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Getting the green light for entry, we crept inside the first 328-foot long cavern and the massive doors closed with an echoing thud that bounced off the lock's sheer walls. In anticipation I held tightly to the stern line while my brother held the bow line firm. You don't cleat off in locks. With only gravity and centuries-old engineering to guide us, our 42-foot, 12-ton vessel slowly rose.

Inching up the lock walls, great plumes of swirling chocolate current rose from the depths. All that was required was a little pull or two on the lines to keep us steady.

In a few minutes, it was over, and we tied up in Seneca Falls for the night. And like the seafarers of old returning home after a long voyage, my family celebrated our massive ascension with a seawall BBQ. Not the Queen's celebration mind you, but good enough for the crew, which included my wife, brother, and nine-year-old niece.

We had come to the New York State Canal system--which includes the Erie and another 186 miles and 23 locks of "feeder" lines on the Cayuga-Seneca, Champlain, and Oswego Canals--to explore the most unspoiled part of the Empire state, and to visit one of the most underused waterways in the world. During our early June foray, we never saw more than a dozen craft a day.

I also wanted to take the helm of a unique vessel that has been resurrected from one of the most important chapters in America's history that began when the canal first opened in 1825. It was the Erie and her canal boats that sparked the explosive growth of the American west, giving New York City and the Empire State national prominence in trade and commerce, and forever changing the lives of nearly every American.

Long past its industrial era prime, tourism keeps the canal open nowadays to the tune of a $384 million in economic impact annually.

The canal is a destination unto itself. In fact, New York State is nearing the end of a five-year $32 million revitalization effort to restore the canal system and market it as a destination, much like Europe has done with its waterways.

Today's canal boat trade is largely the result of a central NY-based charter boat company, Mid-Lakes Navigation. The company started in 1968 with an idea to rejuvenate canal traffic focusing on tourism, not commodity transportation. It now runs a fleet of 11 canal boats all built by Mid-Lakes in Skaneateles, NY.

With a few steroids pumped into the beam, these craft are modeled after traditional UK narrow boats--shallow V bottoms with pudgy open bows, a long cabin trunk and open steering station aft. The boats' exterior lines, colors and material replicate those of 150 years ago--work-manlike, functional, low maintenance.

The boat's knotty pine interior brought back memories of an Adirondack camp. And like a camp, these boats provide a high degree of functionality in a relatively small space.

At the bow of Cayuga was a convertible ragtop covering a semi-circular seating area that became our dinner and gaming table, where I lost my shirt on some bad investments in one late evening Monopoly game.

Moving aft is the saloon, with a toasty furnace and large stowage area and kitchen to port, and pullout settee and fridge to starboard. It was here that I lingered long after everyone had gone to bed, listening to the passing of midnight rainstorms.

The saloon is also where we held our daily planning sessions, which usually required little thought since we could forget about tides, current, wind, or threat of squall. This is just point-and-shoot boating. Even the non-boater, after a checkout by the company, can easily handle these craft.

About halfway back are two cabins, one with bunks, the other a double, as well as two heads and separate sinks and stowage lockers. This was the only charter vessel I have ever been on that had room to stow all our gear.

The aft deck and coach roof were our cockpit, fishing dock, cocktail spot and fireworks viewing area all in one. A couple of beach bikes came with the boat, as some like to peddle the adjacent Canalway Trail, but we preferred to stay aboard. Steered with a tiller, Cayuga maxed out at six knots, well under the Canal's 10-mph speed limit.

The boat was surprisingly maneuverable, much to the credit of a barn door size-rudder, and in a pinch, the bow thruster. On my predeparture check out ride I found I could navigate a U-turn on the 125-foot wide canal in a boat length--without the thruster. My instructor also let me know that in a steel boat, you don't fend off--I could let her bounce, ding and skip off lock walls if we had to.

On our way to Seneca Falls, we slipped below the noisy New York State Thruway bridges, enveloping ourselves in the wilds of the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge. The 8,000 plus acre swamp tract is home to thousands of nesting pairs, including ducks, great blue heron and bald eagles. Sadly, there was no dock access so we beached Cayuga for a walk but quickly returned to the vessel after noticing "Please Stay in Car" sign along the Wildlife Drive. I didn't want to chance one of the Lion Country Safari type tragedies with a vicious mauling by a gnawing beaver.

Later that night, we went "off the grid" and tied up to snags just east of Lock 25 next to Montezuma's and catfished by anchorlight until the wee hours. But all other nights we spent in town--and not all were the same.

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Our 102-mile, seven-day trip took us from Macedon, just east of Rochester, NY, east to Seneca Falls, then all the way west to Pittsford. Fairport and Palmyra were our favorites.

Unlike most of our sleepy mid-week nightly stops, we ended up in Fairport on a Friday, smack in midst of the town's bustling Canal Days celebration. A crooked lift bridge over the Erie anchors the town, which also had the best shopping.

We liked Palmyra for its up-and-coming attitude--and it also held several good museums. Non-believers shouldn't shy away from a tour of the Grandin Building, better known as the birthplace of the Book of Mormon. Our visit was as much a look at 19th century life as it was a polite minirecruitment drive, and we enjoyed it all.

Seneca Falls had much to offer in the history of the Equal Rights movement, as it was the sight of the first Women's Rights Convention. A must-see was the Seneca Falls Heritage Area Visitors Center, which clearly showed how the canal system influenced its early development.

Unlike the canal's early routes that were built by digging into the earth, the present day Erie--which was completed in 1918--takes advantage of natural topography. Incorporating lakes and rivers, it is said they were modeled after the French and English waterways of the time.

Never is this more evident than in Seneca Falls' Van Cleef Lake, which shifted the canal's early course and flooded the powerful Seneca River waterfalls, displacing dozens of industrial age factories and working class neighborhoods.

Except for Fairport, which offered hot showers, all of our nightly tie ups in port were free and included water and electric. The ports themselves aren't much more than quiet seawall tie-ups, and signage leading to a short stroll to town.

Part of the joy about the Canal is the pride lock tenders take in their locks. Their charm, enthusiasm and care are genuine. Often we found lock tenders coordinating our transit by having the doors on the next lock--miles ahead--opened ahead of time.

Ask a tender for a lock tour and they love to oblige. At one lock we stuck our heads into one of the unused--but still highly maintained--original powerhouses. It appeared just as it was in use over 80 years ago--shiny paint, sparkling electrical machinery, and a well placed oiling can in the corner. After all this, I was half-expecting to see a burning Lucky Strike in an ashtray--perhaps giving the appearance of a ghostly lock tender who had just stepped away from the machinery ages ago.

That's how I remember the Erie Canal the most--a monument to the past, but spruced up and looking good, eagerly awaiting the next boat to lock through.

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Before You Go:

Mid-Lakes Navigation has canal boat bases near Syracuse and Rochester, NY. Either 34 feet or 42 feet long, they can sleep up to eight in a pinch. All have one or two heads, shower, 12V and shore power, refrigerator, kitchenware, and full housekeeping and safety equipment. Fuel is included. Rates start at $1950/week. For more information, call . Yacht Travel & Charters at 800-477-4427.

Bring things to do (cards, boardgames, books) rather than expect to be entertained along the way. If you do want more activity, try to schedule your trip during one the region's many festivals.

Bringing your own boat to the canal? It's open from early May to early November (it's drained during the winter) and takes about five days to complete. Channel depths are a minimum 12 feet; Bridge clearances start at feet. There are also many marinas along the way.