dcd

I want to thank the prior posters for their help in allowing me to plan this trip. As usual, you guys were invaluable. My DW and I spent a week exploring new territory for us: 3 nites in Niagara Falls, 3 nites in Watkins Glen, NY, and 1 nite in Silver Springs, NY, just west of Letchworth State Park. It was a marvelous trip.

On Sat June 21, we flew from St Louis to Buffalo, picked up our rental car, and drove to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls using the Peace Bridge just outside of Buffalo. That bridge is supposed to be far less congested than the Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls. We had no wait at 3pm on a Sat. The crossing was very easy. Just showed our passports, answered a couple of basic Qs (purpose of trip, how long, where staying), and we were on our way.

About 45 minutes later, we were settling into our B&B, the Cairngorm on River Road (http://www.cairngorm-niagara.com/). I had exhaustively researched the B&Bs/small inns on both sides and decided to stay on the Canadian side. We’re glad we did. It was more central to the activities we had planned, we could walk to the falls, and it was very scenic.

The Cairngorm is an excellent B&B. The manager, Annette Johnson, lives on site and is very friendly and helpful. This 2 story home is just 18 years old and was specifically built to be a B&B. It’s beautiful inside. The 4 rooms are all upstairs. We stayed in the Garden Suite, featuring a King size bed in a large room, refrigerator, TV, private and large bath, and a large covered balcony with a table and chairs overlooking the gorge where the Niagara River flows after tumbling over the Falls. The balcony is shared with 3 other rooms but there are privacy dividers. Breakfast is served in the room at a time of your choosing and enjoyed there or on the balcony. The breakfast is fairly healthy and fairly similar each morning. You get a dish of yogurt with oats, homemade breads (they change from day to day), bagels, fresh fruit, and juice, coffee or tea. The china is a cut above. In fact, Annette served breakfast on a different set of china each of our 3 mornings. Again, this is a classy place. There’s more than enough food, too. In fact, we saved some of the breads and spreads (jams, butter and peanut butter) and ate them for a picnic lunch. There are many B&Bs along River Road, which parallels the Niagara River. The Cairngorm is the one closest to the Falls/downtown area which greatly adds to its appeal. It’s about a 10 minute walk (downhill) to the American Falls and about a 20 minute walk to the Horseshoe Falls.

After getting checked in, we strolled down to the Falls for our first of many viewings. They are spectacular. We then returned to the B&B where our pizza from Zeppe’s was waiting for us. Annette had recommended Zeppe’s, saying it was the best in the area. It was delicious. We enjoyed it on the balcony with a bottle of champagne Annette surprised us with in honor of our anniversary. Very nice touch!! As we were enjoying our dinner, we realized that the days were super long by our St Louis standards. It was still fairly light out at 9pm and didn’t get completely dark until after 10pm.

On Day 2, a Sunday, we headed out of town. First stop was the 10,000 Buddhist Temple just 5 minutes north of the B&B along River Road/ Bayview Ave (http://www.chamshantemple.org/ZhanShanYuanQi.do). Others here had recommended stopping and we’re glad we did. Tours are only offered on Sat and Sun, however. And there are no formal tour times. Just go inside the 7 story building (the stupa) and ask the person sitting at the desk when the next tour starts. The free tour takes you thru the stupa and was very, very interesting and informative, especially for us who knew next to nothing about this religion. It took about 45 minutes. You can tour the stupa on your own but unless you know a lot about Buddhism, I suspect it won’t be overly meaningful. They offer free books and pamphlets which discuss the religion and its history. We picked up a couple . We want to learn more. There’s a lot to like about its philosophy of life. The temple itself is the one story building next door and it’s worth a walk through.

Our next stop a little farther north along Bayview Ave, now called Niagara Parkway, was the Niagara Botanical Gardens and Butterfly Conservatory (http://www.niagaraparks.com/garden/botanical.php). The gardens are free, extensive and beautiful. Although you can pay for an expensive horse drawn carriage tour, we passed and used the easy walking paths. If you’re a garden lover, be sure to stop here and allow an hour or two. And that does not include time to visit the Butterfly House which we skipped.

