Erie Canal Lock E-2 — Attraction in Town of Waterford

A fascinating visit, and so cool to get to explore a lock up close!

Ignore Google Maps' instructions-- it told us to pull directly up to the bottom of the wooden staircase, but there's parking on the other side of South St next to the metal staircase as well as across the street.

You definitely need to be able to climb and descend stairs to really take advantage of what's there, but if you can't, there's still a good view of the lock from street level. We were there on a day when the lock was out of commission because of some work that was being done nearby, but the lock personnel were still so helpful and patiently answered all of my (many) questions.

If you're going with people who need to be supervised, be aware that there's open access to the water-- there's no fence that would keep someone from tumbling...

They have nice festivals throughout the summer including Canalfest and Tugboat Roundup which including vendors, food carts, fireworks, a 5k run and tugboat parade. There is a boat launch and you can rent kayaks. There are picnic tables and grassy areas to rest and it is just down the road from Broad St. in Waterford which has some resturants if you want to grab food and have a picnic.

The canal is located across from Peebles Island State Park which is a beautiful green space with walking trails, a historic building you can tour, a picnic area that you can rent for festivities and a small deck for a nice view. There are BBQ's and picnic tables along with plenty of...

The tug boat fest was great I brought my autistic friend I've been with for ever. The firemen were awesome let him try on their uniform, it was primarily for little kids they had small uniforms for them but the fire fighter let him try on his. My guy was so happy. Then the boat driver waited for us to get across the bridge to acomadate us. The venders right at the end of 3rd Ave made sure he cut up his hotdog in small pieces so he wouldn't choke. Most places I feel people aren't always acomadating with individuals with disabilities, but everyone we saw there were awesome I highly recommend anyone checking out the fest. I've never been...