29 June 2022 Lewiston and Lockport

 Leslie had read about the small town of Lewiston on the Niagara River downstream from the falls. So, we went to check it out. It’s a quaint little town built on top the bluffs overlooking the Niagara river in the early 1800s. The downtown area was only about 6 blocks long. We found a taqueria called The Spicy Pickle. It was actually quite good for Yankee Mexican food and we enjoyed our tacos sitting under a tree on main street. We walked along the main drag and poked our head into various shops before stopping at the Brickyard Pub and BBQ to taste their beers. After a nice cold craft beer, we headed toward Lockport. We had heard about Lockport from our guide. It’s a small town that was built in the 1820s as the locks for the Erie Canal were built. The locks for the canal were built here because it was the lowest point along the Niagara Escarpment and thus was the perfect place to build the locks. Originally there were five locks in each direction to raise and lower the small boats approximately 165 feet in elevation. In the 1910s, the canal was widened to handle larger boats and one set of locks was rebuilt to only have 2 stages. These locks are still in operation today and the original west bound locks are used as an overflow spillway. As we were exploring the outdoor museum of the locks, a tour boat came through the locks and we were able to see the locks in operation. This part of the Erie canal is not used by commercial traffic any longer but is still in operation for private boats, water for cities and industry and tourism. It was fun to see the locks in operation and the hundred plus year old hardware still in operation. It was a good way to wind up our visit to the area.

Old Locks

Lock Mechanism

Lock Doors Closing

Boat transitioning the Lock

Lock Doors

Canal Signs

Locks at Lockport

Old Armor Car in Lewiston

Downtown Lewiston