LOCKPORT, N.Y. -- Adventure tourism is drawing folks from across the state to Lockport in Niagara County.

"It was definitely an adrenaline rush," said Brittany Backes of Newfane. "It's a lot smoother than I thought it was. It wasn't nerve-wracking, like I thought it would be."

"Immediately after we got done, we weren't even unhooked yet, and we all said, 'Let's go again,'" said Lockport resident Marilyn Spencer.

Adventure tourism is hitting Lockport, in the form of ziplines over the Erie Canal. 

"They cross the canal, approximately 450 feet," said Tom Callahan, Niagara Zipper co-owner. "It's 85 feet above the water. And then they come back 700 feet to a ground landing over on this side of the canal."

While it just seems like another adrenaline rush, it was a lot of work to make this fun a reality. It took the owner of Niagara Zipper more than a year to get the approvals.

"This is the first time that a zipline goes across a navigable waterway in the United States, so we had to go through every state and federal agency in the Northeast Great Lakes Corridor to get the authorization," Callahan said. "In fact, it's a bridge application that we had to make to the United States Coast Guard."

Both owners and locals say it's a great new way to experience the history of the Erie Canal and the other attractions that Lockport has to offer, including the underground caves.

"You get to see the locks coming back, so it's great to see the historicness of it and the canals and everything like that," Backes said.

"It's that adventure tourism that we feel is really important, and that's why we put this here," Callahan said "Along with our other attraction the Flight of 5 and the boat ride in Lockport, we hope this allows people to almost be able to spend a day here." 

Those interested have to be between 4’8″ and 6’2″ and weigh between 80 and 250 pounds to ride.

Right now, the attraction is only running weekends through November 5 and on Columbus Day.

Reservations are required and can be made at Niagara zipper.com.

Next year, the attraction will go seven days a week, starting May 1.