Thirsty after our garden stroll, we drove straight to Inniskillen, a winery in Niagara on the Lake about 10 minutes farther north. There are a bunch of wineries in the area and this was our first of three stops. We knew about Inniskillen’s famous ice wines but were very pleasantly surprised to discover that its other wines are also very good. We prefer the drier wines and they had several excellent ones. There’s a small fee to taste the sweet and dry wines, a $1-$2 per ounce. But it was $5 a glass to taste the ice wines…… So we only tried one. It turns out we aren’t big ice wine fans. If you’re hungry, they offer some reasonably priced light meat and cheese plates, along with their wines, in a newly opened lunch area which features outdoor tables and chairs. The food was very good .

Next stop was the Peller Estates winery. This is a very upscale winery very close to Inniskillen on beautiful grounds. The restaurant is known for its fine food but it’s rather expensive (even for lunch) so we passed. The wines were good but we preferred Inniskillen’s. The tasting fee was $2-3 a glass. The pourers were more generous here so we could share a glass and hold down the fees. Again, the ice wines were considerably more to taste.

Thanks to a recommendation here, we had lunch at the Irish Harp in downtown Niagara on the Lake. We had a wonderful time. Even though it was 2pm on a Sun afternoon, we were entertained by a 2-piece Irish trad band (violin and guitar). Apparently they play Friday nites and Sun afternoons. That was a treat. And the food (and beer) was also very good. Had the fish and chips. We split a 3 piece meal which was still too much food for us. Huge pieces of Halibut. The restaurant, which includes a bar, is non-smoking. Parking there and throughout the downtown area is a challenge. There’s a lot behind the restaurant but it’s small. Parking is $1 an hour. You have to pre-pay using one of the machines on the lot (Canadian money only and the credit card part of that machine wasn’t working). You then get a receipt which you place on your windshield. There’s also street parking with meters but good luck finding a place.

BTW, the Canadian restaurants and merchants accept US dollars. Your change, however, will be in Canadian currency. Somehow, we managed to spend 3 days in Canada without ever getting or using Canadian money. Thanks to the advice here, we knew to bring small US bills ($1s and $5s) to avoid getting stuck with lots of Canadian currency.

After lunch we wandered a little in downtown Niagara on the Lake, but weren’t really in the mood to shop. Not when there are more wineries to hit! So off we went to find Vineland Winery in Jordan, about 15 minutes west, if you know where you’re going. Now we had intended to take the scenic route along Ontario Lake but must have missed a turn or two or three. Oh well, it was all pretty scenery and we did manage to find Vineland, eventually. Like the others, the grounds were very pretty and there was a wide variety of wines to sample. We rated these wines second to Inniskillen’s. If there was a tasting fee, it was less than the others.

The return trip to our B&B was just 45 minutes using the QEW parkway.

Thanks to ck, we had dinner reservations at The Keg Steakhouse located on the 8th floor of the Embassy Suites in downtown Niagara Falls (Canadian side). http://www.embassysuitesniagarafalls.com/thekeg.html This was our 9th wedding anniversary celebration. We had reservations for 8pm and requested a window table, knowing they overlook the Horseshoe Falls immediately below. We were told the wait for such a table was 60-90 minutes and they gave us a pretty hard sell to take a non-window table to avoid the long wait. Thanks again to ck, I knew to call their bluff. So we waited in a very nice lounge just off the main dining room area where there are 3 TVs, a bar, and about 15 tables and chairs. Sure enough, we had our window table in 35 minutes. (You might bring something to read while you wait.) The view of the Falls was magnificent. We picked a late Sun reservation time because we wanted to watch the fireworks from our table. They start at 10pm on Sundays (and Fridays) during the summer. Once inside the dining area, I realized that this restaurant has a huge seating capacity with lots of window tables. We had a wonderful evening with a terrific waiter. The food was delicious. A little on the pricey side (most entrees are in the $20s) but, considering that you’ll pay that much or more anywhere else in town and that the quality of the food and views are first rate, we think this place is well worth a splurge. When darkness began setting in around 9:30, the Falls were lit up with a series of changing lights. Magnificent. The fireworks lasted about 20 minutes and were actually shot off in 2 different areas. Thanks to our vantage point, we enjoyed both of them. What a nite!

To be continued…………..

Proenza_Preschooler

Thingorjus just LOVES Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Did you go to the Prince of Wales Hotel?

Thank you for your report.

