This summer, there’s much more at the newly dedicated Erie Canal Harbor than enjoying the reconstruction and the historical signage.
While you are at the Harbor, you can also take short strolls:
• Adjoining the Harbor is Veterans Park with monuments to Western New York veterans of American wars.
• Enjoy the flower display and boats at the Erie Basin Marina.
• Refresh yourself at the informal Hatch restaurant or at the more upscale Shanghai Red’s (where catamaran rides are available).
• In the Erie Basin Marina, there is also a small beach for sunbathing and an observation tower for viewing.
• On the far side of the Erie Canal construction site, near the DL&W depot, there is the Women’s Walkway with commemorative benches and bricks.
• It’s a short walk to Lower Lakes Marine Historical Society at Franklin and Swan, open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
• It’s also a short walk to City Hall where there are noon weekday tours.
• Also walkable is the daily weekday noon entertainment at M&T Plaza.
• Need some fresh food or flowers? On Tuesdays and Thursdays, there is the farmers market on Main Street near Lafayette Square.
• At Lafayette Square, enjoy the crowds and music at the evening Thursday at the Square.
• In a few weeks, part of the former Aerospace Museum will be housed in HSBC Arena.
All the activities listed above are free, but for reasonable fees, you can visit the Naval and Servicemen’s Park and Museum.
You can also book one of the daily Miss Buffalo II tours at 1 or 3 p.m. At 3 p.m. on Wednesdays, there is a special cruise that features a talk on Buffalo history.
There are also free scheduled events that are already onning or starting at the Harbor:
• Dug’s Dive Revisited on Wednesdays at 12:15 p.m. and on Saturdays, 4:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.
• Canal District tours and lectures on Thursdays, noon to 1 p.m.
• Family Fun on Fridays, 1 to 4 p.m.
• Be Active Buffalo (fitness walks) on Fridays, registration opening at 11:30 a.m.
• Historical Lecture Series on Saturdays, 8:30-9:30 p.m.
• Ask the Experts (Q&A sessions on the past and future of Buffalo’s waterfront) on Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 4 p.m.
• Music on the Central Wharf on Saturdays 6 to 7 p.m., and on Sundays 4 to 5 p.m.
• The harbor will host Navy Week on August 23-31, featuring free concerts by the Navy Show Band.
There are weekly updates on Harbor events at www.buffaloplace.com. See additional photos at buffaloah.com/a/water/tc.html.
All the activities above make for a great day at the Harbor, but what would make the Harbor even more central to Buffalo tourists and locals would be downtown walking tours (sponsored, for example, by Buffalo Tours and Campaign for Buffalo – Hint! Hint!) that left from the Harbor .
Equally exciting would be a bus shuttle loop (sponsored, for example, by Buffalo Place and a coalition of museums – Hint! Hint!) throughout the day that dropped off and picked up visitors at various museums (for example, Pierce-Arrow, Nash House, Science Museum, Larkin at Exchange, Central Terminal, Botanical Gardens, Our Lady of Victory Basilica, Religious Art Center Museum, Martin House, History Museum, Albright-Knox).
Photos by Chuck LaChiusa