Wednesday, Aug 3
Junius Pond Campground
We arrived around 3 pm at Junius Pond Cabins and Campgrounds. We checked in at the front office and quickly parked our trailer.
Junius Ponds Cabins and Campground is located near Phelps, New York. The campground is about a mile from I-90. Our Garmin GPS took us to the wrong side of I-90 but Google Maps got us to the correct place.
Most of the more than 160 RV sites include full hookups. The campsite had three playgrounds with playsets like a wooden pirate ship and train set. tractor. Other amenities included a swimming pool, basketball hoop, pickle ball court, convenience store, arcade, restrooms, laundry room, and a catch-and-release fishing pond. Their store even served soft-serve ice cream. We rarely used any of the amenities because we were rarely in the campground.
Finger Lakes Welcome Center
After we set up the camper, we headed south to the Finger Lakes Welcome Center in Geneva, New York. The center is located on the shore of Seneca Lake.
Outside, they had a nice playground and a patio area with chairs and tables overlooking the lake. They also had a nice playground and an “I Love NY” sign for selfies.
It had a small New York products store, cafeteria, and a wine-tasting bar inside. The wine-tasting bar was closed, but we saw them putting together a sampler tray for some people behind the cafeteria counter. They also had a special on wine slushies, but we ordered some milkshakes to take to their balcony overlooking the lake. Unfortunately, they ran out of vanilla ice cream, which they use as a base for all their milkshakes, so we could not get any.
Though it advertised itself as a tourist information center, it only had five different area information brochures, with only one specific to the Finger Lakes area. I had never seen an information center without hundreds of brochures from various attractions. I did spot someone at a small stand outside the cafeteria labeled tourist information. Still, he was busy with another couple for about 15 minutes before I could approach him. Surprisingly, he had no information about any special weekend events in the Finger Lakes area, nor did he have any brochures and pamphlets about the area.
We thought about trying the wine tasting, but the cafeteria got very busy, so we decided not to wait.
Cheshire Farms Creamery
The idea of a milkshake got me craving some ice cream, so a quick internet search suggested the Cheshire Farms Creamery in Canandaigua, about 16 miles away.
We were not disappointed. We each got a couple of scoops in a cup, which was creamy and delicious.
We returned to the camper around 6:15 pm and settled down for the evening.
Thursday, Aug 4
We took off at 7:30 am and headed south to beat Watkins Glen State Park crowds. We followed the western side of Seneca Lake, which was very sloped and had a lot of Vineyards.
Watkins Glen State Park
Watkins Glen State Park encompasses a long but narrow area surrounding Glen Creek, which flows directly into the Southernmost tip of Seneca Lake.
The main entrance is at the bottom of the Gorge, requiring you to go uphill through the gorge. We decided to park at the Upper Entrance, which allowed us to go downhill through the Gorge and then use the shuttle to return to the parking lot. Though the trail was only 1.5 miles long, it had 800 stone steps. Another advantage to our route is that we felt the last mile was the most spectacular, so the first half, though beautiful, allowed us to build up slowly to the spectacular views of that first mile. If we had come from the other direction, we might have been somewhat disappointed with the last third of the trail. There is also a steep stone staircase called Jacobs Ladder, which has 180 steps that ascend to the upper entrance, so beginning the hike by descending those stairs was nice.
Only a couple of cars were there when we arrived around 8:30. We had to pay $8 to park at a self-pay station.
There are several trails, but the Gorge Trail is the most popular as it takes you through the Gorge while the others follow the rim. Spiral stone staircases and beautiful stone bridges carry you along Glen Creek to 19 waterfalls in the gorge. The gorge walls consisted of horizontal layers of sandstone and shale formed by ripples in the water millions of years ago. The shell creek bed has a multitude of tiny plunges that flow into little pothole pools cascading through the gorge until another waterfall emerges.
