Erie Canal Bike Trail Forum

Anonymous on 6/19/2020 11:50:11 AM:

I am a HUGE planner. My husband and I plan on riding the entire trail next year, and we have never been on any portion of the trail. I'd love any tips about riding the trail, as well as feedback on our itinerary below.

We are very fit. We don't stop to explore towns on our ride; we just like to bike through as fast as we can. We don't plan on stopping for lunch during our rides, but we hope to enjoy good burger/bbq/pizza for dinner each night. We biked The GAP and C&O in 4 days last year. We routinely bike 100+ gravel miles on a Saturday, and we consider a "short ride" to be 50 or 60 gravel miles.

We do not like AirBNBs or independent bed and breakfasts, so we will be sleeping in chain hotels every night on our trip (we prefer Hampton Inn). Therefore, our daily mileage is dictated mostly by where chain hotels are located. During our trip, I want to ride no more than about 85 miles each day.

Day 1. Travel and Prep Day
Drive from home to Buffalo, pick up rental car, spend the night in Buffalo

Day 2. Albany to Schenectady (30 miles)
Drive 4 hours to Albany, drop off rental car. Bike 30 miles to Schenectady

Day 3. Schenectady to Utica (81 miles)

Day 4. Utica to Weesport (85 miles)

Day 5. Weesport to Rochester (71 miles)

Day 6. Rochester to Lockport (61 miles)

Day 7. Lockport to Buffalo, then to Niagara on the Lake to Niagara Falls (80 miles)
Bike 31 miles to Buffalo, then 35 paved miles to Fort George, Niagara on the Lake. Turn around and bike 14 paved miles back down to Niagara falls.

Day 8 Bike and Travel Day (22 miles)
Bike back to Buffalo. Drive home.

Thank you!

John from Pittsburgh,PA on 6/19/2020 2:18:55 PM:

I think if the hotels match up then the itinerary looks pretty good.

Love the Erie Canal but Day 7, wow what a great addition to your trip. Niagara Falls to Niagara-on-the Lake might be one of the best cycling sections I’ve ever ridden. Outstanding beauty. Niagara wine country.

wnybubba from Bflo-Roc on 6/19/2020 9:43:48 PM:

Agree with John, you should be fine being comfortable in that kind of mileage. I'm a bit confused on your back-and-forth in Bflo/Niagara after Lockport (actually after Buffalo). From Bflo, Niagara-On-The-Lake is further past Niagara Falls. So I believe you are staying over in NF... leave Bflo -> go through Niagara Falls and ride to NotL and back to NF for the night -- Hmmmm... still not sure I understand your route and schedule on Day 7.

Anonymous on 6/19/2020 10:43:58 PM:

OP here. I went back and read through the forums and someone commented on the westward wind. In light of this, we've decided to bike from Buffalo to Albany, then rent a minivan one-way in Albany and drive back to Buffalo. After dropping off the minivan in Buffalo, we plan to eventually bike to Niagara-on-the-Lake before turning around, and biking back to our car in Buffalo and heading home.

Our revised itinerary below allows us to hit chain hotels with relatively consistent daily mileage, so our trip will now be 7 days long instead of 8 days:

Day 1. Drive from home to Buffalo. Stay at Hampton Inn & Suites Buffalo Downtown.

Day 2. Bike 87 miles to Rochester. Stay in Hampton Inn Hampton Inn & Suites Rochester/Henrietta.

Day 3. Bike 93 miles to Syracuse. Stay in Hampton Inn & Suites Syracuse Dewitt.

Day 4. Bike 84 miles to Little Falls. Stay in Travelodge by Wyndham Little Falls.

Day 5. Bike 89 miles to Albany. Stay in Hampton Inn & Suites Albany-Downtown.

Day 6. Rent car at Enterprise in Albany. Drive 4 hours to Buffalo. Drop off Rental at Enterprise in Buffalo. Bike 22 paved miles to Niagara Falls. Stay in Embassy Suites Niagara Falls.

Day 7. Bike 14 paved miles to Niagara on the Lake, turn around, bike 37 paved miles to Buffalo. Drive home.

Thank you!

John from Cobleskill from The Buffalo to Albany trip sounds good on 6/20/2020 7:00:40 AM:

I'm doing it soon (but in 6 days, not 4) but everything seems very reasonable from what I can see.

wnybubba from Bflo-Roc on 6/20/2020 3:10:50 PM:

Yep - looks smarter., I read about the wind as well, but on my recent trip I can't say I felt that it was an advantage. It all depends on the weather. However, it is downhill from Buffalo to Albany. Enjoy.