Thingorjus

dcd

Thin, we didn't make it to that hotel. Next time.

We spent Day 3 on the Yankee side. After another delightful balcony breakfast, we headed for Rainbow Bridge under sunny skies and temps in the 60s. (The temps would eventually get into the 70s.) To cross that bridge, you’ll need a passport and 50 cents (US or Canadian). Great views of the Falls from the bridge.

Our destination was Goat Island. It took us about 30 minutes to walk. Folks, you can easily spend a day there. It’s a beautiful park. Great for picniking or just sitting around and watching all that water rush past. It’s not real big. You could walk around its perimeter in about 45 minutes or so. There are trolleys ($2 per person) which have designated pick up/drop off areas on the Island, if you’re not into walking. But we must be stupid because we could never figure out where they pick up or drop off or when. We did learn that the booth where you buy the ticket (you get a bracelet to wear) is not necessarily where the trolley stops. Argggggg…. So we walked a lot more than we wanted to. We finally caught one (after running a quarter of a mile) which is good because our feet had served notice that they were quitting. The trolley is not limited to Goat Island, as it turns out, but goes to other points on the US side. We had a map of the routes and everything but still couldn’t get the hang of them. Plus they ran at odd intervals instead of the 15 minutes they are supposed to run.

Anyway, once on Goat Island, there are 2 activities you really must do: Maid of the Mist and Cave of the Wind. There is a nice path that connects the two and it’s a scenic 10 minute walk from one to the other (or take the trolley if you don’t mind the wait). Maid of the Mist is the hugely popular boat ride to and from Horseshoe Falls. There is another Maid of the Mist ride which departs from the Canadian side but everything I read beforehand said the lines on the US side are always shorter, and that was what we observed. Our wait was non-existent on a Mon at 1:30pm. Apparently Mondays are far less crowded than the weekends, which is why I planned Goat Island for a Monday. The whole ride might take 20 minutes. But it’s a blast. You’re no more than 200-300 yards from the Falls at the closest point. You will get wet but the poncho they give you as part of the fee does a pretty good job of keeping your clothes dry. After getting off the boat, there is a trail you can take that will put you very close to the Bridal Veil Falls, by far the smallest of the 3 falls. It’s a neat experience although you will get wet. This is the only falls that people have successfully gone over in a barrel. We didn’t try that.

From Goat Island, you can also do the Cave of the Wind. You’ll get sandals and a poncho with your ticket. Then you enter a room where you can put on your poncho, switch shoes, etc. You’ll receive a large plastic bag for your shoes and anything else. You carry the bag with you; there are no lockers. Cave of the Wind is a major misnomer. There is no cave. You take an elevator down 200 feet or so to a wooden walkway that leads up a hill which puts you virtually next to the American Falls as it rushes down the cliff. What power, fury and wind! What an experience!! At certain points, you can touch the water as it pours past the rocks near the walkway. You will get wet although once again, the poncho does a pretty good job of keeping your clothes dry. You go at your own pace. We spent about 30-45 minutes. You end up back at the elevator which takes you back to where you started.

Afterwards, be sure to walk around to the various lookout points on Goat Island and Luna Island where you can get very close to the American and Bridal Veil Falls just before they go crashing over the cliff. Most of those points are near the Cave of the Wind.

Here’s a good resource for the Falls for those who have never been: http://www.niagarafallslive.com/Fact...gara_Falls.htm

Some folks have complained that the views on the US side are not as good as on the Canadian side, saying you don’t get a frontal view of the falls. I respectfully disagree. From Goat Island, you get full frontal from the elevated platform located next to the Maid of the Mist. It’s free with a Maid of the Mist ticket, otherwise you’ll have to pay a separate fee to go on it, but it would be worth it.

