JULY 2022
The Finger Lakes
Where: central New York
Directions: I-81 North and South and I-80 and NY 20 east and west
Good to Know:
* Watkins Glen, the most famous of New York’s “Gorgeous” Gorges does not permit hiking into the gorge with your dog - the only one in the region with such a prohibition. Dogs are allowed on the South Rim Trail and Indian Trail above but views are few and far between.
Why so good:
Several times in its history all of New York has been covered completely in glaciers one mile thick. These ice sheets did not melt gently like cubes in your summer lemonade. Instead, the glaciers died an angry death - clawing and scraping and gouging the land as they retreated. Their handiwork can be seen in the Finger Lakes, 11 elongated parallel lakes in the center of the state.
THE LAKES.
Most of the parks in the Finger Lakes do not reside on the lakes themselves and most roads do not hug lakeshores. There are, however, plenty of small pocket parks and access to the ancient glacial waters to fill the vacation of any water-loving dog. One to check out is Lakefront Park in Geneva. The north shore of Seneca Lake has rarely looked as attractive as it does today. The shoreline was cleared of its trees and bushes by the City of Geneva in 1922 to create a parkland. That park would ultimately be transferred to New York State in 1957 to be reborn as Seneca Lake State Park. The original roadbed for Route 5/20 came right down to the waterline. When the road was relocated in 1987 the shoreline was left as a depository of highway rubble. Since then the city has invested millions of dollars to create Lakefront Park.
NEW YORK'S GORGEOUS GORGES.
The “Grand Canyon of the East” carved by the Genesee River in Letchworth State Park covers more than 14,000 acres and serves up about 70 miles of trails, many of the multi-use variety. Most folks, however, don’t explore much beyond the three major waterfalls at the park hub so you will have no trouble slipping away into the woods with your dog in relative solitude. If you can, bring your dog to the Gorge Trail early in the morning before the crowds arrive to gape at the hydrospectaculars and admire the stone bridges and stairways created by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Depression. Good places to sneak away with your dog are behind the museum, highlighted by the Mary Jemison Trail, and in the northern area of the park near the camp- ground off Schenck Road with its gorge overlooks.
Enfield Glen is arguably the most impressive of the Finger Lakes gorges. Robert Treman, an outstanding baseball pitcher at Cornell in the 1870s and later Deputy Governor of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, donated 387 acres in Enfield Glen to the State. The marquee plunge in Robert H. Treman State Park is 120-foot Lucifer Falls; the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression did some of its most impressive stonework along Enfield Creek to make the gorge accessible to your dog.
Millard Fillmore gets about the least respect of any of our American Presidents but your dog will sit up and salute #13 after visiting the park named in his honor near his birthplace. The main canine hiking experience at Fillmore Glen State Park is on the Gorge Trail that crosses Dry Creek on nine bridges and visits five major waterfalls. Much of the elaborate stonework along the trail was constructed by Civilian Conservation Corps stonemasons during the Great Depression. This is an easy trot for your dog for two miles into the glen, starting flat and becoming increasingly steep as you reach the end of the gorge. Note that the Gorge Trail is closed in the winter and stays very wet after a recent rain. To complete a hiking loop back to the parking area you have two choices - the South Rim Trail and the North Rim Trail. The south rim route is the more benign of the two as it connects several picnic pavilions. The heartier canine hike is through the hemlocks on the higher side of the gorge, the north side. The most scenic side waterfall drops from this side.
The “Lost Gorge” of Lick Brook and a trio could pass for a state park but it is in fact the Sweedler Preserve of the Finger Lakes Land Trust. The conservation group hungered to preserve this spectacular property for years and finally obtained it when owner Moss Sweedler - who was going to deed it after his death to the Trust anyway - swapped his land on Lick Brook for a lesser piece of property with a pond where his dogs could swim. The trails to the bottom of the 500-foot gorge serve up a trio of impressive waterfalls.
The City of Ithaca pulls four million gallons of drinking water daily from Six Mile Creek but there is still plenty for looking at. Unlike the area’s other gorges that required an army of workers to construct stone paths along the water, the trails along Six Mile Creek evolved more naturally. It is a tamer walk and although you are close to downtown Ithaca your dog will find the wooded creekside quiet and leafy. From the Mulholland Wildflower Preserve there are several miles of streamside hiking along Six Mile Creek.
THE WATERFALLS.
It takes two separate glens for the Buttermilk Creek to storm 600 feet down the Cayuga Valley. It culminates in a wide curtain of water and public swimming pool that your dog can enjoy out of season.You can circle the lower gorge that climaxes in the wide curtain waterfall at the bottom on two 3/4-mile trails on either side of the gorge. The north side is natural going through a shady hemlock forest while the south side utilizes a dramatic stone staircase. After that rollick adventure the remainder of canine hiking at Buttermilk Falls State Park is relatively tame, but nonetheless desirable. The upper section of the park (on West King Street if you are driving, not hiking) features views of the gorge and an easy trek at Lake Treman, surrounded by a 1.5-mile trail. The 25-acre lake was built in 1930.
Ludlowville is a town defined by its waterfall. Here a wide creek bed crosses a thick erosion-resistant limestone caprock that lead to a combination plunge and bouncing cascade. The softer rock beneath the capstone has been scooped out by the pulsating water to form a cavern behind the curtain of water and interesting rock formations. In the small town park boot-carved trails lead to the top and bottom of the falls.
There are said to be 150 waterfalls within ten miles of Ithaca. The namesake Ithaca Falls is the closest to Cayuga Lake, right in town in a small park with an oft-time muddy and slippery trail to its base. Fall Creek finishes its run from Beebe Lake to Cayuga Lake, dropping 400 feet along the way, with this final 75-foot plunge. Strap on your dog’s hiking boots and take off on a two-mile round-trip on the Cayuga Trail and you’ll pass Forest Falls, Foaming Falls, Rocky Falls and finally Triphammer Falls on the campus of Cornell University. There are vigorous climbs to many steep cliff tops and unprotected views down to the water. Keep a close rein on an exuberant dog. Fall Creek is spanned by a number of pedestrian bridges, including two suspension bridges.
Taughannock Falls boasts a single drop of 215 feet that is 33 feet higher than Niagara and higher than all but one cataract east of the Rocky Mountains. Unlike its gorge kin in the Finger Lakes the easy canine hike here is the Gorge Trail that travels up to the falls on a wide, flat path. The more challenging fare is up on the rims. The grade is so gentle that the Gorge Trail remains open even through the winter. It is .75 miles under towering shade trees to the fine mist rising out of the plunge pool; you will need to retrace your steps to return on this extremely agreeable canine hike. Adventurous canine hikers will want to head up the rim trails that form a 2.6-mile loop to the top and across the gorge. You will gain about 400 feet in elevation for which you purchase splendid views overlooking the gorge. The trails don’t hug the edges but are close enough to give your dog pause in spots. There is splashing to be had in Taughannock Creek below the falls and easy access to Cayuga Lake, especially in the northern section of the park.