New York Hikers

“I need some help, I'm look for a 5 to 7 day backpacking trip in New York, Do any of you have any ideas. I'm looking for something that has a few peaks or some waterfall and other stuff to keep the trip interesting. IF you have any ideas let me know thanks.”

“photoguy190

New York has lots of opportunities.
Are you referring to New York State, or New York City ??

How much of a backpacker are you ? and when were you planning this trip ?

Peaks and waterfalls?

Niagara falls is in NY biggish waterfall.

Best bet is probably the Adirondack state park for peaks above treeline.

Closer to NYC is the Catskills, or Harriman state park just north of NYC.

If you are going at this time of year you will need winter hiking and camping gear for temps down to zero Farenheit.

Try a google search on
-- NY DEC Adirondack, or
-- NY DEC Catskills, or
-- NY Harriman park”

“If you are looking for waterfalls, Watkins Glen or Ithaca has a ton of them in one general area where everything is within a half hour of each other and the scenery doesn't get much better than this. Only thing is, the peaks are not all that high.”

“And Taughanock (sp?) Falls in Ithaca is the Tallest in NY.”

“Well i'm from Pennsylvania and i'm starting to plan a trip for this may or june, I'm looking for a hike that has some good photo opps. Like water falls or peaks. Doesn;t need to have both. I'm planning on driveing some so i'm looking at anywere in the state. I was hoping to find a trail that would take about a week to do.”

“Ithaca is about as photogenic as you can get. That time of yer is perfect there, also...”

“May or June

You will be sucked dry
by the dreaded blackfly

late june might be OK.

Week long trail, best bet is probably the Daks high peak region.”

“The Northville-Placid Trail goes through the heart of the Adirondacks and has a lot of scenic ponds and small lakes over its 122-mile length. The sections between Piseco and Wakely Dam and Long Lake and Lake Placid were my favorite sections.
last edited: 1/11/05 11:58:12 AM”

“here's a little know fact:

the tallest falls in ny and the whole northeast is actually T-lake falls, not Taughannock Falls.
it's just not considered cause they don't want a lot of tourists trying to check it out. people used to fall off it and die fairly often.

prove it to yourself.

215' vs over 300'.

http://www.trumansburg.ny.us/ulysses/

http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?z=18&n=4811608&e=531119&s=24&size=l&datum=nad83&layer=DRG25”

“T-Lake Falls is on my to see list. I just have to remember to stay off of the rock at the top of the falls. I don’t want to be another name on the list of people who died from falling over the falls.”

“haven't been there in a few years.

maybe this spring we should dayhike it zac.
i'd like to try out the new trail that's suppose to be an easier route.

by the mid summer it's not as dramatic as the flow drops down.”

“Sounds good sacco. What's the fishing like in that area?”

“T-lake is dead but south branch of west canada has decent brookies below the falls.

i know a couple guys that work at the rome fish hatchery that are very familiar w/ that area - including the hatchery manager.

i could find out better details...”

“How about something in the Finger Lakes Region?

I visited the Buttermilk falls for my friend's wedding-- it was quite beautiful (didn't do any hikes, so I can't comment on them.) We were there just after a rain in October, so we didn't really get to explore the region... but I understand that many of the falls have little "swimming holes" under them...

However, Thinkbubelz & I'd love to go back there and do some exploring-- the region is full of waterfalls and lots of nice lakes and such!”

“...on what you're looking for.

If it's waterfalls and gorges that you seek, you may want to check out the Finger Lakes area, specifically around Ithaca and Watkins Glen. Some of the parks are: Treman State Park (Enfield Glen), Buttermilk State Park (Buttermilk Gorge), Taughannock State Park (Taughannock Gorge/Falls), Filmore State Park (Filmore Glen), and Watkins Glen State Park (Watkins Glen). The various parks are kind of spread out and require driving to, so this area lends itself more to car camping, like a bunch of us did last summer.

If it's the dramatic mountain scenery and challenging trails you're after, you may want to look into the either the Catskill or Adirondack Parks. Both feature plenty of challenging trails, including some of the most rugged trails I've seen anywhere, and spectacular mountaintop views. The Adirondack Park also features some 40+ peaks over 4,000 ft, 2 of which are over 5,000 ft.

Let me know if it's the Catskills you decide on, as I'm pretty familiar with several trails there.”

“Also, if you camp at one of the state parks in NY, the other state parks will waive their entrance fees, which I believe were $6 per car in 2004. So that's kind of cool.”

“Like Lumberzac said, the NLP trail in the Adirondacks might make a good 5-7 day expedition...”

