Finger Lakes, NY in Spring

[anirban_sett]

Hi, I stay in South Western NY and planning to go to Finger Lakes ,NY

in May or June for Spring photography. My main subjects will be

landscape and flowers. So far I�ve thought about staying couple of

days in Ithaca ,visiting the nearby state parks .

 

I�ve looked into the Archive but there seems to be no thread related

to Finger Lakes region. I was wondering if anyone can recommend some

spots in the region , with possible recommendation on timing as well ?

 

Thanks in advance

[robert_kennedy]

Geneva can be nice. Very small-towny. And the area around it is pretty country.

[mike_scott2]

It's been years, but I remember a lot of great waterfalls in and around Ithica. If that's your thing, you may want to search Google for Ithica and Waterfalls to see where they're located.

[david_ashby]

Bring clothes for all four seasons! The weather is rather

changeable this time of year!

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Begin with the NYS tourism site, www.ILoveNY.com

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It is worth having them send you the printed material for the

Finger Lakes. Go to their "contact" info center link. They've even

got maps in Adobe Acrobat .pdf format to print yourself! Tourism

is usually the third largest industry in NYS, and this site shows it!

Everything is there or can be found from there!

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Then look up the Tourism Offices and Chambers of Commerce

for Yates, Schuyler, Cauyga, Steuben, and Ontario counties.

Rochester and Syracuse also have lots of stuff... and there is

always Niagara Falls

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We have the Corning Museum of Glass and the Rockwell

Musesum (western art) in Corning NY; Cornell and Ithaca

College and all sorts of things around Ithaca; Watkins Glen State

Park with the world-famous gorge and trail wending up to the top

and lots of scenery around Watkins Glen (my neck of the woods);

the Finger Lakes National Forest in Hector, and a whole bunch

of state and county parks at the top and bottom of all the Finger

Lakes. There are dozens of locks from the old (original) Erie

Canal and the current NYS Barge Canal running along the

Thruway (I-90).

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As for events, ILoveNY.com points out that "The Finger Lakes

Region has been designated host of the official I LOVE NEW

YORK 2002 Spring Festival, �A Riesling to Visit,� which will run

from March 21 through June 21, 2002."

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There are good pro labs in Bath (E-6 only) and Corning in the

south and Syracuse, and, of course, Rochester!

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So, from the highest waterfall in the East (Taugannock south of

Ithaca) and gorgeous lakes and hills, to lots of wildlife (the

Montezeuma Wildlife Refuge, the largest migratory waterfowl

wetlands is at the north ends of Cauyga Lake) and dozens of

wineries, it's worth the trip!

[keith_sylvester]

Taughannock Falls is definitely worth some time. It is a state park actually north of Ithaca on the west side of the lake (Cayuga). The gorge above the falls is absolutely beautiful as well.

 

There is a trail below the falls also but I haven't gotten a chance to explore it.

 

Keith

 

http://www.sylvesterphoto.com

[ian bornarth]

Spring is a great time to goto the Finger lakes region there should be plenty of water in the streams and lots of wildflowers. There really is a lot to see and do in the area. Ithaca is a good place to start, there are several great state parks in the area (Robert H. Treman, Taugannock Falls, and Buttermilk Falls state parks). Also in town there are several waterfalls and parks. Ithaca is a nice town and has a lot to offer.

 

Another good place is Watkins Glen, the town, not just the park. There is a good park right in town called Watkins Glen State Park. A little south is a town called Montuor Falls, another small town worth checking out. Some other nice towns to check out are Hammondsport, Seneca Falls, and Geneva.

 

A few things about shooting in the Finger lakes, there is a hiking trail that runs through the southern part called the Finger Lakes Trail, there are many nice hikes. Check in the outdoor shops in Ithaca(Wildware?) and Watkins Glen (Terrapin Outfitters, i think) for more information. The gorges and glens are very beatiful places but the rock is very unstable (very loose, very sharp shale) and some caution should be used in off trail wandering, particularily near the tops of cliffs. The weather is unpredictable at best and it could be very warm or quite cool, and it could rain at about any time. however if it does rain, that is the best time to shoot. Also with the many waterfalls and streams a tripod and slow speed film is a good idea. Also this area lends itself nicely to black and white film.

 

One more thing about the parks, they are usually fully open after Memorial Day. There is a fee to enter the parks, however that fee is good for any other park on the same day. As far as I know you do not need any special permits to photograph, I have been shooting in the areas for many years and never had any problems. Weekdays are much quieter than weekends but crowds are not usually a problem.

 

I hope this was helpful, good luck.