It got busier as we walked down the gorge. When we got to the end of the trail or main entrance, I decided to hike back to the upper parking lot. Lisa took the shuttle, which only cost $5. The driver even pointed out attractions and discussed the park along the way.
Though I hiked the route faster the second time, I got different views from the other way. I felt the burn in my legs on the final stone staircase, but it was very satisfying.
It was about 11 am when we left the park. Just outside the Upper Entrance was a large elk farm called “Elk Park at the Glen” and we were able to peek through the trees to see the herds and their giant antlers. Some of the elk were white.
Newfield Covered Bridge
We drove north between Seneca and Cayuga Lakes to see more attractions. Our first stop was the Newfield Covered Bridge.
Located in the center of Newfield, the covered bridge was built in 1853 and spans 115 feet, crossing the West Branch of Cayuga Creek. It is the oldest surviving covered bridge and is open daily to vehicular traffic.
Robert H Treman State Park
Our next stop was Robert H Treman State Park. Because I had the Watkins Glen State Park receipt, I could get in for free.
We went directly to the swimming area in a gorge below a beautiful waterfall. After we walked around the pool and took pictures, we returned to a picnic area and ate lunch while admiring the gorge’s beauty. While eating, we saw many people walking back from the pool area and were told that they closed the pool because lightning had been detected in the area.
As soon as we finished lunch, it started to sprinkle. As we left the park, it started raining heavier, and though there were other waterfalls in the area, we decided to try to outrun the storm.
Ithaca Falls
We drove north to Ithaca to see the waterfalls on Fall Creek that flowed through the city. We first drove up some very steep roads to Triphammer Falls, which we found was in the middle of the Cornell University campus. Like most university areas, there was no parking, so we could not stop. We then drove over to Ithaca Falls Natural Area to see Ithaca Falls, which was farther downstream.
We parked in a high school parking lot and walked up the street where we could look down Fall Creek Gorge and see the Ithaca Falls in the distance. Ithaca Falls is a massive jumble of irregular cascades and a few overhanging drops. It is 105 feet high and 175 feet wide. The top has a small 10 ft high dam, a remnant from when the falls were used to generate power. The gorge is classified as a Superfund Site and is contaminated with lead from the former Ithaca munitions factory adjacent to the falls. We decided not to walk up closer to the falls.
Taughannok Falls
We then continued north to see Taughannok Falls. It continued to rain intermittently, though we could see heavy rain clouds approaching us from the south.
Taughannock Falls lies within a gorge in Taughannock Falls State Park. I could once again enter for free using the park pass I bought at Watkins Glen.
The falls plunge 215 feet past rocky cliffs that tower nearly 400 feet above the gorge through sandstone, shale, and limestone layers. The distance to Taughannock Falls from the parking lot is about 3/4 mile on a relatively level path. It was drizzling on and off as we walked down the trail to the falls. The trail followed a creek that looked pretty shallow, with only a tiny trickle flowing through it. When we got to the falls, the observation platform was 100 yards from the base of the falls. We could barely see any water flowing down the falls.
It started raining heavily as soon as we got back to the truck.
As we started driving north again, we got ahead of the storm. We followed the western shore of Cayuga Lake most of the way home where there seemed to be more private homes versus the vineyards we saw on Seneca Lake. We got back to the camper around 4:30 where the rain caught up to us.
Friday, Aug 5
We headed out around 9:15 to see some historical sites.
Women’s Rights National Historical Park
Our first stop was Seneca Falls and the Women’s Rights National Historical Park.
