Watkins Glen

STATE PARK
 WATKINS GLEN STATE PARK
Main Enterance Camping/South Upper Entrance
1009 N. Franklin Enterance 3310 Route 409
Street 3528 Route 419
Watkins Glen, New York 14891

Park Office: 607-535-4511

Regional Office and Park Police: 607-387-7041
Ron Roney, Park Manager

IN AN EMERGENCY
Park Police.......1-800-255-3577
Police, Ambulance, Fire.......911

DIRECTIONS TO THE PARK

From I-90 Exit 42. Follow N.Y.S. Rte. 14 south,
approximately 45 miles.
From I-86 (N.Y.S. Rte. 17) Exit 52A. Follow N.Y.S. Rte.
14 north, approximately 18 miles.
From Ithaca Take N.Y.S. Rte. 79 west, approximately 30
miles.
NEARBY STATE PARKS
Allan H. Treman: N.Y.S. Rte. 89, north of Ithaca
Buttermilk Falls: N.Y.S. Rte. 13, south of Ithaca
Robert H. Treman: N.Y.S. Rte. 327, 4 miles south of Ithaca
Newtown Battlefield: County Rt. 60 Road, 3 miles south of
Elmira.
Taughannock Falls: N.Y.S. Rte. 89, 8 miles north of
Ithaca
Special Passes
The Access Pass is available to New Yorkers with
qualifying disabilities.
The Golden Park Program allows New York State
residents 62 years of age or older unlimited weekday and
non-holiday access to all state parks by showing a NYS
drivers license or non-driver identification.
The Empire Passport provides unlimited vehicle entry
to most state parks and recreation areas. Passes can be
purchased in person at most state parks or recreation
areas, or by mail from State Parks, Albany, NY 12238.
Accessible parking spaces and restrooms are
available. Contact the park office for specific
information. Due to the nature of the gorge, it is
not accessible to wheelchairs, medical walkers or
baby strollers.

STAY ON THE TRAILS!

Serious accidents and even fatalities occur when patrons
leave the trails. Uniformed park staff patrol the trails to
assist you and enforce regulations. Swimming in the
stream, littering and picking wildflowers are not permitted.
There are over 800 stone steps in the gorge. Many
sections of the gorge trail are wet from spray or springs.
Please wear proper footwear.
There are NO RESTROOMS or water fountains along the
trails. Bring water along when hiking the trails, especially
in the summer.
Gorge trails is closed early November to
mid May
 Watkins Glen state park Hiking trails
NYS Ro
Upper Entrance ute 409
3310 Route 409, Watkins Glen, NY 14891
Elevation: 1,002 feet (305 m)
NYS Route 409

Glen Cathedral 4th Street

Central The Narrows Suspension Entrance

Village of
Mile Point Bridge Rainbow Falls Cascade Trail Bridge Tunnel
Watkins Glen
Spiral Gorge Indian Trail Shelter Cavern Cascade
1.1 miles (1.8 km)
along top of gorge and Spiral Tunnel 10th Street

ers Lane
Snacks
DANGER
Jacobs Ladder Indian Trail m) Lo.3vmiles ( 0.5km)
.4 k
Do not use Under Construction

orge Trail 1.5 mi l es (2

along top of gorge
the railroad 0 Point Lookout *Please follow marked path
G
Gorge Trail
bridge to
cross the
creek! Couchs Main
Staircase
Fing
er Lak Entrance
South Rim Trail

NYS Route 329

es
1000 North Franklin St.
1.8 miles (2.9 km)

Trail
Trail Watkins Glen, NY 14891
along top of gorge Lily
Shelter Pond Elevation: 479 feet (146m)
South Rim Trail - along top of gorge to camping area
Active Railroad Line

(Finger Lakes Trail/North Country Trail

4.7 miles (7.6 km) within the park)
No Pets or Alcohol Allowed on Gorge Trail
a
Six Nations Campground g are
mpin
to ca

Camp
Office

Park
For a more detailed hiking map that Office

uses GPS to show your location in

NYS Route 419

South Entrance
this and many of our other parks.... 3528 Route 419, Watkins Glen, NY 14891

Get the App, And Download the Maps.

