finger lakes

The 2010 edition of the new Clean & Safe Boat will be among the classic and antique boats at the July 23-25 Skaneateles Boat Show.  The educational vessel is traveling New York’s freshwater shoreline to educate new and novice boaters, and remind experienced boaters, about the gear required and recommended for safe and legal boating on NY waters in 2010. The “made in New York” 19-foot-long pontoon boat is equipped with four types of PFDs, safety flares, chartbook, paddle, green cleaning products and other gear all labeled. The bilge sock and fuel nozzle bib are two easily-used items to reduce or eliminate fuel spills. Those visiting the vessel at events this summer may qualify for a Boater’s Bag with information on New York State boating regulations, the Clean Vessel Act, boat handling and navigation aids, US Power Squadron Float Plan, and the US Coast Guard Aids to Navigation System. Boaters who pledge to be clean, green and safe can spin a wheel for prizes such as a floating keychain, bilge sock, Nautical Seaway Trail Chartbook, and poncho. This “clean and green” boat is powered by two electric motors, has a generator and has a plug-in for shoreline recharge. It will be among the more than 80 boats on exhibit at the Skaneateles Boat Show on the north shore of Skaneateles Lake. Sponsors of the 2010 Discover Clean & Safe Boating vessel include Marathon Boat Group, the Boating Industries Association of Upstate New York, Great Lakes Seaway Trail, Morgan Recreational Supply and Taylor Made Products. This Grumman aluminum pontoon boat comes direct from the Marathon Boat Group assembly line at Marathon, NY, for its education and information mission. It can be called a descendant of the engineering that created lightweight, stretch-formed aluminum aircraft use as carrier-based fighter planes during World War II. For more info on the 2010 Discover Clean & Safe Boating vessel, contact New York Sea Grant, SUNY Oswego, Oswego, NY 13126, 315-312-3042. Filed under: Finger Lakes Tagged: boating , Skaneateles Lake

Continue Reading July 23-24 Discover Clean & Safe Boat at Skaneateles Boat Show

Tags: Boating, clean, discover-clean, finger lakes, grumman, Lakes, marathon, New York, north, power, power-squadron, skaneateles lake, tracks, trail-chartbook

Click here to read New York State Mountain Bike Trails For other options, try these guidebooks: Take Your Bike – Family Rides in the Rochester Area Take Your Bike – Family Rides in New York’s Finger Lakes Region Take Your Bike – Family Rides in the Finger Lakes & Genesee Valley Region 25 Interesting Bicycle Trails in the Thousand Islands and St. Lawrence Seaway Region of New York State 25 Interesting Bicycle Trails in the Lake George NY Region Filed under: Adirondacks , Finger Lakes , Mountain Biking , Northern NY , Rochester

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Tags: bicycle-trails, bike, family-rides, finger, finger lakes, lake, Lakes, mountain biking, new york hiking trails, region, rochester, state-mountain, tracks

NorthWind Expedition Kayaks, Ltd in Skaneateles sells new and used kayaks and offers guided tours on Skaneateles Lake , West Canada Creek, Lake Ontario, and Salmon River as well as whale watching tours to Quebec. Filed under: Canada , Finger Lakes , Gear , Kayaking , Lake Ontario , Wildlife Tagged: kayak tours , Lake Ontario , Salmon River , Skaneateles Lake , West Canada Creek , whale watching

Continue Reading NorthWind Expedition Kayaks, Ltd in Skaneateles

Tags: activity, finger lakes, Kayak, Ontario, quebec, salmon river, skaneateles, tracks, whale-watching

Event: Mountain Bike Ride Start Time: Monday, July 5 at 6:00pm End Time: Monday, July 5 at 7:00pm Where: Dryer Road Park, Dryer Road, Victor NY Come check out the Dryer Road Mountain Bike Park with the crew at Eastern Mountain Sports! This is a beginner to intermediate ride. Make sure to bring your helmet, water, spare tube, and a snack. Meet in the parking lot…look for an old, white, kind of sketchy looking Toyota van. For lots of trails to ride, pick up the guidebooks: Take Your Bike – Family Rides in the Rochester Area Take Your Bike – Family Rides in New York’s Finger Lakes Region Filed under: Finger Lakes , Mountain Biking , Rochester Tagged: eastern mountain sports , Victor NY

Continue Reading EMS “Mountain Bike Ride” on Monday, July 5 at Dryer Road Park

Tags: bike, biking, dryer, Family Hiking, finger lakes, location, mountain bike, mountain biking, New York, new york hiking trails, rochester, sports, tracks