In 19th-century Seneca County, New York, advocates for temperance, dress reform, and abolitionism were active. This atmosphere of reform and agitation in Seneca Falls and nearby Waterloo led several women to meet at the Hunt House in Waterloo on July 14, 1848, to discuss the inferior status of women. During the meeting, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, Martha Wright, Jane Hunt, and Mary Ann M’Clintock organized an open convention to discuss the position of women in American society. Three days later, the group reassembled to compose the now-famous 1848 Declaration of Sentiments, which mimicked Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence by proclaiming “all men and women are created equal” instead of just “all men are created equal.” The convention was set just three days after the writing of the Declaration of Sentiments, but with such short notice, the women expected a poor response. Instead, over 300 men and women attended, filling the interior of Wesleyan Chapel, the convention center. On July 18, 1848, Lucretia Mott made the opening presentation. Then, Elizabeth Cady Stanton gave the public reading of the Declaration of Sentiments, which formally began a struggle for equality that has continued to the present.
Established by an act of Congress in 1980, the National Park Service’s Women’s Rights National Historic Park uses the setting of the first Women’s Rights Convention in Wesleyan Chapel and the homes of important participants to tell the story of one of the most important movements in American history–the fight for women’s equality. The park has a visitor center, the Wesleyan Methodist Church, an education and cultural center, the Elizabeth Cady Stanton House, the M’Clintock House, and the Richard Hunt House.
Women’s Rights National Historical Park Visitor Center
In the Visitor Center lobby is a large, life-size bronze sculpture called “The First Wave,” which has twenty figures representing women and men who attended the first Women’s Rights Convention. Nine of the sculpture’s figures represent actual participants and organizers of the convention: Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, Mary Ann M’Clintock, Martha Wright, Jane Hunt, Frederick Douglass, James Mott, Thomas M’Clintock, and Richard Hunt. The other eleven figures represent the “anonymous” women and men who participated in the two-day convention,
The second floor had a permanent exhibit gallery about the women’s suffrage movement.
Next door was the recreated Wesleyan Methodist Church, where the convention occurred. Very little of the original structure exists but they integrated the darker brick into it. The inside looked like a small church, except there was a mural on the front platform with a podium where tourists could pretend to be speaking at the convention.
Outside the Church were Declaration Park and Waterwall, which had water flowing over plaques showing the 1848 Declaration of Sentiments.
Woman’s Suffrage Monuments
We then drove about a half mile across the canal to the “When Anthony Met Stanton” statue. The sculpture depicts a moment in 1851 when abolitionist Elizabeth Cady Stanton (right), walking home from an anti-slavery speaking event, came upon her friend Amelia Bloomer (center) and one of Bloomer’s friends. Bloomer introduced Stanton to Susan B. Anthony (left), another social reformer with whom Stanton would soon spark a nationwide women’s voting rights movement. The park along the canal was landscaped with flowers and very scenic.
Another monument called “Ripples in Time” was just a short distance away. Dedicated in 2021, the monument features larger-than-life-size sculptures of four women whose contributions to the suffrage movement have been neglected: Harriet Tubman, Martha Coffin Wright, Sojourner Truth, and Laura Cornelius Kellogg (Oneida).
Across the street is another monument called “Passage,” which was erected in 2015 featuring three men who were prominent and outspoken in support of women’s suffrage in the early part of the 20th century: Max Eastman, James Mott, and Frederick Douglas.
It’s a Wonderful Life Museum
We then drove downtown to see the “It’s A Wonderful Life” museum.
It is currently located in a temporary location. In contrast, the original location is being renovated, though I did first drive us to their old location, where we were redirected by some tourists that had just come from the museum. Luckily, it was just a couple of blocks away. It costs $5/ea admission.
It’s a Wonderful Life was filmed entirely in California, as were most movies then. However, Seneca Falls has long believed in itself as the inspiration for key scenes in the film and Bedford Falls itself. Some evidence of the connections and similarities between the two towns include:
- Frank Capra visited the town
- The film refers to being in western New York.
- The architecture is similar.
- Both Seneca Falls and Bedford Falls constructed affordable housing developments.
- The true story of Seneca Falls resident Antonio Varacall, who drowned while successfully rescuing Ruth Dunham from drowning. The town came together to recognize the young man who had been awarded the Carnegie Hero Medal, and they raised money to bring his family from Italy. This story might have inspired the scene when George Bailey contemplated jumping into the river, and the town came together to raise money for George Bailey at the end.