 

Ian<div></div>

[julianv]

I lived in Ithaca for about 20 years. There are lots of photogenic

places in the town and surrounding areas. I'll make a few

suggestions here. For more ideas, stop into one of the local

bookstores and browse the touristy guides.

 

The Cornell campus is spectacular, on a high hill overlooking

Cayuga Lake. The bell tower is sometimes open for visitors -

climb the stairs for panoramic views of the town and lake. The

Johnson Art Museum (an I.M. Pei design) makes a good photo

subject. There is a nice flower garden on Tower Road, near the

Ag School. The Cornell Arboretum has an herb garden and

other botanicals. If you like birds, be sure to visit the Lab of

Ornithology. They have a visitor's center with interesting

displays, and an observation area overlooking a lake that

attracts migrating birds. There are also trails around the lake.

Cornell's campus is bounded on the north and south by two

spectacular gorges, with nice waterfalls. Cascadilla Gorge is

accessible via walking trail, and you can use it walk from the

campus to downtown. There are some nice viewpoints within

the gorge. You can also take Aurora Street (Route 96B) south

from downtown to Ithaca College, which sits on another hill

overlooking town and lake.

 

The three nearby state parks are all worth exploring.

Taughannock has the highest waterfall. Treman has the longest

walking trails and another deep gorge with waterfalls. Buttermilk

Falls is just outside the town. For a very nice drive, take Route

13 south, then onto 327 past Treman Park, and up Connecticut

Hill. Nice rolling hills, farms, and foresty glens. Route 34B up

the east side of Cayuga Lake is worth exploring, too. You can

take spurs off this road to cliffs overlooking the lake. Nice

sunset scenes.

 

Going further from Ithaca, consider the drive to Watkins Glen.

The state park there has more deep gorges and falls. You can

also make stops at local wineries, if that interests you. The

Glass Center in Corning is worth a visit, too.

 

I'm not an expert on flowers, so I don't know what is likely to be

blooming during your visit, or the best spots to find them. But

you might be able to get info from the rangers at the state parks,

or from the people at the Cornell Arboretum.

[anirban_sett]

Thank you all for your excellent suggestions. Looks like I'll defintely spend couple of days in Ithaca and then include Watkins Glen in my tour if time permits.

[charles_stobbs1]

If you have time, drive over to Hammondsport (on Keuka Lake)

As the bumper stickers say, Ithaca is gorges.

[joshua_i._divack]

On the Cornell campus, go to Willard Straight Hall, sit on the deck at the rear of the main floor and watch the sun set across Cayuga Lake.

[les maynard photography]

Try Sonnenberg Gardens in Canandaigua.www.sonnenberg.org

[shad_sluiter1]

Taughannock & Watkins Glen = must see. Nice canyon trails. Hope for cloudy days. Watkins Glen has no folliage inside the gorge. It may have some good flowers on the rim trails. Taughannock has some nice small falls near the beginning of the trail that you might enjoy as well as the spectacular main attraction.

 

Further west go to

Wyoming County, Letchworth State Park. Huge gorge, several large waterfalls. www.balloonsoverletchworth.com has some info. about hot air balloon rides there.

 

Stony Creek State Park for another nice gorge. Not very popular, but several small falls inside the gorge made my trip very worth while.

 

 

Still further west you may enjoy the hills of alleghany state park on the PA border. The park features very hilly area with good hiking/ski trails. There are a few panoramic overlooks and some interesting rock formations in the "Thunder Rocks" area.

 

I've got some West/Central New York photos from the above mentioned places online...

 

http://www.naturephotogallery.com/cgi-bin/gallery/gallery2.cgi?new_york<div></div>

[mike_hicks2]

May be a little late with this for your trip, but those for who follow... Hammorndsport has a number of glens to explore, some with very high, sheer shale/slate cliffs and waterfalls. Bully Hill has about the most beautiful of Keuka Lake and local vineyards - you can see a long way in both directions. Also, from Hammondsport you can drive up 'Winding Staircase' road to the gravel bank for another wonderful head-on shot of the lake and surrounding hills. Ask a local for directions. Tour some of the wineries and you can get some interesting shots of the wine making process and vineyards - especially in the fall when the harvest is full swing and the trees are turning. There is a 'festival of lights in the fall, Labor day maybe, where the entire lakefront is ringed with flares just after dark. Hammondsprot is home of Glenn Curtis, a pioneer in aviation and motorcycles - some interesting historical possibilities. If you've never been to Watkins Glen and hiked the trail along the water you're missing something as well. This is some biased info from a former local!