Now some tips for these activities. My DW was glad she brought along a comb so she could try to put her hair back into place when she was done with both of these. When packing back home, bring along some Tevas or other good, sturdy walking sandals for these activities. If like me you forget, do Cave of the Wind first because you’ll get a free pair of sandals which you can then use on the Maid of the Mist. (Those sandals are not, however, sturdy enough for prolonged walking, IMHO.) I had a backpack for my walking shoes and other stuff - - raincoats, food, sunscreen, etc. Shorts and short sleeve shirts work best on these activities. Long pants and long sleeve shirts will no doubt get wet and, depending on your weather, might stay wet for awhile. I had a throw away camera for both activities along with my good digital camera. I was able to use my digital almost exclusively except when right next to the Horseshoe Falls on the Maid of the Mist. Be sure to bring along a handkerchief to keep your lens dry and a camera bag to protect the digital from the misting water. Finally, if you’re going to be doing both Maid of the Mist and Cave of the Wind but want to start with Cave of the Wind, you’ll walk past the Maid of the Mist ticket booths. Check to see how bad the lines are. If they aren’t bad, go ahead and buy your Maid tickets then because they’re good all day and when you return, the tour bus may have just unloaded and you’ll be able to bypass the huge line.

We spent the better part of the day enjoying Goat Island. That nite we had a bottle of wine on our B&B’s balcony as we ate left overs from the Keg and rested our weary feet.

For us, 3 days was the perfect amount of time to experience the Falls and surrounding areas. The Canadian side is full of tourists and the Clifton Hill area of downtown is very commercial with plenty of cheesy shops, etc, but we bypassed all that by staying on River Road. Much has been written about the high cost of the food. It is expensive. But there are all kind of fast food joints in the downtown area (McDonald’s, Applebee’s, Tim Horton’s, Swiss Chalet, etc.) which are cheaper than the restaurants. And pizza is always a good value. For those who love casinos, there are 2 on the Canadian side and I on the US side.

Next up: The Finger Lakes

wliwl

Great report! Thank you!

dcd

On the morning of Day 4 (Tues), we started our drive to the Finger Lakes region of NY. We didn’t really know what to expect there. Suffice it to say that it’s beautiful with rolling hills and pretty lakes, a ton of wineries (over 80), and lots of things to see and do. The roads are very good and it’s easy to get from one lake to another in relatively little time. If you’re interested in a comparison between this region and Napa/Sonoma, I’ll give you our opinions. We think the scenery is better in NY thanks in large part to the lakes. Both have those gorgeous rolling hills. On the whole, the wines in California are of higher quality but there are some very good ones in NY. The NY wineries offer Chardonnays, Pinot Gris, Merlots, Cabs, blended reds, etc. Their specialty, however, is Riesling wines, sweet and dry. The price of the wines ranges from $8 to about $30, with most falling in the teens. They also have ice wines which are very expensive. A small bottle, the standard size, costs up to $110. I think the sweet wine lovers would be very pleased with the NY offerings. As dry wine lovers, we weren’t disappointed either as we found plenty to like. In terms of things to do, NY has the edge. Now on to the details.

Our destination this day was our B&B located directly on Seneca Lake about 2 miles due east of Dundee and about 7 miles due north of Watkins Glen. However we took the scenic route getting there (on purpose this time!). From Niagara Falls, we took I-90 east to the Geneva exit and headed south to Geneva which is on the northern tip of Seneca Lake. That took about 2.5 hours. We considered stopping in Geneva to walk around, but the downtown area didn’t look all that inviting, so we passed. We decided to cut over to Keuka Lake and drive around it as many have said it is the prettiest of the Finger Lakes. We were fairly hungry as we started driving around Keuka but we didn’t see many restaurants. So when I finally saw a sign saying “open for lunch”, I took a hard right and am glad I did. We had unwittingly found the famous Esperanza Mansion located on the west side of the Lake. http://www.esperanzamansion.com/main.html The lodging is out of our price range but the lunch prices weren’t too bad. About $8-15 for an entree and very good food. We dined on the patio which overlooks Keuka Lake. Beautiful views!! Lots of weddings are held here. The buildings and grounds are very pretty.

After a leisurely lunch, we were ready to start sampling some wines. We picked up a Keuka Wine Trail map at the Mansion. As an aside, there are wine trails around several of the lakes and a map is available for each. You can get these maps on line: http://www.senecalakewine.com/jc/content/view/25/49/ http://www.keukawinetrail.com/ But a better option is to pick one up as you enter the trail and start the tour. Most of the maps give the hours of operation and a general location of the wineries. They are in all the visitor centers, many of the wineries, and the major hotels (in the rack with all the other pamphlets on things to see and do). However, be forewarned that these maps are not always the most accurate with respect to the exact location of each winery. The maps generally show the wineries to be located along one of the main roads and many are. But many aren’t and, for those, the maps are pretty useless. Fortunately, the wineries and the local communities have banded together to get around that problem by posting numerous blue signs along the roads telling you the wineries that are in the vicinity and directing you when to turn. Thus, finding the wineries proved to be relatively easy once we got a feel for the “system”.

