The Erie Canal Village, Rome, NY, Part 3

You can read Part 1 and Part 2 and my video post of the packet boat ride is here. We spent all day at the Village, and there was so much to discover! Our Packet Boat ride was set to begin. It cost us $6 per person, so it was very pricey. But I suspect that a lot of the ticket money goes toward the feeding and care of the horses, who draw the boat up and down this portion of the canal twice a day.

Here comes the team for the boat.

The line for the boat ride was rather long in the hot afternoon sun. There were a lot of people. We choose seats on benches on the top of the boat. After everyone was settled and a warning given, the horses started off. A young man with a thick stick pushed the boat back away from the bank and got the boat going. Read more

The Erie Canal Blacksmith

I finally got this video uploaded to YouTube. Took me all day! It’s the Blacksmith demonstration we saw while at Erie Canal Village in Rome, NY. I love watching these things. This guy is relatively new, but I think he did a great job. And those double-bellows are amazingly large.

Takes Me Forever…

Gosh, it takes me forever to go through all our photos, edit them, and upload them! I really should take fewer photos when we visit a place! I am referring to our recent exploit to the Erie Canal Village in Rome, NY– which I still have to post! I think I took 100 photos and 5 videos, lol… ugh! There was so much to see and do that I really didn’t want to miss a thing.

We were able to get in the Village for free, as July 4th is “free” day in celebration of the holiday and of the anniversary of the Erie Canal. It was at that location that DeWitt Clinton shoveled the first clod of dirt to begin the decade-long project of the famous Erie Canal. They’ve tried to retain that moment in history at the village. Truly, you’d never know it was 2008 there, except for the power lines in the back fields and the restrooms at the entrance. It was a terrific experience.

I have REALLY got to get going on those photos!!

Everything is FINALLY Open

Traveling and tourism is officially underway for the Upstate NY summer season. Here are a few local attractions for Central New York:

Erie Canal Village in Rome. I haven’t been here in… oh, a very long time. It is my desire to take the kids someday. The village is open 10 to 5, Wednesdays through Saturdays through Sept. 1. Admission is pricey, like everything else in New York State. The admission is split up between visiting the village and/or a boat ride on the canal packet boat. Adults, $10, $6 for the boat ride and $15 for both; children 5-17, $5, $6 for the boat ride and $10 for both. Children under 5 years old are admitted free.

Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake. I’ve heard great things about the museum, but it is way, way, waaaaaay too expensive for our family of six (all “adults” but one; only at museums is a fourteen-year old considered an adult, sheesh!) Adults 13 and over are $16 and kids 6-12 are $8. It is up in the middle of the Adirondack Park, so with gas prices the way they are in Upstate (over $4 now), this can really be a pricey day. But someday we are going to go– I hear the museum is exquisite. Open daily from 10 to 5.

Adirondack Scenic Railroad. It’s another very pricey outing. Admission fees depend on where you choose to go, and for how long. It’s absolutely beautiful in the autumn, but a great trip for spring, too. Someday we’re going to do this, when I win the lottery or something, lol.

Fort Stanwix in Rome, NY. This is our all-out, extra-special, super-duper favorite place to go. And guess what– it’s FREE! We go to Fort Stanwix about every year or so. They just had their 250-year anniversary, too. LOVE this place. Open daily 9-5.