Drove the New York Thruway

To NY highway 28

Stopped to see the Erie Canal remembering that we learned about it in school. The Erie Canal runs east to west for 351 miles between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. It was completed in 1825 and the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes vastly reducing the cost of transporting people and goods across the Appalachians. The Erie Canal accelerated the settlement of the Great Lakes and westward expansion. Today the canal is used mostly by recreational craft.

We started our drive through the Adirondacks. I always thought that the Adirondacks were high mountains, especially since the 1980 Winter Olympics were at Lake Placid. The highest mountain just over 5,000 feet but most are just over 2,000 feet. The drive through the Adirondacks was stunning— lots of small, charming villages, many lakes that reminded me of the movie “On Golden Pond”, and in the midst of the trees turning beautiful shades of yellow, rust, and orange.

We are at Eighth Lake Campground—a great spot on the lake. Weather is mild,clear and beautiful but chilly in the evening.