Watkins Glen State Park and Its Surroundings. July, 2022

One of the most beautiful state parks in New York's Finger Lakes region. We had visited this area before, and if you're interested in learning about how the Finger Lakes were formed and reading about our previous trip, you can find that story here. During this short getaway, we returned to admire this incredible natural wonder once again, explored the surrounding area, and revisited the world's largest glass museum 

Day 1

We set off from Toronto, passing by Niagara Falls before crossing the U.S. border and heading to the charming town of Corning. The drive took us just over five hours, including a few short stops along the way.

After arriving, we checked into the cozy Hampton Inn Corning. Since Corning is home to the world's largest glass museum, it's no surprise that the hotel's décor reflects the town's rich glassmaking heritage

After a relaxing afternoon and a refreshing swim in the pool, we headed to downtown Corning in the evening for dinner and a leisurely stroll through its charming streets 

Day 2

Breakfast at the hotel 

We head out to the park. As soon as we leave the parking area, we’re greeted by a pond filled with frogs and water lilies. And we’re ready to go!We choose one of the trails and begin exploring the park, descending into the gorges, climbing stone steps, and taking in the stunning natural beauty and breathtaking waterfalls

We launch a drone to admire the beauty from a bird’s-eye view 

It was a hot (+33°C) and sunny day, but in the gorge it was cool and sometimes damp 

By the way, don’t wear brand-new shoes to the park — there are plenty of wet paths and puddles. The highlight of the park is Rainbow Falls, which is also the cover photo of this post. If you’re short on time, you can walk through the park in about two hours. We took a relaxed walk and after about four hours we were hungry, so we left the park and found a great little tavern nearby 

And since the fun continued, we set off along one of the scenic routes around nearby Seneca Lake. The area is full of vineyards and wineries along the way. But first, we made a quick stop at another spot. In fact, there are many waterfalls and beautiful trails in this region. We chose Havana Glen Park. From the parking lot it’s only about a 5-minute walk to Eagle Cliff Falls. There were almost no people there, and you could even cool off in the water and build little stone towers 

We continue our scenic route along Seneca Lake and stop by a local farm — Shtayburne Farm Creamery. This is a family-run business. The farm mainly produces dairy products, as well as sauces, jams, and honey. Here you can taste a variety of cheeses and ice cream, and then take a short walk to see where the products come from

We then drove past various wineries and enjoyed the beautiful views along the way. We also stopped at Glenora Wine Cellars, where we picked up a few fruit wines 

The grapes were not quite ripe yet, but the views over the vineyards were absolutely beautiful 

It’s time to head back. On the way, we spot a small farm stand and buy some cherries for the road 

The next day, we set off to visit the largest glass museum in the world…

Day 3

Corning Museum of Glass is a stunning place. We had already been there before, but once again we happily spent half a day exploring it

Here is a favorite work by the Italian glass artist of Jewish origin, Gianni Toso 

The museum also featured interactive galleries and hands-on exhibits 

There were also various shows in the museum, the most fascinating of which was watching the glassblowers at work 

A very beautiful glass art store featuring products made of glass 

Our small trip has come to an end. For those who made it to the end — a bonus. A video created by our son Tomer using a drone

On the way home, we stopped at an outlet near the Canadian border to buy a new suitcase for our next, longer trip