By Sue Freeman “Flat water” is the technical lingo for docile streams that drift along with a gentle or nonexistent current. Without major drops in elevation, they don’t plummet over waterfalls or roil in rapids. You can drift down them with a leisurely paddle and not worry too much about sharp turns or impediments along the way. Of course, even the most docile stream can get a blown down tree from a storm or become an angry torrent with enough rain or snow melt. Generally, if you’re looking for a docile stream you should limit your paddling to summer and fall. Docile streams also lend themselves to two-way travel. Without a strong current you can paddle both upstream and downstream. This means you don’t have to hassle with spotting a car or arranging for a shuttle. The Finger Lakes region teems with docile streams that wander through gorgeous countryside. Here are a few of my favorites: Circumnavigate an island.  Using a section of the Erie Canal and a remote loop of the Seneca River you can paddle 10.7 miles around Howland Island. This is part of the Northern Montezuma Wildlife Management Area so be sure to take your binoculars for the excellent bird watching opportunities. The Erie Canal today is wide and deep – dredged years ago to allow passage of barges. But remnants of the old, smaller canal still exist. One such segment runs between Dewitt and Canastota and is called the Old Erie Canal. You can paddle all 17 miles or choose a smaller segment. Along the way you will traverse through aqueducts over creeks and have to duck under bridges. Just like the famous Erie Canal song says, it’s “low bridge everybody down.” Rent boats at Puddledockers in Ithaca and paddle the Cayuga Lake Inlet. There’s much to look at along the way and you can even stop at the docks enroute to enjoy Paddle in serenity among wildlife at West River Marsh a meal, a drink, or ice cream. 4. West River Marsh at the south end of Canandaigua Lake is a lazy stream that can be paddled year-round, except when frozen. Enjoythe peace and quiet tucked below the towering hills that surround Canandaigua Lake. Maps and details for each of these docile streams and others can be found in the guidebook “Take A Paddle – Finger Lakes New York Quiet Water for Canoes & Kayaks.” Filed under: Bird Watching , Canoeing , Erie Canal , Finger Lakes , Kayaking , Paddling Tagged: canandaigua lake , Cayuga Lake Inlet , Howland Island , Northern Montezuma Wildlife Management Area , old Erie Canal , Seneca River , West River Marsh

Continue Reading Docile Streams to Paddle in the Finger Lakes Region of NY State

Tags: bird watching, cayuga-lake, finger lakes, Kayak, Kayaking, Lakes, location, northern, paddling, peace, river, river-marsh, seneca river, west river marsh

Watch the video of hiking Stevenson Forest Preserve located near Ithaca, NY. Filed under: Finger Lakes , Hiking , Ithaca

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Tags: finger lakes, Hiking, Lakes, located-near, preserve, stevenson, the-video, video

By Sue Freeman One of the things I love about kayaking is the opportunity it affords me to escape into nature, away from motorboats, away from throngs of people, and away from man-made noise. By combining camping and kayaking you can extend the escape and submerse yourself in nature. Some wonderful opportunities for these escapes exist in the Finger Lakes region. But first, camping needs to be sub-divided into two distinct experiences. The first is the use of campgrounds where you can set up a tent or use a camper and enjoy the luxury of a shower after a day of paddling. As drawbacks, you won’t escape the noise and throngs of people and there is a cost involved. Primitive camping, on the other hand, is free and offers solitude and quiet, but you have to be willing to forgo showers and flush toilets. You choose. Campgrounds: Stay at Fairhaven Beach State Park and paddle Sterling Creek. Fairhaven Beach State Park is a spectacular 1,400-acre site with nearly two miles of Lake Ontario shoreline. A stay here can combine shoreline walks, hikes on trails, and paddling on Sterling Pond and Sterling Creek. The creek is easy to paddle both upstream and down so you won’t need to hassle with a shuttle. Be sure to take along binoculars. A swamp called “The Moat” abuts the creek and is teeming with hawks, herons, ducks, geese, turtles and frogs. Stay at Hickories Park and circumnavigate Hiawatha Island on the Susquehanna River. Hickories Park is a campground owned by Morning mist on the Susquehanna River the Town of Owego that sits on the banks of the Susquehanna River. Launch from the campground and paddle upstream or down on the wide, slow river. Bring along your fishing gear and angle for walleye, bass and tiger muskellunge. Downstream it’s a short paddle to 112-acre Hiawatha Island which is owned by The Waterman Conservation Education Center and offers two miles of hiking trails. Camp at Park Station Recreation Center and paddle Park Station Lake. Park Station Recreation Center in Erin offers 6 miles of hiking trails, a RV and tent campground, and a 100-acre man-made lake to paddle or fish. Primitive Camping: Tent camping is allowed at the locks along the Erie Canal. Simply ask permission from the lockmaster. Camp at Lock 30 Canal Park in Macedon and you can paddle through history. Between Macedon & Palmyra you’ll experience 3 versions of the Erie Canal – each from a different time period, see remains of an aqueduct, and even lock-through a canal lock. Become an explorer on a 21 mile loop using the Erie Canal and Clyde River and camp along the shore in the Galen Marsh Wildlife Management Area. A true sense of adventure is helpful for this trip. Long Pond in Smithville offers 10 primitive campsites at its north end that are free and on a first-come, first-served basis. The mile-long pond is undeveloped and tree-lined, part of the Long Pond State Forest, and is dappled with pond lilies. Maps and details for each of these camping/paddling adventures and others can be found in the guidebook “Take A Paddle – Finger Lakes New York Quiet Water for Canoes & Kayaks.”

