Let's be honest, is there really anything more beautiful than upstate New York in October? If you said yes, I hope you change your mind after reading this post! This is one of the most requested trips that I've taken and I am not the least bit surprised. I took this trip last October, but it was definitely one for the books (+ blog) so I wanted to highlight it for anyone looking to take a trip in the autumn months. Most everything that I will write about in this post was done outdoors, so social distancing approved! Let's face it - 2020 sucks, but your fall trips don't have to.
Like I've mentioned in posts before, I'm a psycho when it comes to planning. Everyone always wants to know my secrets to trips, so take notes! In the early stages of planning a road trip I like to use the site Road Trippers. This site allows me to plug in the main destinations that I know I want to visit, it then generates the quickest route and suggests everything to do in-between. I have stumbled across so many unique attractions through this site that are all on my way to my next destination - making all of my road trips that much more exciting! The free version of Road Trippers only allows you to plug in 7 points, so I'll add the main ones to create a route and then take notes of all of the others on a Google doc. In this Google doc, I also add addresses, hours of operation, pricing, etc. that way I don't have any surprises once I arrive! Here is what my map looked like for this trip, but if you want to get a closer look please visit: Upstate New York
From Columbus, OH, my parents and I drove about 5 hours to Orchard Park, NY - the first destination on my list. I have visited Niagara Falls many times previously, so I decided to skip this trip. If you've never been, this would be the perfect opportunity! Since we left a tad later in the afternoon, we went straight to the hotel and got up early the next morning for our first hike to Eternal Flame Falls. This is one of those destinations that I was talking about earlier that Road Trippers suggested to me - I thought it was a great stopping point to break up my trip and it was well worth the stop! The trail was moderate, 1.4 miles out and back. You do walk along a stream with some incline, so the path can be a tad slippery without proper shoes. At the end of the trail, you will reach a 30 ft high cascade in two segments. A small cave behind the falls to the right houses a natural gas spring that can be ignited to create a flame of 4-8 inches in height. The best time to visit is after bouts of rain lasting several days. Fun fact: The Eternal Flame isn’t eternal at all. It does go out sometimes, so just in case bring along a lighter if you’d like to see it in all it’s glory.
About an hour east of Eternal Flame Falls, we reached our next destination: Letchworth State Park. Apparently it is known as the "Grand Canyon of the East" and I would definitely say it lives up to the name. Guys, this park is breathtaking in the fall. You get to enjoy the overlook views of the Genesee River as it flows through a scenic gorge, three waterfalls, a whopping 66 miles of hiking trails, and so much more. I would definitely take a trip back here to explore more! We didn't take the time to hike all of the trails, but there are plenty of parking lots that put you within walking distance to all of the beautiful sites.
On our way to the next stop, we were scrambling to find somewhere close to stay as we were out in the middle of nowhere and it was getting late. Thankfully, we packed some camping gear just in case and were able to snag a cabin in the Finger Lakes on their LAST NIGHT of the season. I'm not really sure what we were anticipating while packing camping gear at the start of our trip - we nearly froze to death in our tiny cabin on the lake. Despite this mishap, this was one of our favorite nights of the trip. Our cabin faced a beautiful lake that reflected the most picturesque, fall mountains with the cutest porch swing to help take in the view. My parents and I also got roped into a euchre tournament and pot luck with the owners and some of the long-term residents of the grounds and it was a BLAST. I was easily the youngest person there, but honestly that's when I thrive LOL. This campground also had the cutest tiki bar that served us all night, which I definitely wasn't mad about.
The next stop I had on the map was Taughannock Falls State Park - we decided to skip this and go to the next since we had a longer drive ahead of us, but I have so many regrets in doing so. If you ever go here, please send me some photos!! You can hike the upper or lower rim, and it looks insanely beautiful. Photo for reference:
Three and a half hours later... we have my absolute FAVORITE part of the trip. While planning this epic fall road trip, I read so many awesome things about this location called Sam's Point Preserve. I also read what a nightmare it was just to gain entrance to the parking lot and that the very narrow, winding mountain road allowed for no overflow parking - meaning that you had to keep turning around and driving back up the mountain just in hopes that someone was leaving and the attendant would let you in. I am not exaggerating when I tell you, my parents and I spent nearly 45 minutes just trying to enter this darn parking lot. We would see a car coming the opposite way and would rush to the gate in hopes that they were exiting just for the attendant to tell us someone just beat us in... it was beyond frustrating. I kept telling them that it must be worth it if it's this busy, let's just keep trying... and boy am I glad we did! I know it sounds crazy, but I would 1000% do it all again for the views, without hesitation. There is a $10 car fee once you pull in, but there is no time limit on your stay - I think we were there for at least three hours (we didn't want to leave). At the gate at the edge of the parking lot, start following the loop road, following the signs toward Sam’s Point. It heads uphill, looping around a huge rock face. This is the main trail that all of the other trails connect to, so you can decide which ones you want to do on your way. It is a pretty moderate hike with a slight incline, but nothing too extreme. When you get closer to the top, you will be rewarded with the most spectacular overlook of the valley below - I took at least 500 pictures at these spots. We also decided to hike the "ice caves", because who could read that name and not want to see what it's about? I will say, this trail was a bit more adventurous as you are descending into a cave. There are many steps, some places that do require ducking, and even a spot that you have to climb a wooden ladder. If you have difficulties with any of this, just stick with the main Sam's Point Trail! We didn't get to see any ice in the caves since it was only October, but they were still pretty cool (sorry, had to). There are a few other trails we didn't get to, but honestly we ended up going back down the way we came just so we could enjoy those views one last time before heading out.