We then visited 3 wineries which weren’t too far from the Mansion: Dr. Frank’s, Herron Hill, and Bully Hill. None of these are on the main road but the signage directing you to each one is very good. Each one was a bit higher on the hill than the next and all 3 provided great views of Keuka Lake. Dr. Frank’s was unlike most wineries in that you don’t walk into the tasting room and request samples. Instead, wine tasting is done in groups only (about 10 per group) and, because there are limited wine stations inside, maybe 3, don’t be surprised if you end up waiting outside, especially during their busy season. We waited about 15 minutes. Once inside, the group gets a personal “guide” who explains the wines and does the pouring. The tasting was free. The wines were very good. Herron Hill’s wines were also very good although there was a modest tasting fee, $1 or $2 for any 5 wines and a little more for their premium wines. Bully Hill was the highest elevation with several gift shops and a large tasting room. All 3 are worth a visit.

After this terrific introduction to the Finger Lakes, we headed to our B&B, the Pearl of Seneca Lake. http://www.thepearlofsenecalake.com/ I stressed over where to stay in the Finger Lakes region and decided the Watkins Glen area would make an excellent base for wine tasting, hiking, and sightseeing. Turned out to be a very good choice. And the B&B was the cherry on top. The owners, Peter and Mary Weller, are super nice and helpful. This is their full time job which they love. And it shows! Mary is the quintessential qrandmotherly type. Eager to please, hearty laugh, great cook and lots of fun. Peter is more low key with a dry sense of humor. He is very accommodating and a real gentleman. There were a couple of occasions when we needed help with logistics and they went out of their way to be helpful. I think that’s just their natures.

Their large home sits on 14 acres of woods. Very private. No neighbors. The 2 story cedar house is accurately depicted on their website. It was built to be a B&B and was finished about 3 years ago. It’s very well decorated with many large common rooms and 4 guest rooms on the second floor. Each guest room has a private bath, balcony facing the lake, TV, refrigerator with complementary bottles of water and soda (which get re-filled each day), microwave with complementary bags of popcorn, and individually controlled heat/AC. We were in the Southview room, the only one with a private balcony. Peter and Mary live in the home. Breakfasts are terrific. You can eat anytime between 8:30 and 10am at their large kitchen table, center island, or the table and chairs outside. They’ll whip up something special each morning (eggs, pancakes, etc), plus fresh fruit, breads, homemade jams and jellies, bacon or sausage, juices and coffee. Very hearty. Plus Mary is always baking cookies and cakes during the day which she shares with the guests. The backyard consists of about 75 yards of grass leading to the lake where there is a steep set of steps which takes you to an 80’ dock with benches on the end. Just beautiful and relaxing. We wish we’d had an extra day there just to hang out. We’d go back in a heartbeat, but from the sounds of things, the word is out on this relatively new B&B. So book early.

That first nite we picked up a delicious pizza from Gina’s in nearby Dundee and ate it on our balcony, gazing out at the beautiful lake all the while.

Next up: hiking till we drop

dcd

Day 5 was spent enjoying some of the local state parks. We started with the Watkins Glen State Park in Watkins Glen. http://nyfalls.com/watkinsglensp.html We highly recommend a visit. Tip: rather than pay $7 to park in the official lot, use the street parking right outside the lot for free. You’ll find plenty of spots on 8th or 9th street and it’s then an easy walk across the street to the park’s entrance. The park itself is free. The hiking “trail” is actually a man made path with stone retaining walls. Not exactly roughing it! The hike takes you along a beautiful and deep gorge with lots of waterfalls. Very pretty and lots of photo ops. There are lots of steps, all of which are flagstone and well maintained. For those with knee problems who would rather walk downhill, there’s another entrance to the park at the top of the hill. After walking down to the main entrance, you can catch a shuttle back to the top. We spent about 2 hours there. Others could spend less. I think the main gorge trail is about 1.5 miles long. We’d recommend sturdy Teva type sandals during the warmer months as your feet may get a little wet. Don’t miss this park!

