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Gorges and waterfalls; alpacas, goats, and osprey; wineries and hiking trails; home to nearly 30,000 students at Cornell University and Ithaca College — all this and more define Ithaca on the southern shore of the 38-mile-long Cayuga Lake, the longest in the Finger Lakes.
Best of all, for ice cream devotees (and doesn’t that include all of us), the city can claim title to the first documented ice cream sundae in the United States. It was served in a pharmacy on April 3, 1892, which was a Sunday of course. It was served to the Rev. John M. Scott after services at the Unitarian church.
Stop at Purity Ice Cream at the corner of Meadow and Cascadilla for wonderful sundaes and other ice cream creations. It bills itself as “the ice cream of the Finger Lakes since 1936.”
Just a couple hours’ drive from Buffalo, this most family-friendly city makes a perfect weekend getaway.
The Ithaca area boasts a number of well-known area state parks including Buttermilk Falls and Taughannock Falls. All offer campsites and cabins for rent. Keep your park receipt because one $8 admission fee allows access to other parks on the same day. Go early because there are limits on admission and people will be turned away if the limit is reached.
BUTTERMILK FALLS STATE PARK takes its name from the foaming cascade formed by Buttermilk Creek as it flows down the steep valley side toward Cayuga Lake. A natural pool forms at the base of the falls near the Lower Park entrance. The spring-fed pool is cool and relaxing on a hot summer day. Alas, during a recent two-day visit it was closed for swimming because of a high bacteria count.
The upper park has a small lake, hiking trails through woodlands and along the gorge and rim, picnic areas, and playing fields. The lower park also has a campground, pool, and playing fields.
Between 1912 and 1920, the movie industry flourished in Ithaca. The gorges were backdrops for many films. Some segments of Perils of Pauline were filmed in Buttermilk Glen.
TAUGHANNOCK FALLS STATE PARK boasts the tallest free-falling waterfall east of the Mississippi. With a drop of 215 feet, it’s 33 feet higher than Niagara Falls, but with a much smaller volume of water. This summer’s heat and low rainfall means it is even smaller than usual.
Don’t miss the view of Taughannock Falls from the Falls Overlook — the gorge creates a natural amphitheater that holds in the dense spray that rises from the bottom of the falls and shrouds the lower part of the cataract in mist. There is a visitor center and a hiking trail up here.
The shoreline of the park drops off sharply making this area a great congregating space for many different types of Lake Cayuga fish. Lake trout, yellow perch, and landlocked Atlantic salmon are all common species.
There is a swimming area and kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards for rent along the shore of the lake. Nearby is a large children’s play area.
STEWART PARK is a free lakefront city park that was originally a track of land granted to Andrew Moody, a Revolutionary War soldier. It was later developed as a park until it closed in 1915 and was then used as a silent movie studio for the next four years. It later became a city park named in honor of Mayor Edwin Stewart who championed the lakefront site.
“It is a disgrace to our city that there is not a place where Ithacans and their guests may go to enjoy our lake without trespassing on private property,” Stewart declared.
He would be proud of today’s park that includes an accessible children’s play area, tennis courts, a duck pond, a spray pool, a golf course, a bird sanctuary, picnic tables with grills and a prime spot for watching the sunset over the lake.
Children of all ages can get excited about nature at the free three-acre, award-winning CHILDREN'S GARDEN that recently reopened. It is designed with one goal in mind: to inspire the next generation of environmental stewards. Everything is all about the kids. A highlight of the garden for many young visitors is the innovative Hands-on-Nature Anarchy Zone where kids can dig for worms, play with water and clay, build forts out of straw bales and stumps, climb trees and get muddy, wet, and dirty while exploring their connection to nature.
About ten minutes from Taughannock Falls is a wonderful jewel — an alpaca farm that welcomes visitors to meet these magical, other-wordly creatures. CABIN VIEW ALPACAS is a special place in many ways. The land overlooking Cayuga Lake has been in Christine Houseworth’s family since her ancestor was given the land by the U.S. government after his service in the Revolutionary War.
She and her husband David operate the farm. Her early ancestors were one of the first to grow grapes on what is now the Cayuga Wine Trail and raised sheep that grazed in the pastures.
Today there are about 50 alpacas grazing in the same pastures including about a half dozen super cute babies who are raised for their incredibly soft coats. Farm tour visitors learn about the history and habits of these animals who hail originally from Peru. All have names and the owners know them all — Ginger Spice, Crown Victoria, Cricket, Liberty Belle, and Sweet Pea’nut are just a few.
They are very gentle and mellow. At the end of the tour, I fed some of the males who were very polite and waited their turn for their share of the treats. There is a small gift shop with alpaca related items including yarn. The award winning alpacas’ blue ribbons cover the walls.
Want an up close experience with goats? Visit the LIVELY RUN DAIRY, one of the country’s longest operating commercial goat dairies. It has pioneered goat cheese in the American marketplace. Visitors can visit the goat barn and enjoy a cheese tasting. There is a small shop selling mostly goat cheese.
The owners Steve and Suzanne Messmer, their two sons, Pete and Dave Messmer and business partner, Katie Shaw, own the dairy. They were upset when area dairy farmers were forced to dump milk after losing their traditional markets during the pandemic and came up with a perfect solution.
“We devised a plan to buy the milk with the help of donations and turn it into cheese and then donate it to food banks,” explained Steve Messmer. “It has proved to be a win for everyone.”
A cruise on Cayuga Lake is a must-do and DISCOVER CAYUGA LAKE offers cruises on board the MV/Teal. Although cruises are limited this season, the new Osprey Eco Cruises quickly proved quite popular. The lake’s burgeoning orprey population has grown to rival any population in the Northeast.
Learn about the breeding and migration habits of these magnificent birds. Did you know the young birds fly to South America for about two years and then return to the nest where they were born? If the nest is already occupied they move on to another close nest.
Back in downtown, visit the ITHACA COMMONS, a four-block, pedestrian only section of the city. It is the place for dining and shopping. Outdoor dining spaces have expanded and there was even a musician singing and playing his guitar during our visit.
Learn about the planets and take a ¾ mile walk at the same time by following the SAGAN PLANET WALK. It is a one to five billion scale model of our solar system built by the Sciencenter as a memorial to Ithaca resident and astronomer Carl Sagan.
The walk begins with the Sun station at the downtown Ithaca Commons and ends at the station representing the dwarf planet, Pluto, at the Sciencenter. Each station has a scale model of the planet and an informational plaque.
Along the way you might discover that the sunny side of Mercury is hotter than a pizza oven or that a year on Pluto takes 248 Earth years. Augmented Reality features are now available at each station. Watch the solar system come to life right before your eyes using the Sagan Planet Walk app.
Travel Tip of the Month: For more information on the Ithaca area go to visitithaca.com or call 607-272-1313 or 800-28-ITHACA. Be sure everyone ages two and older has a face mask. Most attractions except the parks require a mask. Some attractions are still not fully operational so check first.
Deborah Williams is a veteran travel writer who lives in Holland, NY. Her work has appeared in national and international publications. She is the recipient of the Society of American Travel Writers’ Lowell Thomas Gold Travel Writing Award.