We stayed in a town an hour east near the Hudson River called Poughkeepsie. While driving around, we happened to stumble across the world's second longest pedestrian footbridge - The Walkway Over the Hudson. We didn't walk across it, but we stopped and took some pictures and watched trains pass by on the tracks that run along the river. Did I mention how beautiful NY is in the fall?
Next up - Giant Ledge/Panther Mountain. Cool name and an overlook? Ok, talked me into it. I read that this was an easy hike, so I just put on some skinny jeans and Vans sneakers and called it a day. Did I miss the part where it was mentioned you are literally rock climbing 1.6 miles straight up a mountain? I would definitely rate this hike as moderately difficult, but the overlook was still beautiful, nonetheless.
While in the upstate area, we of course had to stop by our old friend, Lake Placid. If you've never been, the Adirondacks are truly special and there is so much to do in the area. Beautiful hikes, places to stay (remote or in town), and so many restaurants and shops. You will be happy to know that there are no giant alligators in Lake Placid. Also note that the village of Lake Placid doesn’t actually sit on Lake Placid - It is actually on Mirror Lake. As this was our second time visiting, we wanted to add some fresh experiences to the agenda. Before I talk about what we did this trip, I will mention that two of my "must do's" from our last was our hike to Whiteface Mountain and our visit to the Adirondack Wildlife Refuge.
As for this time around, we were able to visit the the Olympic Center - home of the 1980 Winter Olympics + the "Miracle on Ice." The arena is open to the public, granting you the ability to walk the halls freely - even past the old locker rooms. Each room has a sign outside the door listing which hockey teams were in each and how they did in the olympics that specific year. You can also purchase a guided tour & visit the museum! The center just so happened to be hosting a women's ice skating competition, so my parents and I had the pleasure of taking in the views of the rink all while enjoying the performances. Also make sure to visit the other two olympic sites in the area that we weren't able to catch on this visit. You certainly can't miss the views of the massive jumping complex on your drive in, but you can also take a glass elevator ride to the top and even zip line down! Also check out the sports complex where professional bobsled, luge and skeleton events take place & even take your own ride down the tracks!
There are so many adorable Airbnb's in the area, but we decided on The Brook House - Downstairs located in Keene. It was fairly close to everything we wanted to do, in our price range and located off a very quiet road. It also had the cutest sun room quipped with an indoor hammock and twin bed. It was the perfect space to come back to after a long hike. Would highly recommend! Peep my sweet momma doing dishes through the sunroom window looking into the kitchen.
An early wake up call and off to Cascade Mtn. we go! If you're looking for a relatively short hike to amazing summit views, this is perfect for you! You will be gaining 1,940 ft. in elevation, so make sure to dress warm. You will hike 2.4 miles (one way) to panoramic views at the very top of the summit. Unfortantely for my parents and I, due to the lack of cell service we were unaware of the dangerous wind storms sweeping through the northeast. On the way up, we could literally feel the tree roots lifting the ground beneath our feet because of the heavy winds - so you can only image what we were faced with as we gained elevation. We emerged from the woods to the first overlook point and decided this view would be best enjoyed while sitting and not being blown around everywhere. For some reason, we decided to keep treking along and attempt to reach the peak. In our defense, some people heading back down the mountain said that we had to do it. We reached the end of the foot path and followed the trail markers on the large boulders ahead. At this point, I was being thrown around by the wind and was scared to death that I was going to lose my balance, so I hid behind a large rock and my parents continued without me. Enjoy the few pictures I got to take that day out of fear for my camera (and life). If you visit, may the winds be ever in your favor!
Last but not least, while in the early stages of planning this trip I saw a magical castle located on an island off of Alexandria Bay, NY called Boldt Castle and knew I had to go. In 1900, a man named George Boldt (a milionaire proprietor) bought a heart shaped island and began construction on a massive castle as a display of his love for his wife. However, construction came to a hault in 1904 when he telegraphed the workers to cease all construction immeditaly. After the sudden passing of his beloved wife, George never returned to the island and the unfinished castle and surrounding structures were left to the elements for 73 years. The land was purchsed by the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority in 1977 and have since spent millions of dollars rehabilitating, restoring and improving the Heart Island structures. One cool fact that I learned while I was there was that the original blueprints and building materials were found on the property, so they have been building it the way it was originally intended.
After purchasing a ticket for entrance and a ferry ride, you are dropped off to explore the island and structures freely. The castle is 6 stories and 120 rooms (some unfinished and still under construction), complete with tunnels, beautiful gardens and heart shaped details everywhere you turn. Every window and every balcony offers the most magical view of the bay and all of the fall colors against the water. Also on the island is a children's playhouse that looks like it's straight from a fairytail, a dovecote, a powerhouse for the generators, a drawbridge and so much more. Across the water, you can take a free shuttle boat to tour the yacht house - unfortunately this was closed on the day we visited. There is so much to see here, we spent several hours exploring. If you are looking for a very unique experience and enjoy history/architecture, you have to do this!
Thanks for reading! I hope someday you guys get the chance to visit even just one of these places in the fall. Even though pictures are beautiful, they don't do any of it justice and it will be an experience you will always remember. If you do, make sure to tag me in your photos on Instagram @jessica.lee.travels so I can live vicariously through you!
Side note - I get a lot of requests for prints that I've taken on this trip. If you are interested in digital copies to print and use as you'd like, please visit my Etsy page at https://www.etsy.com/shop/JessicaLeePhotos. If you don't see the one you want, please reach out to me and I can get that to you!
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