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Visit Lock 4 Canal Park

Lock 4 Canal Park is open when the State Canal System is operative, usually between May 1 and November 30. Visit the park and hike the 1.5 mile nature trail along the bluff overlooking the junction of the Hoosic and Hudson Rivers. Bring a picnic lunch and watch boats "lock through" from an observation platform. Explore the passages between the mainland and islands by canoe, using the canoe launch at Stillwater just below the dam and hydroelectric plant.

The scenery is most impressive in spring when water is running over the Hoosic River rapids, and in the fall when foliage color has arrived. Explore the gorge of Hoosic River when the water level is low in summer, and fish from the tip of the peninsula of the former Vandenburgh's Island, at the end of the nature trail.

To visit one the state's lesser-known but highly scenic state parks, enter from County Route 125, also known as Stillwater Bridge Road. Just east of the canal crossing the entrance road leads south to the lock and park. (NOTE: Do not take the road south of CR 125 immediately east of the Hudson River bridge and west of the canal bridge.) In spite of major changes to the natural landscape resulting from the canal's construction, time has healed the wounds created by the massive excavation shown in the ca. 1910 construction photos, and the area is a scenic and serene place again today.

For further information on the New York State Canal system, contact the New York State Canal Corporation, 200 Southern Boulevard, PO Box 189, Albany, NY 12201-0189 (phone: 1- 800-422-6254 or 518-471-5011) (website: http://www.canals.state.ny.us/) The phone number for Champlain Lock 4 is 518-664-5261.

The R-TLC has specific interest in significant natural areas, such as Lock 4 Canal Park, and in the process of a detailed botanical study of its flora. For more information on the flora and ecological communities of Lock 4 Canal Park, please contact either Bob Ingalls or Warren Broderick, R-TLC Directors, by calling (518) 238-2832, or by e-mailing This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .


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