How to Walk Across New York State on the 360-Mile Erie Canalway Trail - Grandma and Grandpa are over halfway there! Couple searches for "The 7 Wonders" and a way to stop CMV

Couple searches for "The 7 Wonders," benches, bathrooms and beer.
Challenges faced by baby boomers Jim and Lisa Saunders, how they've overcome - and why
by Lisa Saunders
My husband Jim and I are walking across New York State on the Erie Canalway Trail between Albany and Buffalo. Beginning the 360-mile Canalway Challenge in April 2020 at its midpoint, Camillus (near our home in Baldwinsville), we have since walked over halfway across the State (226 miles). We tackle a new section of the Trail about twice a month - in all seasons. Despite the challenges we've faced the last three years, becoming an "end-to-ender" (those who walk, bike or kayak the entire Erie Canal) is our goal.
Although walking a level path sounds easy, it isn't always! We've been chased by swarms of mosquitoes, biting flies, and lightning. We've endured torrential downpours, blinding snow, chafing underwear, aching feet, and swollen knees. We’ve faced snakes, floods, ice, and a smelly, dead opossum!
If you want to learn more about the Erie Canalway Trail, how to overcome its challenges, or have a favorite site to suggest, join us in our search for "The 7 Wonders," benches, bathrooms and beer, by clicking on my slide show, “Hiking the Erie Canalway Trail: A Search for 7 Wonders. Benches, Bathrooms and Beer on Way to Stop CMV.”
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…” (govinfo.gov). We are determined to become "end-to-enders" because we have a "women's rights" issue to move from "upstate New York to the rest of the country": cytomegalovirus (CMV). We are leaving #Stop CMV rocks 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” (Congress designated June as National Cytomegalovirus Awareness Month in 2011).
Our daughter Elizabeth was born with brain damage because I contracted CMV just prior to or during my pregnancy. If I had been educated about CMV prevention, she might have had a healthy life. Elizabeth died at the age of 16 in 2006 during a seizure.
According to the CDC, “CMV is the most common infectious cause of birth defects in the United States. About 1 out of 200 babies is born with congenital CMV. One out of 5 babies with congenital CMV will have symptoms or long-term health problems, such as hearing loss” (cdc.gov/cmv). For women of childbearing age to prevent CMV infection, the CDC states: “You may be able to lessen your risk of getting CMV by reducing contact with saliva and urine from babies and young children. The saliva and urine of children with CMV have high amounts of the virus. You can avoid getting a child’s saliva in your mouth by, for example, not sharing food, utensils, or cups with a child.” (CMV Fact Sheet for Pregnant Women and Parents or CMV pdf).
In 2022, “Elizabeth’s Law,” named in memory of our daughter, was passed in New York. It requires the provision of CMV educational materials to child care providers and pregnant women.  Although delighted the law passed, there is still a lot to be done: I want all women across the U.S. to know about CMV before getting pregnant. In addition, all newborns should be tested for CMV to identify those who would benefit from early intervention and/or antiviral treatment.
To learn more about CMV, click on my video, “Erie Canal Trail: Stop Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Birth Defects. Pass "Elizabeth's Law"; or visit the National CMV Foundation.
If you have a "Wonder" to suggest, have a question, or would like me to present to your group, contact me at: LisaSaunders42@gmail.com

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