From there, we drove about 20 minutes to the Robert H. Treman State Park, just about 10 miles outside of Ithaca. http://www.nysparks.state.ny.us/park...asp?parkID=104 There was a $7.00 entry/parking fee but that ticket was good for any other State Park that same day. We hiked about 2 miles of the gorge trail, which was very well maintained. The steps were again made of flagstone and there were beautiful stone retaining walls. The scenery, featuring lots of waterfalls and a gorge, were very impressive. The elevation here was higher than at Watkins Glen. Lots of photo ops.

By now, it was mid-afternoon and Mary’s breakfast was finally starting to wear off. She’d sent us off that morning with a bunch of chocolate chip cookies which ended up being lunch. Ummmm……….

We then continued our drive toward Ithaca and stopped for a brief visit at Buttermilk Falls. Using our parking receipt from the Treman Park, we parked for free. No hiking required to see these falls. You can practically see them from the road. Interestingly, the falls empty out into in a large pool of water which is open for swimming. A life guard was on duty. This would be a nice place for a picnic.

Next up was the Taughnnock Falls just north of Ithaca. http://www.taughannock.com/ You can hike to the falls but our legs were trashed so we found the scenic overlook off Route 89 instead. The falls are twice the height of Niagara Falls but not nearly as wide. By this time, we were pretty waterfalled-out and weren’t overly impressed. But if you hadn’t seen all the other ones at the various state parks, they would be worth a look.

At this point, we were driving along Cayuga Lake and there are lots of wineries along it. We visited 3: Lucas (no tasting fee, mostly sweet wines and no view of the lake), Sheldrake Point (3 complementary wines of their choosing and a couple bucks to taste 5 wines of our choice; it’s right next to the lake), and The Thirsty Owl, our favorite of the 3 ($2 for any 5 wines with that amount subtracted from any purchase and great lake views). They were all within 10 miles of one another.

It was now about 6pm (love those long summer days) and we headed back to the Pearl. We took a slight detour to Burdett where we picked up some BBQ pork ribs and pulled pork from Smoke ‘n Bones to eat back at the B&B. I’m a BBQ affectionado and would rate the Q as good , not great. The ribs were far better than the pulled pork.

On Day 6, we decided to make a pilgrimage to Cooperstown, NY to visit the baseball hall of fame. http://web.baseballhalloffame.org/index.jsp That was about a 2 hour 45 minute drive each way, mostly on an interstate thru scenic areas of NY. We had no idea upstate NY was so pretty. We’re both baseball fans and figured this was probably as close as we’d ever get to Cooperstown, which is in the middle of nowhere, so we’d go for it. Glad we did. Definitely worth a visit. Quaint town, too. The weather was very cloudy and a little rainy so it was fortunate we were planning to spend the day in a museum. We spent about 5 hours there, breaking for lunch which kept us from getting museum fatigue. Most of the exhibits have written material so the length of the visit will pretty much depend on how much reading you choose to do. On the street that fronts the Hall (Main Street), there are lots of sports memorabilia and gift shops which would have really tempted me in my youth. You parents may want to hold onto your wallets if you turn your kids loose!!

FYI, there are 2 other museums in Cooperstown which rate a “Gem” from AAA for those not wild about baseball: the Farmer’s Museum and Fenimore Art Museum. We didn’t have time for either, unfortunately. Next time. Also, Cooperstown is on Otsego Lake which is apparently very pretty. We would have liked to walk more of the town and seen the Lake but the weather just wasn’t cooperating.

Tip: parking at the Hall is a bear. I hadn’t done any research before departing on this trip and so we were winging it. I figured the Hall would have a big ‘ol parking lot. Wrong. No parking lot. Just street parking with 2 hour meters which is crazy because you need more than that to adequately see all there is to see. Fortunately, we drove around and lucked out finding the only long term lot nearby. It’s about 2 long blocks west of the Hall on the same street (Main Street) in front of Doubleday Field. On a busy day, I’m sure that lot fill ups fast because it’s not all that big. It’s $2 an hour to park. As I went inside the souvenir shop adjacent to this lot to ask about the fees, the shop owner told me he had a small private lot next to and slightly behind the main one and charged $10 per day. Sold!! I suspect the Hall wants the visitors to park in a couple of public lots located nowhere near the Hall. I saw a sign for one of these shortly after entering the city limits, indicating there were shuttles running to and from the Hall. I suspect that is a large lot.