Continue Reading Kayaking & Camping In the Finger Lakes / Central Region of NY State

Tags: between-macedon, Campgrounds, erie, finger lakes, hickories park, long pond, long pond state forest, luxury, New York, Ontario, river, river-hickories, sterling, susquehanna, susquehanna river

Ithaca Journal, l ink to original post Congressman Maurice Hinchey, Mayor Carolyn Peterson and Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce President Jean McPheeters will attend the groundbreaking celebration for Phase 3 of the Cayuga Waterfront Trail at noon Monday, June 21, in Stewart Park near the small pavilion. Phase 3 will link the Farmers Market to Newman Golf Course, Stewart Park, the Ithaca Youth Bureau and the County Visitor Center at the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce. Construction will begin in early July and be completed this year. To ride or walk the Cayuga Waterfront Trail, pick up a copy of “ Take Your Bike – Family Rides in New York’s Finger Lakes Region.”

Continue Reading Cayuga Waterfront Trail Phase III groundbreaking ceremony June 21

Tags: county, county-visitor, Family Hiking, farmers, finger lakes, groundbreaking, ithaca, ithaca-journal, journal, mayor, new york hiking trails, stewart-park, tompkins, tompkins-county, trail building

If you can use a hammer, screw driver, crow bar or saw, The Finger Lakes Trail needs you!  We’re replacing and rebuilding the bridges that lie between Elmboise Rd. (CR 77) and Bean Station Rd., just east of NYS 53, southeast of Prattsburgh, map B3.  Our first work weekend will be June 19th and 20th.  8 small bridges and 2 big ones need to be disassembled, salvaging as much material for reuse as possible.  Some ground prep work, too.   The gorgeous Evangeline Shelter is just a very short walk from the work area, if you want to camp overnight.  Bring lunch, water, and work gloves; wear work boots and long sleeved shirts and pants; bring tools if you have them.  (No electricity this weekend.)  Work will start about 9:00 each day.  There is no trails club in the area and the work must be completed soon in order for RIT students to do their part in July — so, we really need your help.   Please contact Gerry Benedict, Project Manager, to sign up and for more information:  gbenedict@rochester.rr.com. Thanks everyone!  Tom and Donna Noteware, Regional Trail Coordinators, Bristol Hills Branch.

Continue Reading Trail Workers Needed June 19/20 on FLT southeast of Prattsburgh

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By Sue Freeman Lakes, ponds, and meandering streams – they can all be found in the Finger Lakes region. But, so too will you find fast water streams that offer frolicking adventures for more experienced or more adventurous kayakers. These generally aren’t white water – except during spring melt season – but they are streams where the water moves swiftly and you need to be adept at rounding sharp corners and avoiding obstacles such as downed trees or dams. These are fun streams where your skills can be tested. You’re just as likely to round a bend and find several deer standing in the creek drinking as you are to experience a game of tag with a great blue heron. The herons have a tendency to flush as you approach, fly downstream and rest on a limb until you approach and flush them again, and again, and again. Heron tag is one of the many joys of paddling in the Finger Lakes region. Here are a few of my favorite Finger Lakes region fast water adventures: Canandaigua Outlet drains from Canandaigua Lake into the Erie Canal. Near Canandaigua Lake it’s canalized and drops over several waterfalls but between Manchester and Lyons it’s a moving water lover’s paradise. Ganargua Creek (also called Mud Creek) has a fast and twisty run between Palmyra and Lyons. Go have a whoop-hollering good time. Owasco Outlet runs with clear water over a rocky bed so it’s enticing to watch the fish and not pay full attention to what’s ahead. The section between Throopsville and the Seneca River is 10 miles of fun. Equally fun, but quite different is the other end of Owasco Lake on the Owasco Inlet. It’s two streams in one. From Moravia to the Route 38 Bridge it’s a fast moving, narrow, winding stream. Downstream from Route 38 it widens into a deep slow moving channel through Owasco Flats. Here, you’re eye level with fields of ferns and get to enjoy deer, muskrats, great blue herons and beavers until you reach Owasco Lake. Maps and details for each of these fast water adventures and others can be found in the guidebook “Take A Paddle – Finger Lakes New York Quiet Water for Canoes & Kayaks.”

Continue Reading Fast Water Paddling Adventures in the Finger Lakes Region of NY State

Tags: creek, finger, finger lakes, fish, ganargua creek, Kayak, Kayaking, mud creek, New York, new york hiking trails, paddling, route, tracks, water