Nevertheless, the town celebrates a yearly festival in honor of the movie. The museum only has two pieces of ACTUAL movie memorabilia, but you can see many period pieces that make you feel like you are part of the movie. The museum has many photos, posters, and written material about the movie and its characters. There was also information about Antonio Varacalli, which may have inspired scenes in the movie. The museum was small and crowded, but it made us feel warm and fuzzy like the movie.
Montezuma Heritage Park
The Erie Canal has been modernized and has followed some slightly different alignments over the past 200 years. Many old remnants, locks, and aqueducts of the Erie Canal are now scattered across New York state. One of these remnants is the Seneca River Aqueduct.
The construction of the more than 840’ long structure was started in January of 1849 and was completed and put into use during the spring of 1857. Thirty piers and two abutments of Limestone supported a timber trough that carried canal water over the river. Thirty-one stone arches supported the towpath. All but seven of the arches were removed in 1917 to allow for the current day path of the Canal.
Montezuma Heritage Park sits at the trailhead of a mile trail to the canal and the ruins. We decided not to walk the trail but had a picnic lunch in the park.
Harriet Tubman Home and Barn
The Harriet Tubman Home, Barn, and Museum is managed by a non-profit established by the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. It is part of the Harriet Tubman National Historical Park, established in 2017. A National Park Service Ranger gives walking tours twice a day.
We arrived about a half hour before their afternoon tour at 2 pm, so we walked around the small museum, which displayed displays about her life and some general information about slavery. A docent was available to answer questions. A nice life-size bronze statue of Harriet Tubman was outside. “The Journey to Freedom” had been unveiled just this year for the bicentennial year of Tubman’s life.
For the decade following her escape to freedom, Harriet Tubman became the most famous conductor on the Underground Railroad. Just before the Civil War, she moved herself and her family to Fleming, New York, just outside Auburn.
Auburn, NY, was a hub for abolitionists in the mid-1800s. Harriet met William Still, Lucretia Coffin Mott, and Frederick Douglass here. Harriet Tubman used her connections to finally secure a place where she could have her own home and determine the course of her life in freedom. Harriet Tubman purchased her 7-acre parcel from Frances Seward in 1859, even though it was illegal for a self-emancipated person to own land under the Fugitive Slave Act. Frances rightly thought that since her husband, William Seward, was a powerful politician in New York State, no action would be taken against them. Her original wooden frame house was destroyed by fire, and the community built her a new brick home in 1881, which we see today. She lived on the farm until 1908.
After walking around the museum, we met the NPS Ranger under a shade tree, where he lectured us on Harriet Tubman’s life. He then walked us over to the brick house and barn and gave us another lecture on Harriet’s life at the farm. It started to rain steadily during the lecture, but he continued nonetheless. Ultimately, he invited us to walk around the house and touch the bricks to feel Harriet’s history and influence on our history. It was a surprising metaphysical suggestion, but it felt like hallowed ground. We were not able to go inside the house.
Old Eire Canal Heritage Park
We then drove up to the Old Eire Canal Heritage Park in Port Byron near Interstate 90. We first walked into the nice visitor center, where a very friendly staff greeted us. There weren’t many displays, but a few historic canal objects and a model of the outside area. The staff answered about a hundred questions of mine before we went outside to see the rest of the park.
We then walked down a paved path to the massive stone structure of Lock 52, built in 1853, the restored 1894 Erie House Tavern & Hotel, mule barn, and blacksmith shop. This canal was abandoned in 1918 when the 4th generation Erie opened in the canalized Seneca River 3 miles north.
There were interpretive signs along the route and a volunteer in the tavern. They were all beautifully restored, and the volunteer in the tavern answered a hundred more questions of mine while we sat in rocking chairs.