Day 7, we said goodbye to our wonderful hosts at the Pearl. We hated to leave. But before we left, we discovered that the case of wine we had accumulated from various wineries could not be shipped UPS or thru a nearby winery back to Missouri or Illinois. A winery can ship its own wine out of state but can’t mix other wineries’ products in the same box….. Major bummer. After a call to our airline (NW), I discovered we could box up the wines and use that box as our second piece of checked luggage for a $25 fee, which would be much cheaper than shipping it anyway. Our hosts had an empty wine box and lots of bubble wrap. Yay!!!! Problem solved. But NY needs to change that stupid law. (When we got to the airport, the attendant must have gotten distracted because she forgot to charge us for the case of wine. So we ended up with free shipping. Yay again!!)

Our destination this day was our B&B in Silver Springs just west of Letchworth State Park. But we decided to stop off in Corning, NY, about 45 minutes south of the Pearl, to visit the Corning Museum of Glass. http://www.cmog.org/ I had mixed feelings about a visit, thinking we be learning how CorningWare is made. Shows you how much I know……… It’s a fabulous, world-class museum documenting the history of glass with many priceless pieces. I was told it is THE glass museum in the world. I can believe it. For anyone who’s been to any of the Smithsonians in DC, this museum is on par with those. In addition to case after case of magnificent exhibits, there are live demonstrations throughout the day on glass making as well as various guided tours. We took the one hour “Treasures” tour which is led by a docent and touches on the museum’s highlights. Believe it or not, one hour was not enough time. We could have spent the better part of the day there. And if you want to pick up a glass souvenir, there’s a humungous gift shop on the lower level where you can drop $1 or $15,000 (or more!). There are couple of reasonably priced cafes for lunch. This museum is well worth a stop, but make sure you leave enough time. For adults, the entrance fee is $12.50 (less with AAA). Kids under 19 are free.

Also in Corning is the Rockwell Museum of Western Art, rated a “Gem” by AAA. We didn’t have time to visit it, unfortunately. They are featuring an Ansel Adams and Georgia O’Keefe exhibit thru September. If you’re planning to visit both of these museums, you’ll get a discount if you buy tickets at the same time at either place. These museums would be great options for the proverbial rainy day.

We then started our trek to Letchworth State Park. http://www.letchworthpark.com/ But first we took a slight detour to the Pleasant Valley/Great Western Winery to pick up a bottle of wine for that evening. (We forgot to take a bottle out before hermetically sealing our box.) We didn’t care for most of their wines but liked a Merlot for $14. And off we went.

We arrived at our B&B, A Little Bit of Heaven, in late afternoon. http://www.littlebitofheaven.net/ I had extensively researched the B&Bs near the Park and was not disappointed with our choice. The rates are very reasonable. The B&B is a large Victorian home built in 1895. The current owner is Don Kemp, who grew up in the area and returned in the early 2000s when he bought this B&B. It’s a very charming old house. We stayed in the Theodore Roosevelt suite which is a large, air conditioned room on the second floor with a large bathroom and private balcony overlooking his gardens. One thing you should know. There are no deadbolts on the doors. Just a simple lock. Didn’t bother us in the least. But if you’re security conscious, it might not be for you. The home sits on about an acre of land in a residential part of this small town (population 850) and has been superbly decorated by Don who lives there. He serves a filling and delicious gourmet breakfast in his dining room promptly at 8:30. Don brings coffee or juice to your room a little before that. He’s terrific. Very nice, helpful, and interesting to talk to. He has lots of stories from his travels to Europe where one of his kids lives. The B&B is ideally situated for exploring the Park. The Castile entrance is just 15 minutes away.

