Walked 360 Miles to Complete Erie Canalway Challenge and Stop CMV

In search of 7 wonders, bathrooms and beer, my husband and I walked 360 miles between Buffalo and Albany on the Erie Canalway Trail, finishing in Albany on April 23, 2025, to raise awareness of congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV), a viral cause of autism and hearing loss.

When we first commenced our journey, we assumed walking a mostly level path would be easy – but there were challenges! We've been chased by mosquitoes, biting flies, hissing geese and lightning. We endured torrential downpours, floods, ice, blinding snow, chafing underwear and aching feet. Yet, we found ways to persevere, enjoying the beauty and engineering marvels along the way. Tackling different sections of the Trail about once a month, it took us five years to complete the Challenge.

My updated book, "Walking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders, Bathrooms and Beer to Stop CMV" ("read sample" online) includes my investigation into where and how my great Aunt Rebecca drove into the Canal over 80 years ago, and how my ancestor Jacob Leach, a distiller of whiskey, helped plan the opening of the first Erie Canal in 1825 (200 years ago) with Governor Clinton and his Seneca Chief boat parade. I also discusses the issues faced by somewhat sedentary folks who seek to become "end-to-enders" -- those who walk, bike or kayak the entire Erie Canal -- and how I overcame them.

Congress established the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor in 2000 because the canal “facilitated the movement of ideas …like the abolition of slavery and…women's rights…across upstate New York to the rest of the country…” (106th Congress). Jim and I were determined to become "end-to-enders" on the Erie Canalway Trail because we have a women's rights message to move from "upstate New York to the rest of the country" – that women have the right to know how to protect their pregnancies from congenital CMV. We left Stop CMV rocks with prevention tips along the Trail to comply with Congress' recommendation that "more effort be taken to counsel women of childbearing age of the effect this virus can have on their children" (112th Congress, 2011).

The day after we reached the "East End" Erie Canal mile marker in Albany, I visited the Legislative Office Building to ask the Assembly Health Committee members to pass two new CMV bills (A3956 and A3074) to ensure every newborn be tested for congenital CMV and, if necessary, be referred to specialists within the first critical days of life (for possible early interventions such as antivirals). In 2022, the New York governor had signed "Elizabeth's Law," named in memory of our daughter, to ensure that child care providers and pregnant women received educational materials on how to protect their pregnancies from CMV (for example, not kissing toddlers around the mouth or sharing food/drinks with them). For more information about congenital CMV, click https://www.cdc.gov/cytomegalo...

Though I'm now an “end-to-ender,” I can still be seen on the Trail as a “Canalway Challenge Ambassador,” handing out materials to encourage other Trail users to take the 1st, 15, 90, 180, 200, or 360-mile Challenge. I appreciate the accessibility of the Trail and pushed my mother in a wheelchair so Mom could complete the One-Mile Canalway Challenge. My Trail videos include, "Erie Canal Trail: Stop Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Birth Defects. Pass "Elizabeth's Law" (2022) and “Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail, Vote on 7 Wonders, Stop CMV” (PAC-B TV, 2023). Click for more information about the Canalway Challenge.

In addition to "Walking the Erie Canalway Trail," I am the author of several books, such as "Mystic Seafarer's Trail," which features my defeat as a sailor when I abandoned ship.