Trail Programs

Bike Friendly New York is a free certification program that recognizes and supports businesses that offer services and amenities that accommodate cyclists. To become certified as a Bike Friendly New York business, all establishments must meet three baseline requirements in addition to specific services based on the type of establishment.

The Canal Corporation and Parks & Trails New York works with canal communities, through an annual competitive process, to develop and implement the Empire State Trail Town program, modeled after the Great Allegheny Passage’s highly successful program. The program aims to demonstrate how improved access to communities for trail users can benefit local economic development.

Each year since 2005, the Canal Corporation and Parks & Trails New York have conducted trail counts, Who’s on the Trail, along the Canalway Trail. Estimates of trail use volume help inform expenditures for trail construction and maintenance. The counts also show the economic impact of the trails on counties, towns, villages and cities across the Canal corridor.

Interactive map itineraries that direct Canalway Trail visitors to communities, local attractions, bike friendly businesses, and amenities within a short distance of the trail, allowing users to fully experience the Canalway corridor.

The Canal Corporation in partnership with Erie Canal National Heritage Corridor to run a personal mileage goal program on the Canalway System called the Canalway Challenge. Whether you are taking your first steps toward fitness or are an experienced athlete, set your sights on adventure and fun along the 524-mile NYS Canal System and 360-mile Erie Canalway Trail. Reach your one-of-a-kind, personal mileage goal – whether cycling, paddling, running, hiking, rolling, or walking – and discover all you can do along New York's canals! Participants register online and choose a mileage goal, track their miles over the course of the summer, and upload a photo when they finish. Finishers receive a certificate, bandana, and mileage decal.

The 750-mile Empire State Trail, the longest multiuse in-state recreational trail system in the nation, showcases New York State’s special places, diverse history and iconic landscapes.

The trail welcomes bicyclists and walkers of all ages and abilities to experience urban centers, village main streets, rural communities and diverse history—from New York City through the Hudson River Valley, west to Buffalo along the Erie Canal, and north to the Champlain Valley and Adirondacks.