We returned to the campsite and were back at the camper at 5:30. That night we watched the 2019 movie “Harriet”. Though there was a lot of dramatic license, the movie covered some of the more important parts of her early life.
Saturday, Aug 6
Took off around 10 am and headed north toward the coast of Lake Ontario.
Lyons, NY
When we drove through Lyon, we found a farmers’ market in the town square, so we stopped and walked around. There were less than a dozen stands, and polka music was playing from the park from the gazebo. It did not take us long to walk through the market and then around the park.
Sodus Point
When we got to Sodus Point on Lake Eire, we gave a couple of bucks to some volunteer firemen collecting money at the main intersection. We then drove over to the Sodus Point Lighthouse.
The Sodus Point Lighthouse, the second lighthouse at this location, was built in 1871. The lighthouse tower, a square, pyramidal cast iron structure on a concrete and stone pier, is white with red trim. The 2.5-story limestone keeper’s quarters, also built in 1871, now serves as a museum. The Village of Sodus Point owns the lighthouse, which operated with pier and shore lights from 1834 until 1901. The dwelling was used by the Coast Guard as housing until 1984. The well-maintained structures, and the beautifully landscaped grounds feature numerous flower beds. We enjoyed walking the grounds and taking in the stunning lake views.
There were a few interpretive signs, and one of them told the story of the town’s participation in the War of 1812 when a British raiding party burned the town.
We then decided to drive through to Sodus Point Beach Park. On the way back, we stopped at Willow Park, where a festival was getting underway. We walked briefly around the few craft tents set up and talked with the local Chamber of Commerce, which displayed a parade float.
Great Lakes Seaway
We then headed west along the Great Lakes Seaway, dominated by orchards and large lake homes. We were dismayed with how many apples were on each apple tree.
Rochester
We followed the shoreline until we reached Rochester and had to drive around Irondequoit Bay. I had intended to drive across the Irondequoit Bay Outlet Bridge (IBOB), which was located at the north end of Irondequoit Bay. Still, this swing bridge is only open to vehicular traffic for 5 months in the winter months. The rest of the time, it is left open for maritime traffic. The road to the bridge was marked off limits, so I could not see it.
The bay is vast, and navigating through city traffic took some time before we could return to the Lake Ontario shore. We then followed the western shoreline until we reached the Charlotte-Genesee Lighthouse.
Charlotte Genesee Lighthouse
The Charlotte–Genesee Lighthouse is a 40-foot stone octagonal lighthouse at the mouth of the Genesee River built of native sandstone. Built in 1822, it is the second oldest standing lighthouse on the American side of the Great Lakes; only the one at Marblehead, Ohio, is older. A brick keeper’s dwelling was built adjacent to the old sandstone tower in 1863. Even with the lighthouse, the sandbars at the marshy river entrance proved troublesome to ship traffic. To remedy this, a pair of 2,600-foot-long piers, spaced about 360 feet apart, was built at the river’s mouth in 1829. As land filled in around the piers, the entrance to the river essentially shifted northward, away from the lighthouse. Pier lights were established on November 5, 1880, and Charlotte-Genesee Lighthouse was discontinued on February 21, 1881. The tower sat idle for 100 years until the Coast Guard offered to lease the lighthouse property to the Charlotte Community Association in 1982. In 1994, Charlotte Genesee Lighthouse was officially deeded to Monroe County, which, in turn, leased the property to the historical society.
We walked around the grounds and read a few interpretive signs, including a few about the War of 1812. During the War of 1812, the area along the Genesee River, both upriver around the modern city of Rochester and along the shores of Lake Ontario, never had any significant military presence and, at best, held only a minor level of strategic value. Still, the few inhabitants did face constant threats of British plunder or invasion. The British Navy visited the Genesee River four times during the War of 1812 but only came ashore once in a raid. During the “Battle of Charlotte,” or the last time the British Navy visited the Genesee River, 33 locals known as the “VALIANT 33” march in and out of the woods along the shore, making it appear as though a much larger force were defending Charlotte which caused the British Navy to retreat.
