Replica canal boat will stop in Orleans this week
File photos by Tom Rivers: The Lois McClure passes under the Main Street lift bridge in Albion when the boat was last in Orleans County in August 2013.
An 88-foot-long replica of a Lake Schooner from 1862 is making a 360-mile journey along the Erie Canal this summer in honor of the bicentennial of the start of the Erie Canal’s construction.
The Lois McClure will be in Holley and open four tours from 5 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday at Holley’s Canal Park.
Then the schooner heads west to Medina where it will arrive at about 2 p.m.
A reception for the captain and crew will be hosted by Mayor Michael Sidari and the Village Trustees in the Canal Basin. The public is encouraged to attend that reception.
On Thursday, a full slate of activities are planned to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the building of the Erie Canal (1817) and the 185th Birthday of the Village of Medina.
The Lois McClure is open for tours beginning at 11 a.m. on Thursday. The general public is invited to come aboard the schooner and meet the crew and hear how life was aboard a canal boat in the 1800s. The Lois McClure will be open to tours from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Visitors can also look below deck to get a feel for life on a canal boat in the 1860s.
Beginning at noon, Peddle and Paddle will have rentals of Hydro-bikes and kayaks on the canal until 7 p.m.
At 2 p.m. in the Canal Basin, Acoustically Sound will perform.
At 4 p.m., Emerald Isle of Eden, NY, will give a concert in the Canal Basin, performing traditional Irish music.
Mrs. Ribs – House of BBQ from Middleport will be available from 4 to 8 p.m. and will provide pulled pork sandwiches, sides and drinks for sale.
Tom Grasso of Rochester will give a canal talk at 5 p.m. at the Lee-Whedon Memorial Library on West Avenue. Grasso is an expert on the Erie Canal and will talk about the construction of the historic waterway.
Medina will celebrate the 185th anniversary of the village at 6 p.m. with a birthday cake served in the Canal Basin. Mayor Mike Sidari will officiate, along with Trustee and Village Historian Todd Bensley.
Festivities conclude with a performance by the Kendall Lawn Chair Ladies at 7 p.m. in the Canal Basin.
In the event of rain, the Medina Theater has agreed to host the music and Lawn Chair Ladies.
This event is sponsored by the Village of Medina Tourism Committee, the New York State Canal Corporation and the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor.
The Kendall Lawn Chair Ladies, shown here during the Kendall Firemen’s Carnival Parade in July 2016, will close out Medina’s celebration on Thursday.
