Erie Canal Trail on a Rivendell

[Jeffrey Zelevansky]

Hello group,

I'm new here so hope this is ok as a first post. I am wondering if any members have done the Erie Canal ride (Buffalo to Albany or vv) on a Rivendell and which model they used, any other tips etc. I am in the midst of trying to retrofit my current bike, an old Surly CC, for such a journey, maybe early next summer, but I'm just not sure if I'm heading in the right direction. I'm not sure if I'll be credit card touring or camping...prbly the former....and hoping to do 60-80 miles a day. 

Thank you,

Jeff

[Will Boericke]

For CC touring, honestly most bikes will do the job.  Hang some bags on it (need a total of 12ish liters of capacity in my experience) and go.  No retrofit necessary.  If camping, you'll definitely need more capacity (though light tents and sleeping bags go a long way - maybe only an extra handlebar roll if you're clever).

But don't let me discourage you from buying a bike for this purpose :).  I have a Schwinn Passage that gets used 1-2x a year just for this.

As for the canal, I grew up on it, but have not ridden the trail.  I do know that you'll be seeing a lot of down-on-their-luck CNY towns along the way, including my hometown Jordan. 

Will

[Stephen Durfee]

My son and I just spent a delightful two weeks riding the Erie Canal trail, and I would recommend it heartily. The route is well laid-out, mixing cinder paths with light gravel and occasional paved sections.  I rode my Riv All-Rounder (26" x 1.75), while he rode a Handsome Devil (700c x 35mm).  We flew into Buffalo, built up our bikes in the airport, and rode east to Albany, with an initial detour across the Peace Bridge to check out Niagara Falls from the Canadian side. We alternated camping with visits to friends along the route (Rochester, Geneva, Syracuse), so we carried a tent, sleeping bags and pads, plus camp stove, pots, and dishware. Aside from one frustrating day where my son had 6 flat rear tires, it was an absolute home run, with perfect weather and very little traffic. We only occasionally ran into other bike tourists, although there were plenty of folks out for exercise when you came close to a larger town. There are several designated FREE "hiker/biker/boater" campsites located at various locks along the route, and they were clean and safe, with occasional opportunities for showers/laundry and electrical outlets for phone charging. The route is mostly flat, and we definitely embraced an "Art of Taking it Slow" philosophy, with an exploration of canal history and daily detours to farmer's markets. Our average daily ride was about 50 miles. We ended up extending our tour into southern Vermont and Berkshire County (MA), where we finally had to shift into lower gears. 

I have a well-worn copy  "Cycling the Erie Canal" that I would be happy to share...it's filled with helpful tips. 

Thanks for the cap, Eric! 

[Marc Irwin]

Here's my blogpost from the trip  took a few years ago on my Hunq.  Any Riv will be fine on this trip depending on what you intend to carry.  http://simplecycle-marc.blogspot.com/2018/06/a-glorious-week-on-erie-canal-trail.html

Marc

On Monday, September 30, 2024 at 12:01:20 PM UTC-4 jeff.ze...@gmail.com wrote:

[Jeffrey Zelevansky]

Thanks so much for these replies! I drive the thruway all summer and have taken an interest in the canal over the years. I have ridden little parts here and there but really want to do the whole thing already. This book is a very interesting account of what it took to build the canal, politically and from an engineering standpoint. Anyway, I hesitate to derail the bike talk with canal talk, but maybe that's ok. 

I know I could ride it on almost any bike, but....