Hurricane Irene beat it up real good, and then TS Lee finished the job. Many locks, dams, and bridges have been totally destroyed. The Champlain Canal is in better shape although it and the federal lock in Troy are presently closed, they should reopen soon. Anyone planning on heading south from the Great Lakes area this fall will either have to go the Champlain route or down the Chicago and Mississippi.

With the severe budget problems New York State is facing, coupled with the near disappearance of commercial canal traffic and steep decline in recreational boating, I have to wonder if it will reopen at all.