That evening, we had dinner reservations at the Glen Iris Inn located in the southern portion of the Park. We arrived a little early to explore some of the Park because it was supposed to rain the next day, our last. For those like us who weren’t interested in hiking, you can easily skip the northern part of this Park where the road cuts through the forest and you can’t see the gorge from the road. This oblong Park runs in a north-south direction and is 17 miles long. The lookouts and waterfalls are primarily in the southern most 10 miles, beginning near the Castile entrance. Actually, if you enter there ($6 per day), I’d head north for a mile or so because there are some impressive lookouts in that stretch. Then turn around and head south where there are more overlooks and/or short walks to 3 waterfalls, the upper, middle and lower. All are worth viewing. Even if you aren’t eating at the Glen Iris Inn, I’d recommend stopping there because there’s an excellent view of one of the falls behind the Inn. The Inn’s food was reasonably priced ($16-25.00 an entrée) but only so-so in our opinions. Next time, we’ll follow Don’s recommendation and head to the Old Valley Inn, about 10 minutes north of Silver Springs in Warsaw. Don says it’s the best in the area and he would know.

Letchworth is billed as the Grand Canyon of the East. Well, I’ve been to the real Grand Canyon 6 times and Letchworth doesn’t come close. But it’s still impressive, especially if you’ve not had the chance to see the real McCoy.

Day 8, a Saturday, greeted us with rain. Something we hadn’t experienced most of the week. To kill some time before our 5pm flight out of Buffalo, we drove the northern part of Letchworth and my comments on that stretch of road above are based on this experience. Then we hung out at the B&B until 1:30pm before heading to the airport, about 1.5 hours away.

I hope this report helps others who may be planning a trip to this wonderful part of the US.

cd

Thanks for such a detailed trip report dcd! I am so glad you enjoyed my recommemdation of the Keg Steakhouse in the ES and so glad you enjoyed the Falls. We love them!

We have not been to the Finger Lakes, so thanks for the report from there.

mrsd2fan

I'm glad that you had a pleasant experience in NY. And you made me laugh when you wrote "we never knew NY was so pretty". When you tell someone you are from NY, they automatically assume that you are from NYC...It drives me nuts! NY State is soooo much more than NYC

dcd

cd, sorry I misidentified you in my report. Thanks again for the recommendation.

mrsd2fan, you're absolutely right. Count DW and I as being guilty of thinking all of NY was somehow similiar to NYC. Shame on us!! In fact, we commented at the end of our visit that the New Yorkers we met were friendly, had no accents, and were relaxed and easy going in contrast to what we thought we might find. NY is a huge and beautiful state. That's why we like to travel to new places -- to gain new perspectives.

sarge56

dcd, thank you so much for the wonderful trip report! It is reports like this that contribute so much to the enjoyment of traveling to new places. Your details are quite useful to other travelers and much appreciated!

So glad you and your DW had a wonderful time!

BarbaraS

I loved reading your report - especially the tips on Niagara Falls.

amelie

Nice report. We've never found parking to be that bad in NOTL though, we usually do park behind the Angel Inn (the lot you mentioned) and both times were on Saturdays around 11 am.

Question. You mentioned that you need a passport to cross the Rainbow Bridge on foot. Could you not have a birth certificate and drivers license, like what you can use to cross the border in a car?

dcd

amelie, good point. As this is a "border crossing", the birth certificate and driver's license would also suffice for a US citizen going into the US and then returning to Canada. See: http://cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/security-secu...dmiss-eng.html and http://www.amcits.com/passport_requirement.asp

amelie

Thanks, just wanted to double check since we've never walked over to the NY side and I'm planning on doing this in Sept. My husband is becoming a naturalized US citizen next month and will not have time to apply for a passport before our Canada trip.

He will have to show is naturalized certificate (equal to a birth certificate) and his driving license.

toedtoes

Great report. I'm glad you enjoyed it all.

Just a couple corrections to the historic part of Niagara Falls:

The only falls that people have gone over and survived (with or without a barrel) is the Horseshoe Falls. No ones ever survived over the American or Bridal Veil.

Originally, there was a cave behind Bridal Veil falls. When they first opened the tour, you would have gone into the tunnel and stood behind the falls. At some point in the 1900's (can't remember exactly when but somewhere between the 20's and 50's I believe), there was a huge rockfall on the American Falls side and the cave was destroyed.

travelgirl2

Great report. You've given me some good ideas for a trip, as we live in New Jersey and are always looking for a new place we can reach by car.

I remember a visit to the Corning museum, as a child. I can still picture the beautiful glass items. Thanks for the memory! My dad was thrilled to visit the museum and so excited to share it with us.

annikany

Nice report. I love being reminded of why I live here! I am also a big fan of Niagara Falls! Sounds like you had a great time!