Get the family together and make Spencerport your destination for Spencerport Canal Days, now in its 38th year the weekend of July 27 and 28. The festival atmosphere has that special mid-summer feel to it, known to be a good blend of community spirit and fun.
There’s plenty to see and enjoy, including unique arts and crafts vendors, delicious food from comfort-style to ethnic specialties, outstanding live entertainment offered in various sites, a delectable wine tasting area with farm market offering fresh produce and seasonal fare.
Visit the car show at the American Legion Post on Trimmer Road where over 200 cars will be on display on Saturday, July 27. Learn about the importance of the Erie Canal to the village itself at the Depot Museum.
Visit with Ally, the Canal Days Canaligator, who will be strolling the venue to bring attention to the Canaligator race on Sunday, July 28. As they cross the finish line in the Erie Canal beginning at 4:30 p.m., your Canaligators could have a chance at winning some valuable prizes including entertainment, food and product gift cards from Spencerport area businesses. Tickets will be available for purchase during both days of the festival.
A portion of the proceeds from the Canaligator Race and other festival events are donated back to the community in many ways, including last year’s funding of a canal-side bench swing on the towpath for some leisure time resting along the historic waterway.
Festival organizers say the Erie Canal bridge reconstruction project begun in early July of this year and continuing into the fall of 2020 will not hamper the placement of the arts and crafts booths and food vendors. Committee Chairperson Virginia Swarthout says movement around the site will be easy and safe. “We are proceeding with the attitude that “if there’s rock, we will find our way around it,” she says (figuratively speaking) of the slight changes which may be necessary to provide easy access to everything Canal Days has to offer.
Free parking will be available at the nearby Spencerport High School, from where free frequent shuttles will travel to the downtown festival site. Buses will also make a stop at the Car Show venue.
The festival will be open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 27 and Sunday, July 28. For the safety of pets, their owners and other festivals attendees, the Canal Days Committee recommends that animals not be brought to the two-day festival.
See the Spencerport Canal Days special section delivered with this week’s Suburban News and Hamlin-Clarkson Herald for detailed information including the full event schedule on the various stages, the vendor list and other highlights of what’s going on.
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