on the Canal System (May 15-September 15) are from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Hours of operation from Monday, October 16 through Wednesday, November 15 will continue to be 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
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.
For news and information about events and attractions along the New York State Canal System, please call 1-800-4CANAL4 or visit www.canals.state.ny.us.