 EXPLORE WATKINS GLEN ON
THE GORGE TRAIL
You can experience the dramatic landscape of Watkins
Glen on the Indian Trail, South Rim Trail and the Gorge
Trail. The Indian and South Rim Trails follow the forested
rims of the gorge. Watkins Glen is best experienced on
the Gorge Trail, which follows Glen Creek past water-
sculpted rock and 19 waterfalls. The Gorge Trail can be
accessed from the Main, South and Upper entrances.
Many prefer a shortened trip from the South Entrance to
the Main or vice versa. If you would like to explore the
gorge with a guide, tours are offered Tuesday-Sunday at
10:00am and 1:00pm from late June to early September.
As you walk the Gorge Trail, the text below will help you
explore the landmarks labeled on the map. Look for
interpretive panels along the way that will reveal more
about whats around you.
 Entrance Tunnel-Tunnels in the gorge were hand-cut
into the rock in the early 20th centuary. There were
two men with jackhammers. One started at the top
and the other at the bottom, it took 13 days to meet in
the middle! As you emerge from the tunnel onto Sentry
Bridge, peer through the hole cut in the rock on your
right. In the mid 1800s, water behind a dam passed
through this tunnel, down a wooden trough, and over
the waterwheel of a flour mill in the Main Entrance.
Visit the interpretive panel near the Entrance Tunnel for
more information about the mill.

in1794, brothers John and Charles Watkins built the gristmill (left), a
sawmill and a blacksmith in theBig Gully Gorge, later renamed Watkins
Glen. By the 1890s the toiwn around the glen had expanded for tourism.
Wooden staircases such as the one pictured below (center and left)
allowed people to navigate the gorge, although it was very dangerous.
Cavern Cascade- This is one of two waterfalls you
can walk behind. This is made possible by the wearing
away of a thin layer of shale rock underneath a tougher
layer of sandstone. Can you find the layer of shale and
follow it along the gorge wall? This waterfall has eroded
this narrow section of gorge and the deep pools below.
Cavern Cascade and other waterfalls have created
Watkins Glen by eroding the rocks deep into the hillside.
Spiral Tunnel and Suspension Bridge- After emerging
from Spiral Tunnel, you will pass Cliff Path on your right.
This leads to Point Lookout on Lovers Lane, then on
to the Suspension Bridge. There, you can access the
Lily Pond, South Pavilion and swimming pool, or you
can pick up the Indian Trail. In the 1800s, the dining
room of the 3-story Glen Mountain House peered over
the gorge next to the Suspension Bridge and Lily Pond.
Today you will find interpretive panels there that portray
the character of this resort hotel. If you continue on the
Gorge Trail, you will walk under the Suspension Bridge
which is 85 feet (26 m) above the creek. During the great
flood of 1935, the water rose to within five feet of it! Much
of the stone masonry work in the park was built after this
flood.
The Narrows- Beyond the next tunnel and
staircase are the Narrows. The gorge here has its own
micro-climate. It is shady, cool and very moist most
of the time, similar to a rainforest. Plants including ferns
and mosses prefer these conditions and thrive here.
Glen Cathedral- Beyond the top of the next
staircase is the broad, high Glen Cathedral area.
Lovers Lane meets the Gorge Trail here which leads
to the Indian Trail at the Suspension Bridge. If the
Narrows are like a rainforest, then the Cathedral is like
a desert. On a clear day, you will notice the sun soaking
the dry gorge walls beside the trail. These ledges
support drought-resistant grasses, wildflowers and
shrubs typical of a dry field. An interpretive panel here
features the plants that grow in both sunny and shady
sections of the gorge. Just where Lovers Lane joins the
Gorge Trail here, there is a slab of stone with a rippled
surface. Stand on it. You are standing on an ancient sea
bottom! They were once ripples of sand on the floor on
an ancient sea that eventually turned to stone. To learn
more about the formation of the gorge bedrock, stop at
the next interpretive panel a few hundred feet from here.

Central Cascade- Central Cascade, plunging more

than 60 feet (18 m), is the highest waterfall in the gorge.
Above this waterfall, the trail crosses the creek on a
scenic bridge where you will find a panel that highlights
the approaching the Glen of Pools area. Stop here to
discover how the creek forms deep and rounded plunge
pools or potholes.
Rainbow Falls- The Glen of Pools leads to
Rainbow Falls. Like Cavern Cascade, you
can walk under this waterfall. Visit Rainbow
Falls in late afternoon to see rainbows
reflected off the falls on a sunny day.
Spiral Gorge- Beyond the bridge above
ainbow Falls, enter a dark and narrow
passage with dripping springs, sculptured
pools, and thin Pluto Falls, named for the
ancient Roman lord of the underworld.
Little can grow in this darkness.
Mile Point Bridge- The Indian Trail and
South Rim Trail intersect the Gorge Trail at
this point. Here you can:
Take the Indian Trail to reach the Upper
Entrance or return to the Main Entrance
via Lovers Lane and the Gorge Trail
or return to the South Entrance via the
Suspension Bridge.
Continue on the Gorge Trail for mile
(0.8 km) along a quiet section of the
stream and up the 180 steps of Jacobs
Ladder to reach the Upper Entrance.
You can cross the bridge and access
the South Entrance via the South Rim
Trail.
 PARK ORIGINS
The Finger Lakes Story
Sparkling lakes, breathtaking waterfalls and rolling pastoral
land dominate the landscape of the Finger Lakes Region.
Over thousands of years, gigantic glaciers and coursing
streams carved this landscape shared by generations of
people.
Water has shaped the natural landscape of the park. During
the past million years, water in the form of Glaciers, or
giant sheets of ice, covered New York State several times,
dramatically transforming the land in its path. In this region,
the most recent glacier moved through shallow river valleys
leaving in its place deep, steep-sided troughs. When the
glacier receded(or melted)about 10,000 years ago, water
filled these new troughs, creating the 11 Finger Lakes which
include Seneca Lake. Since then, water from Glen Creek
has flowed over the glacially steepened hillside, eroding
the layers of sedimentary rock. This on-going process has
formed this parks rugged gorge and spectacular waterfalls.
Glen comes from an old Greek word meaning small, narrow,
secluded valley.

