The Coolest Visitor Center In Ohio Has A Dock Where You Can Rent A Canal Boat And Explore The Ohio & Erie Canal
By Sarah McCosham|Published August 17, 2023
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Sarah McCosham
Author
I write like it's my job - because it is! I have a Master's in English and love words: crossword puzzles, Scrabble games, Wordle, and, of course, good, old-fashioned books.
I'm a writer and editor at OnlyInYourState, and a contributing writer at Cincinnati Magazine. I love the Great Outdoors and am endlessly awestruck by this beautiful country of ours. Coffee keeps me going, yoga keeps me sane, my kids keep me grounded, and my writing keeps me inspired.
One of the most unique things about Ohio is, well, how unique it is. We’re somehow Southern and Northern and Midwestern… simultaneously. We have caves and waterfalls and beaches and old-growth forests. We have small towns and big cities, major universities and liberal arts schools… we have it all, and discovering all the unique things to see and do in Ohio is a lifelong pursuit! One of the coolest things I’ve come across in my adventures in Ohio is a visitor center that, pardon the pun, blows all other visitor centers out of the water. It’s the Canal Fulton Canalway Center, a seasonally operated visitor center in Canal Fulton that has its own dock where you can rent a canal boat for an afternoon cruising down the Ohio & Erie Canal.
Before there were cars and even trains, the network of waterways across America served to connect communities and create commerce opportunities.
The Erie Canal opened in 1825, an event of immeasurable importance that would put NY on the map as a leader in population, industry, and economic strength -- "Empire State," indeed.
In the Buckeye State, waterways were equally influential and important. The Ohio and Erie Canal, connecting Lake Erie at Cleveland with the Ohio River at Portsmouth, was built between 1825-32 to provide transportation and promote the state's economic development.
It's not an exaggeration to say that this canal bolstered the Buckeye State's economy and laid the groundwork for Ohio as we know it today. This history is on full display at The Canal Fulton Canalway Center, a seasonal visitor center and home to the St. Helena III Canal Boat.
The Canalway Center offers the *only* opportunity within the Ohio & Erie Canalway National Heritage Area to ride a canal boat in the Ohio & Erie Canal.
Just like in the olden days, the St. Helena III Canal Boat is pulled by two draft horses, and departs from the Port of Canal Fulton in St. Helena Heritage Park for a one-hour ride down the Ohio & Erie Canal. A historian on board provides information on the history of the canal, the boat and the area, making for a historical experience in Ohio that's truly unlike any other.
The Canal Fulton Canalway Center is open daily, May through October, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Call 330-854-6835 or email canalway@cityofcanalfulton-oh.gov for hours and rates on seasonal canal boat rides.
Did you know about this ridiculously cool visitor center in Ohio? Most of us expect to find, say, trail maps or small souvenirs at a state visitor center, but a dock full of canal boats you can charter for an afternoon? That’s some thrilling, next-level stuff — just be sure and pack a sun hat for the ride!
For more information on the Canal Fulton Canalway Center and its seasonal boat rides, visit the Discovery Fulton website.
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