SPORTS

DO IT: First Day Hikes at NY's state parks

Victoria E. Freile

@vfreile

Kick off your 2016 hiking along the Genesee River gorge in America's favorite state park, on a scavenger hunt through woods in the Southern Tier or by taking a leisurely walk to a 215-foot tall waterfall in a deep lakeside gorge near Ithaca.

The three outings are among dozens of First Day Hikes to be held across New York on Jan. 1 as a way to start the New Year off exploring the outdoors.

Nearly 28,000 people hiked more than 66,000 miles to ring in the New Year in 2015, according to America's State Parks, the organization that leads the initiative for all 50 states to offer free, guided First Day Hike programs.

The Genesee River pours over Middle Falls, front, and Upper Falls, back, as seen from Inspiration Point at Letchworth State Park.

"America's state parks provide havens for young and old alike to explore the beauty and serenity of nature through outdoor recreation," Lewis Ledford, executive director of the National Association of State Park Directors, said in a news release. "Hiking offers inspiring ways to improve your physical and mental health, while discovering beautiful public lands in every state."

More than 2,100 people took part in New York's First Day Hikes earlier this year, in the nationwide program that launched five years ago.

"A day spent outside is a day well spent," said Douglas Bassett, environmental educator for Letchworth State Park.

The goal of the program, he said, is not meant to force any sort of New Year's resolution, but to encourage New Yorkers to start the year off exploring outdoor gems with a nature hike.

"Start off the year with a healthy hike and set the stage for enjoying the parks year-round," said Rose Harvey, commissioner of the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

On New Year's Day, 41 different hikes will take place at 38 state parks and historic sites across the Empire State, ranging from lakeside trails to treks through the woods. Locally, some First Day Hikes will include Taughannock Falls State Park, Letchworth State Park, a stretch of the Genesee Valley Greenway, a scavenger hunt in Allegany State Park and a walk on the Catharine Valley Trail within Watkins Glen State Park.

The 215-foot waterfall is the tallest single-drop cascade east of the Rocky Mountains. A First Day Hike here leads hikers through the state park for views of the falls.

The Taughannock Falls hike, among the most popular First Day Hikes in the area, drew more than 270 people last year, said Josh Teeter, environmental educator for the Finger Lakes Region of New York State Parks. The event blossomed from just six attendees four years go to an expected 300-plus Jan. 1.

"Attendance is growing exponentially," Teeter said. "I don't know what we are doing marketing-wise to get people out here, but it's working."

The hike starts at 1 p.m. with a 3/4-mile trek to the 215-foot-tall waterfall along the flat gorge trail, he said. Some participants will turn back to complete a 1.5-mile hike while others will continue another two miles to an overlook that offers views of Taughannock Falls from the top of the gorge. The longer five-mile route follows a trail through a wooded section of the park that contains a warming hut.

Gary Cremeens, 42, said the hut is like a "hidden little gem," with a wood stove next to an ice skating spot, weather permitting. The group typically stops for hot chocolate and coffee in the warming hut before concluding the outing.

"People loved it and were talking about it for other hikes," he said of the 2015 event. "It is a new tradition a lot of families are starting."

One-minute hike to a train crossing Letchworth trestle

One-minute hike: Trainspotting on Letchworth's Trail 2

In Letchworth State Park, which this year was voted the top state park in the nation by USA Today readers, hikers have two family-friendly options for a First Day guided hike; both start at 1 p.m. at the park's Trailside Lodge.

Families with young children will walk a one-mile loop, a "fairly level hike," near the park's new Nature Center, viewing frozen bogs and a trout pond, Bassett said. The program will focus on animal tracking and signs, "a sort of nature CSI," he said.

Bassett will lead the more advanced hikers on a two-mile trek along a stretch of the park's Gorge Trail, starting at the lodge, past Inspiration Point to Middle Falls and back. Hikers will learn about exotic trees in the park on a loop that includes a 200-foot descent (and ascent) along the trail, stone steps and a roadway, Bassett said.

Typically more than 100 people attend Letchworth's New Year's Day hikes, and Bassett is expecting a similar turnout on Jan. 1.

State parks series: Letchworth a natural treasure

Feeling adventurous? Head to Allegany State Park in the Southern Tier for a self-guided scavenger hunt on New Year's Day. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Summit Hill Area on the Red House side of the park.

The off-trail hike lasts about a mile and follows an old mountain bike trail. Hikers collect a map at the Summit Warming Hut and hike to Stone Tower and back along the ridge to the parking area. If it's snowy, hikers should bring snowshoes and/or trekking poles.

Another flat and easy, stroller-friendly hiking option is at 10 a.m. on a stretch of the Genesee Valley Greenway, a 90-mile flat, multi-use trail that runs between Genesee Valley Park in Rochester and Cuba, Allegany County. The Genesee Valley Greenway State Park will offer a two-mile guided hike that starts and ends in a lot off York Landing Road in York, Livingston County.

Bassett said participants will head south for a mile before doubling back on the former railroad bed. Participants will learn about the area's history on the outing.

The two-mile walk along the Catharine Valley Trail in Watkins Glen will begin at 10 a.m. The hike runs though Watkins Glen State Park, but since the park's popular gorge trail has already closed for the winter, the walk will follow the flat, stone dust trail along the Chemung Canal and railroad system. The trail totals 12 miles and connects Watkins Glen State Park and Mark Twain State Park in Horseheads.

Last year about 40 walkers attended the Jan. 1 event, despite chilly weather, said Caryl Sutterby, coordinator of Friends of the Catharine Valley Trail, an organization that promotes public use of the trail.

"We were not alone," Sutterby said. "There were a lot of runners and bikers and everybody else out there."

Sutterby said many hikers are expected to return to hike the trail Jan. 1.

"It's just something different to do on the first day of the year — it gets you off to a good start and makes you feel good," Sutterby said.

VFREILE@Gannett.com

Includes reporting by Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin reporter Shannon Hazlitt.

If you go: First Day Hikes

Taughannock Falls State Park

Time: 1 p.m.

Meeting place: Gorge Trail trailhead, off Route 89 in Ulysses, Tompkins County.

Hike distance: 1.5 to 5 miles.

Difficulty level: Easy to moderate. Hikers have the option to turn back after reaching the waterfalls, while more adventurous hikers will press on.

Letchworth State Park

Time: 1 p.m.

Meeting place: Trailside Lodge.

Hike distance: 1 to 2 miles.

Difficulty level: Easy to moderate. There are two guided hikes, one for families with young children and one for more experienced hikers. Hot chocolate and cookies will follow at the lodge.

Genesee Valley Greenway

Time: 10 a.m.

Meeting Place: York Landing Parking Area, off York Landing Road in York, Livingston County.

Distance: 2 miles.

Difficulty level: Flat and easy.

Allegany State Park

Time: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Starting place: Summit Hill Warming Hut on the Red House Area side in the park.

Distance: 1 mile.

Difficulty level: Easy to moderate.

No registration required as this is a self-guided hike, but call (716) 354-9121 with questions.

Catharine Valley Trail

Time: 10 a.m.

Meeting place: Watkins Glen High School adjacent to Catherine Valley Trail kiosk

Approximate distance: 2 miles.

Difficulty level: Flat and easy.