@John from Cobleskill -- When is your ride? If you need any help in the Bflo area, give me a shout.

Anonymous on 6/23/2020 9:29:44 AM:

OP here. John from Pittsburgh, I just went back and read through the forums AGAIN, and saw your comment about the Greater Niagara Circle Route. That looks really wonderful, so instead of turning around at Niagara on the Lake on Day 7, we will ride the Greater Niagara Circle Route and head over back to Buffalo via the Peace Bridge. This would add only 10 miles to our original itinerary, but would add variety to our trip. Thanks for letting me know!

John from Pittsburgh,PA on 6/23/2020 1:47:09 PM:

Oh man, you’re gonna love it!

The only hill of note is up and down the Niagara Escarpment but it’s not that bad to be honest. Otherwise all of it is flat.

At Niagara Falls (Horseshoe Falls) the sidewalk where the trail is will likely be packed with tourists. You can walk your bike there or just take the street.

I hope some freighters are passing through the Canal, they are so huge up close (I had to wait for one to pass a bridge I needed to get over). There’s also a few public access beaches on Lake Erie around Buffalo.

Be sure to share some of your trip with us!

John

Anonymous on 7/1/2020 4:32:16 PM:

OP here, we have decided to cancel our scheduled ride in Virginia in September in favor of doing the Erie Canal. My understanding is that Canada is currently closed to me (since I don't meet any of the exceptions). Is there a good bike route we can take from Buffalo along Niagara Falls, NY on the last day? Plan A will be to ride along the Canada side, but if that option is not available, then Plan B is to see the falls from the US side.

I am super excited about our Erie Canal adventure!

Thank you!

John from Cobleskill from Cobleskill on 7/1/2020 5:25:10 PM:

The ban to going into Canada is reviewed often and maybe changed at some point. The next review is at the end of the month. Let's hope something is worked out soon.

cr from Buffalo on 7/2/2020 7:00:14 AM:

There is a decent route from Buffalo to NF (US Side). You'll be doubling back on the Erie Canal Route to the Grand Island Bridge, walk the bike across the bridge, and take the bike route on the other side around the island, and then over the second bridge.

Once across, there is a bike route to Goat Island State Park.

Alternative to taking the Grand Island Route, you can follow 265 (It's not a bad road to ride via bike) to 384, and follow 384 to the bike route in Niagara Falls.

Its 26 miles via Grand Island, and 27 miles via 265. The 265 route is probably faster, because you do, in fact, have to walk your bike over the GI bridges (It's too narrow to safely ride).

wnybubba from Bflo - Roc on 7/2/2020 1:31:33 PM:

OP - Fun! Hey, both John and cr gave you good advised above. If you need any help in the Bflo area give me a shout.

Don Nichter on 7/2/2020 8:41:21 PM:

I am starting my ride on July 6th and doing exactly the same daily rides to Albany in the 4 days and then taking a train back to Buffalo on the 10th. If you are starting at a similar date it would be great to try and connect

Nichter@dickinson.ede
717-385-5316

Happy Riding

Don Nichter on 7/2/2020 8:41:49 PM:

Don Nichter on 7/2/2020 8:42:15 PM:

Anonymous on 7/2/2020 10:03:40 PM:

Cr from Buffalo, and John from Cobleskill, thanks for the awesome input. Now I need to work on making Plan B.

Wnybubba - so generous of you to offer! I may take you up on it :)

Don N - so sweet! Thank you! But we are not going until September. I am so TICKLED that you are doing the same schedule as us. We've never been on any portion of The Erie Canal, and I hope you share a field report. Are you going by yourself? Have a safe and wonderful trip! I will be thinking about you!

wnybubba from Bflo - Roc on 7/2/2020 10:50:36 PM:

OP - During my recent ride I posted daily on a facebook fundraiser that I created. I've also got more pics on the route. If you are interested, send me an email and I'll share some pics. Email: my username here @gmail.com

Also you'll be in contact if you need a Bflo connection.

Anonymous on 7/2/2020 10:58:25 PM:

Anonymous on 7/6/2020 5:36:17 PM:

Don N ~ how did the first day of your ride go?

Anonymous on 7/6/2020 5:36:18 PM:

Don N ~ how did the first day of your ride go?

Reply to Tips and Feedback on Itinerary Appreciated: Riding the Entire Trail