We walked around the grounds which was some distance from the lake, but we did have a few views of the marina at the mouth of the river.
Susan B Anthony House & Museum
We then drove to Rochester to see The National Susan B. Anthony Museum & House in Rochester. This home was the headquarters of the National American Woman Suffrage Association when she was its president. This is also where she died in 1906 at age 86, following her “Failure is Impossible” speech in Baltimore.
We bought tickets at the museum shop next door, and a docent took us to 17 Madison Street. A society runs the site and is not associated with the government. We learned a lot about the Woman’s Suffrage Movement and Susan B Anthony’s role as one of its leaders. Many of the house’s items belonged to her, which was nice since so many historic homes are just filled with “period” furnishings. There were pictures in every room to show the authenticity of the room’s layout. The tour was scheduled for one hour, but the docent did not hurry us through the house. Instead, it took her time, and she was passionate and very well-informed. Our tour started late because the earlier one ran over. It was a great stop, and we learned a lot.
Anthony’s Gravesite
We then drove to Susan B. Anthony’s grave site in Mount Hope Cemetery. Though the gravesite is relatively modest and reflects her Quaker upbringing, What was interesting about her gravesite to me was that visitors flock to this grave site on Election Day to leave their “I Voted” sticker in a symbolic gesture of thanking her for her work during the Woman’s Suffragist Movement. Though there were no coverings over the headstone when we were there, in 2020, it is covered with a clear plastic shield to help protect it from the stickers’ glue and the cleaners used to remove the stickers.
Genesee Brewery
The Genesee Brewing Company, based in Rochester, New York, is one of the largest and oldest continually operating breweries in the United States. The Genesee Brewing Company is part of FIFCO USA, the largest independently owned beer company in the United States. It claims a start date of 1878 when it was formed from an already existing brewery. Over the next century and a half, its name changed several times due to mergers and acquisitions until it regained its name in 2007.
In 2012, the Genesee Brew House opened to the public. The former packaging center features interactive exhibits and multimedia presentations that explore Genesee’s history, along with a gift shop and a pub-style restaurant.
We were fortunate to get a table on the second-floor balcony that overlooked the Genesee River and the High Falls. The 96-foot High Falls was the site of much of Rochester’s early industrial development, where the industry was powered by falling water. The view and the roaring noise were very surreal.
I ordered the Genesee Brewhouse version of a local favorite called the Garbage Plate. Lisa got the Mahi Mahi Fish Tacos. We also ordered a flight of four beers: the Genny, Ruby Red Kolsch, 12 Horse English-Style Ale, and Blood Orange Hefeweizen.
The name “Garbage Plate” is trademarked by Nick Tahou Hots, but varieties exist all over town, and it has become known as a Rochester signature dish. Legend has it that the name the “Garbage Plate” was created by Nick Tahou Hots late one night when some college students came into the restaurant and requested a plate with “all the garbage on it.” Varieties consist of local meat, fried potato and/or macaroni salad covered with a meat sauce. The Brewhouse version was called a Genny Plate and consisted of either a hamburger or two Red Hots (the local hot dog), mac salad, and french fries, all topped with their meat sauce and chopped onions.
After lunch, we walked around the first-floor gift shop and small museum and then to a viewing platform to get a ground-level view of the High Falls.
Around 5:30, we returned to the campsite by taking a long route that avoided highways going south and east through the countryside. We were back at the camper around 6:45.
Sunday, Aug 7
Today, we took off around 9:30 and headed west to Letchworth State Park, about 1 1/2 hours away.
Letchworth State Park
Letchworth State Park straddles the banks of the Genesee River along a canyon as much as 550 feet deep, garnering it the nickname the “Grand Canyon of the East.” Though the park has dozens of waterfalls, the Upper Falls, Middle Falls, and Lower Falls are the main attractions.