“Noone mentioned the Finger Lakes Trail, I've only hiked a very small portion in the Ithaca area, but here's the link, it's worth checking out.

www.fingerlakestrail.org”

“Hey folks, this thread got me thinking about what I would do for a week backpacking to Finger Lakes waterfalls in NY. The higher falls are at the south ends of Cayuga and Seneca lakes.

Finger Lakes Trail (FLT) connects many of the state parks (though not all), plus there is a side trail from the FLT into Ithaca and a couple of dayhiking routes out the other side of town.

So, here goes. If you want to follow the route, get on the FLT website http://www.fingerlakestrail.org, click the Buy Stuff link on the left hand side of the page, and order the following maps:

1. Main FLT maps, M14, M15, M16, and M17. (FLT has a unique approach to maps but at least they have a very short update cycle.)
2. Guide to Trails, Finger Lakes Region, with maps, published by Cayuga Trails Club http://www.lightlink.com/ctc/, more conventional maps but not updated as frequently.
Note: there is nearly but not quite complete overlap between 1 and 2 but you need both to maximize waterfall exposure.
3. City street/bus map of Ithaca, download it from http://www.tcatbus.com/map.shtml.
4. (optional) Guide to the Queen Catharine Marsh Trail and the Montour Falls Historic Loop Trail on the FLTC web site.

Here is my suggested route:

-Start from and park at Sugar Hill fire tower (FLTC map M14 shows how to get there, it is 10-15 miles west of Watkins Glen village), get an early start.

-Short spur trail south to FLT then FLT east (you need the 2004 edition map M14 as this section was just relocated last year). Eventually enter back end of Watkins Glen State Park.

-After crossing under railroad bridge (you will not miss it), turn left onto State Park trails (closed roughly from Oct-mid May) and head down.

-Rejoin FLT at the bottom of the glen, head east as FLT follows Watkins Glen village streets.

-(Optional but highly recommended) Turn right on Queen Catharine Marsh Trail, head past more waterfalls into Montour Falls village, head out the other side briefly to Havana Glen park with tent friendly camping or trees to hang from. (Otherwise there is Watkins Glen State Park camping, Watkins Glen village park with RV campground.) 15 miles first day.

-Take FLT east (return or keep circling on Queen Catharine loop if you went to Havana Glen), climb Excelsior Glen, lean-to on Finger Lakes National Forest land about 13 miles from Havana Glen.

-Continue east on FLT, typical patchwork of public land, private land, and rural roads, about 14-20 miles from the leanto camp in a pine plantation on Connecticut Hill, get as far as you can this day because next day is a highlight.

-Keep going on FLT from Conn. Hill into Robert H. Treman State Park, turn left again at the top on the State Park trails for more spectacular sights. There is a leanto on FLT (a little ways off the scenic Park trails) near the bottom of R.H. Treman or continue on. Try to hit R.H. Treman in the morning as the falls face east.

-Rejoin FLT at the bottom of R.H. Treman Park, cross under Route 13 (the big highway of Ithaca) and climb up Lick Brook gorge and its west facing erosional features.

-After Lick Brook turn left on orange blazed spur trail to Buttermilk Falls (State Park camping). Conn. Hill to Buttermilk is not much more than 10 miles but if you're into waterfalls it's quite a full day.

-Assuming you were in the State Park head down to the bottom of Buttermilk Falls, go out the driveway and you are on Route 13 at the city line. A mile walk up the suburban strip and another 3/4 mile on city streets (iffy neighborhood by local standards) brings you to the Ithaca Commons, a pedestrian mall. I would head east uphill to the Collegetown neighborhood (look for Eddy Street and College Avenue on your city/bus map) to a motel and drop the pack for two nights.

-With your pack in the room and camera in hand, head up Cascadilla Creek gorge from the intersection of Linn Street and University Avenue. After you have had enough, head up Cayuga Trail from the Stewart Avenue bridge over Fall Creek for a long orange blzed balloon dayhike (this bullet alone is about 16 miles and 2000 ft climbing).

-Depending on how much money you have left, catch a cab from Collegetown back to your car at Sugar Hill. Or, there at least used to be an Elmira via Watkins bus that left the Cornell campus in the afternoon then you can visit Watkins Glen one more time hoofing it back up FLT to your car.

The count:
Waterfalls: Close to 100.
Peaks: 2 county high points.

Disclaimer: I moved away from the area in 1996 but still try to keep up on things. This is a high summer hike because the more scenic State Park trails are closed well into May due to ice.
last edited: 1/23/05 6:58:29 PM”