Tour the Towpath: Cycling Dewitt to Rome

Last fall, Frankie and I were out for a bike ride on the Erie Canal.  We stopped at a road crossing to wait for a break in traffic, and there we met another child.  This boy, who was several years older than Frankie, asked him are you riding Tour the Towpath, too?  Confused, Frankie looked at me; we didn't know what Tour the Towpath was.  The boy showed us his map and explained all about it: Tour the Towpath is a 36-mile ride between Rome and Dewitt, with overnight camping in Canastota.  He looked Frankie up and down, and checked out his bike.  I think you could do it, he said.  My little brother is doing it.  Of course he's pretty hardcore.  Are you hardcore?  Frankie had never heard that term before, but this boy's vote of confidence and the entire conversation made a big impression.  On subsequent rides, last fall and this summer, the Tour kept coming up in conversation: Frankie was very interested.

NCT: Durhamville and Cazenovia Roadwalks

This outing was all about filling in gaps.  I "hiked" two short sections of the North Country National Scenic Trail (NCT) that I had orphaned when hiking the adjacent sections.  I originally skipped them because I was strategically leaving the Durhamville section to cover during hunting season, and in the case of the Cazenovia section, because I wasn't doing roadwalks at the time I hiked in this area.  Unsurprisingly, neither stretch was particularly interesting, but collectively they consisted of 7.4 miles outside -- a decent way to spend a morning, regardless of the scenery... or lack thereof.  And with this outing completed, I have now hiked the entire contiguous section of the North Country Trail between the outskirts of Rome and Interstate 81 (south of Cortland), the section shown between the two green asterisks on the map below.  Which feels pretty good!

North Country Trail: Circle Drive to Erie Canal Village

Even though the snow from winter storm Stella has virtually all melted at home, the Southern Tier got more accumulation, and I knew it wouldn't have all melted yet down in the hills.  I decided to skip the unmaintained seasonal roads for one more week, and finish up the Erie Canal section of the North Country National Scenic Trail (NCT) instead.  I parked at the trailhead on Circle Drive, and hiked east to the old Erie Canal Village, then retraced my steps back to where I started for a roundtrip out-an-back of 8.8 miles.  This was my longest school day hike yet, although certainly not the most challenging, given the pancake-flat terrain. 

North Country Trail: Circle Drive to Stacy Basin

I started this hike at the parking area on Circle Drive, and hiked west Stacy Basin, which was my turnaround point on my last hike in this area.  The out-and-back was a total of 6.5 miles.  This section of the North Country National Scenic Trail (NCT) follows the Erie Canal Trail.  The portion of the canal between Circle Drive and Lock 21 is still actively used and appears well maintained, compared with some other part of the canal that are choked with blowdown and debris.  This section of trail is also one of the more pleasant to walk in the area because it is not adjacent to a road.  Woods!  Hurray!

North Country Trail: Route 46 to Stacy Basin

 

Today I continued my northerly-easterly exploration on the North Country National Scenic Trail (NCT).  I started at the parking area on Route 46, skipping the section back toward Durhamville, which is mostly a road walk.  Perhaps I will return for that during hunting season.  I was surprised to find three other vehicles in the parking lot... other hikers?  Nope.  I could see a man talking on the phone in one car, and there were no footprints in the snow leading to the trail.  In fact, mine were the only tracks in the snow for almost the entire length of my hike to Stacy Basin and back, 3.9 miles each way.  The only two places where people had recently been on the trail were immediately adjacent to or across from homes, essentially just people out in their yards with their dogs.

North Country Trail: Lenox Basin to Durhamville

I started out today at the Lenox Basin trailhead where I parked two weeks ago, but instead of hiking west into Canastota, I proceeded east to Durhamville.  I turned back at Route 46 for a roundtrip out-and-back of 6.1 miles.  This section of the North Country National Scenic Trail (NCT) follows the Old Erie Canal.  It is flat and gravel-surfaced and not terribly exciting.  However, after my trouble parking last week down at the Cheningo Day Use Area, I wanted a sure thing today.  Plus, it was raining and in the 30s.  I thought being able to move quickly would help stay warm. 

North Country Trail: Lenox Basin to Canastota

I intended to start this hike at the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery trailhead in Canastota, where I'd parked back in April when I hiked the adjacent section out to Nelson Road and back.  However, when I arrived today, the entrance was gated, with a sign indicating that the cemetery is closed in winter.  This rendered the trailhead parking closed as well.  I pulled over and double checked my maps, then drove on to the parking area at Lenox Basin, which I had intended as my turnaround point.  No big deal; I just hiked my 7.0 mile out-and-back in the opposite direction planned.

Camillus Erie Canal Park

When I found out Erin was planning to walk at the Erie Canal Park in Camillus, I decided Frankie and I would join in on the fun.  It was chilly and overcast, but we just layered up.  I've been to several different sections of the canal east of Syracuse, but never to the Camillus side.  The Erie Canal towpaths are flat as a pancake, and the scenery is generally pretty monotonous, so we don't go often.  However, this particular segment was appealing for its novelty, plus it includes a restored aqueduct about a mile from the parking lot that makes for a good destination.  Despite Frankie's protests that he wanted to keep going, we made the aqueduct our turn-around for this hike, as it started raining there.  Erin says the Sims Store Museum is another mile down, so perhaps we'll return another time for a longer out-and-back.  Maybe we'll even see a boat in the aqueduct!