There are several entrances to the park. We came in through the southern Portageville entrance. It cost us $10 to enter the park, and as soon as we went through the gate, we were impressed with how well the roads and the park were maintained.
Archery Field Overlook
Our first stop was the Archery Field Overlook and the spectacular canyon created by the Genesee River.
Lower Falls
We then drove over to the Lower Falls Trailhead. From the car park, I followed a walking path across a wide picnic area to a fork that either went straight to the “easier view” or down into the gorge. I descended into the gorge and descended 127 rock steps before reaching the lower reaches. I got my first glimpses of the falls from the staircase through the vegetation. A small rock bridge took me over the Genesee River to a walking path on the other side. That path ended in a wet, muddy, grassy area right in front of the falls. There were no fences, platforms, or other manmade structures. The trail continues past a sign that says the trail does not continue any farther, but I stopped there and headed back to the car.
Inspiration Point
We then drove to Inspiration Point, where we could gaze down the gorge, admire the Middle Falls, and catch a glimpse of the Upper Falls.
Falls Area Parking Lot
We then drove to the Falls Area, where we had to take a one-way road into the large parking lot. The Middle and Upper Falls are only a couple hundred yards apart, so you can access them both here. There was a snack stand selling ice cream that looked popular. We could also see an area used to launch balloon rides over the falls, though no balloons were currently there.
Upper Falls
We first walked over to the Upper Falls. The walk from the car park was merely a few minutes uphill along a concrete path flanked by a lawn on one side and a concrete barricade on the other. The Upper Falls is the southernmost of the three waterfalls in the park on the Genesee River. It is the second tallest of the three main waterfalls at approximately 70 feet. The water here falls in a horseshoe shape, which gives it a lot of beauty. A railroad bridge stands more than 200 feet above the river. I followed the paved walkway along the gorge to the top of the Upper Falls before turning around and heading toward the Middle Falls.
Middle Falls
We approached the Middle Falls from the back, which allowed us to look over the crest of the falls first as it plunged 107 feet. We followed the concrete path around to the front of the falls for the best views of the front of the falls.
William Pryor Letchworth Museum
We then drove over to the William Pryor Letchworth Museum, which was nearby. The museum houses a collection relating to the Indian and pioneer history of the Genesee Valley, as well as archeological and natural history displays.
William Pryor Letchworth (1823 – 1910) was an American businessman notable for his charitable work related to the treatment and condition of the insane, epileptics, and poor children. In 1906, he bequeathed his 1,000-acre estate to New York State with the provision that the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society serve as custodians of the land. It now makes up the core of Letchworth State Park.
Mount Morris Dam
Around 2:30, we headed to Mount Morris Dam. Because we had poor cell coverage and no access to Google Maps, we drove several miles in the wrong direction but eventually got there.
The Mount Morris Dam is situated deep in the Genesee River Gorge at the northern end of Letchworth State Park and provides flood protection to downstream areas including the city of Rochester. It was built to control the severe floods that occurred every seven years between 1948 and 1952.
The dam was built to hold water only when river flows exceed the natural capacity of the downstream channel and flood damage is likely to occur. The water is then released in a controlled manner when possible. Because it is not a hydroelectric dam and thereby stores water, it has minimal impact on the natural beauty of Letchworth State Park. Though it is frequently used to control the river’s flow, the dam’s capacity was exceeded during Tropical Storm Agnes in 1972.
After exploring the gorge and the dam from the rim, we visited the William B. Hoyt II Visitor Center, opened by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1999. Inside was a small museum, a short movie, and public restroom facilities.
Papa Jack’s Ice Cream
It was around 4 pm as we headed back to the campground. We snapped a picture of some murals in Mount Morris and then stopped in Victor at Papa Jack’s Ice Cream for a treat. We were back at the camper around 5:45 pm.
Monday, Aug 8
In the morning, we went shopping for groceries at Walmart in Waterloo. We were packed and heading toward Niagara Falls around 11:30 am.