People and Watkins Glen

The public has been
marveling at the sculptured
chasm and the nineteen
glistening waterfalls of
Watkins Glen for more
than 150 years. The
gorge was first opened
to the public in 1863
by Morvalden Ells, a
journalist from Elmira.
It was privately owned
and operated as a tourist
resort until the scenic
wonder was purchased by
New York State in 1906. Since
1924, it has been managed by
the Finger Lakes Region of the
New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic
Preservation.To learn more about park geology, ecology and
history, see exhibits along the gorge trail, next to the South
Pavilion, by the Lily Pond and at the top of Couchs Staircase.
Look for programs offered by a park naturalist that explore the
natural and cultural features of the park.
 TO ALL OUR GUESTS
Trails: The park provides a variety of trail
opportunities. Please stay on the designated trails.
Proper footwear for hiking in a variety of conditions will
make your trail visit safer. Bicycles are not allowed on
the trails. Due to varying weather conditions, park trails
can close at any time throughout the year. Do not go on
trails designated as CLOSED. Trails are open from dawn
to dusk.
Pets: Dogs are not allowed on the gorge trail or in
the swimming area. Family pets must be leashed and
attended at all times. Proof of rabies vaccination must
be by Veterinarians certificate-the collar tag will not be
accepted as proof.
Respecting Wildlife: Please do not feed or harass any
wildlife while visiting the park. If you see any wildlife that
appears ill, leave it alone and contact park personnel
immediately. If you come in physical contact with an
animal, report it to a park employee right away.
Swimming Areas: Our lifeguards practice drills daily
to ensure patron safety. Please follow their instructions.
Alcoholic beverages and glass containers of any kind
are not permitted in the swimming area. Swimming is
prohibited in the gorge and other unguarded areas.
No alcoholic beverages are allowed in the gorge.
Firewood: By transporting firewood, you could be
spreading diseases and invasive insects that can
quickly kill large numbers of trees. New York State has
several counties with known forest pest infestations,
and if firewood continues to be transported across the
state, these infestations will rapidly spread. Visit the
NY Department of Conservation Page.
Blading, Boarding and Bicycling Safety:
Safety helmets are required by New York State Law.
Check at the park office for times and locations where
these activities are allowed.

Carry In-Carry Out Parks

Our facilities are designated Carry In-Carry Out.
Please take your trash and recyclables
home with you for proper disposal.
Please do your part and utilize our recycle
bins located throughout the park.
 FACILITIES
While the park is open year-round, some facilities and
activities are only available on a seasonal basis. Please
check with the park office or visit our Web site www.
nysparks.com before arriving at the park.
CAMPING: 54 electric and 241 non-electric sites. Potable
Water available at fill stations, located in the campground
area.
Cabins: 10 cabins
CAMPING RESERVATIONS: Camping and cabin
reservations in NYS parks may be made up to nine months
in advance. Call 1-800-456-CAMP (2267), or online at
www.ReserveAmerica.com.
DAY USE: A vehicle-use fee is in effect when the gorge
is open. Permitted activities are posted in the park office.
Swimming:Swimming permitted only in our Olympic and
Kiddy pools. Various conditions mandate pool operations.
Bathhouse with showers and lockers
Picnic Areas: Tables and grills concessions, Picnic
Pavilions can be reserved 11 months in advance.
Play Fields and Playgrounds - Updated, Multi-Age Play
Structures
Interpretive Walks and Comfort Stations
Trails: Gorge, Indian, South Rim/Finger Lakes Trail/North
County Trail.
 Andrew Cuomo, Governer
Rose Harvey, Commissioner
Fred Bonn, Finger Lakes
Regional Director