Erie Canal opens for 195th season
Photo by Tom Rivers: A cyclist heads east on the Erie Canal towpath in Medina on Thursday near the Glenwood Avenue canal bridge.
The Erie Canal opened at 7 a.m. today for its 195th season.
The Canal Corporation is waiving tolls again this year for recreational vessels as the state continues to commemorate 200 years of Erie Canal history. The Erie Canal was under construction from 1817 to 1825.
The Canal Corp. also waived the tolls the past two years. Those tolls are normally $25 to $100 for a season pass, depending on the size of the vessel.
The standard hours of operation for the 2018 season are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. The lift bridges in Orleans County have extended hours until 10 p.m. from May 17 to Sept. 11.
The canal’s navigation season continues until Oct. 16.
Signs about the Erie Canal trail system are shown in Medina’s Canal Basin.
The same cyclist is on the towpath headed near the Horan Road canal bridge.
