Letchworth State Park

Back in Mid-September DH and I decided to take a day trip to Letchworth State Park.  Eventho I grew up in and around Western New York I never visited Letchworth.  Come to find out, I used to live about an hour away from it!  People from the Buffalo/Niagara Falls area joke that locals don't visit The Falls (or more specifically ride on The Maid of The Mist) until after we move from the area.  I guess the same could be said of Letchworth State Park.

These first two photos are part of the Glen Iris Inn at Letchworth State Park.  It was formerly the estate of William Pryor Letchworth and has been a country inn since 1914.  It overlooks the Middle Falls on the Gennessee River and overlooks Letchworth. 

Before I start posting the waterfall photos I wanted to make special mention of this area within Letchworth.  It's called Tea Table Rock area.  It's located in the Wolf Creek section of the park and named for the unusual rock formation.  In the 1920's, photographs of the scenic area were said to show the 'table' high on the edge of the cliff.  As for this specific photo that I took this is one of the many picnic areas of Tea Table.  It was an open-air pavilion.  There was a back wall with a fireplace and chimney.  The two sides were somewhat enclosed but had window frames that were cut out much like you see on this back wall...other parts of the sides had half walls that were about hip-high or so.  Where I was standing - taking the photo - that entrance side was open and exposed.  I think it was a great way for people to huddle to get away from the elements but still have open air for the nature lovers.  It looked VERY old and really took me back to a different time.

Here is a photo of some of the cliffs they were referring to.  When we went in mid-September, the leaves had yet to change...as you can see here.  It was still an amazing sight to see, tho!

I tried to take as many photos as I could before DH's patience ran thin.  There is a lower falls, middle falls, and upper falls.  The Middle Falls was the largest.  We mistakenly thought that was the Upper Falls and didn't actually make it up to the top.  I know we have to go back at some point so when we do I will report back and hopefully have more photos of that waterfall.

I know it's hard to see, but close to the middle of this photo, there is a small bridge that you can walk over.  We didn't make it over to the other side so I didn't get any photos from that area.  Again, I hope to go back and explore it more!

Here is a closer look at one of the bridges.  It's a little grainy because I zoomed in as much as I could.  Again, we didn't make it over to that side or else I would have gotten a better snapshot.

Here's another angle of the gorge area.  And another one of the many cliffs.  Overall, Letchworth State Park is nearly 14,500 acres and about 17 miles long.  It's about a 35 mile drive from Rochester and a 60 mile drive from Buffalo.

I was able to get more photos of the Middle Falls when we went.  Here is one as we were approaching.  In the upper right-hand corner, (which is actually the Portage Viaduct), you can see what looks like a bridge and/or railroad bridge way type structure or skywalk.  That area is where the Upper Falls is.

As we continued to walk, we could feel the mist of the falls.  The stone surrounding everything was truly amazing!  It was a bit windy that day and because we arrived earlier in the day it wasn't too busy YET and was a tad chilly.

I've always LOVED waterfalls!  When I saw how massive the Middle Falls were I knew I had to take as many pictures as possible!  I'm bummed we didn't make it to the Upper Falls that day.  Letchworth State Park is also known as the "Grand Canyon of the East".

Here's a side-shot of the Middle Falls.  I read that as many as 50 waterfalls found on tributaries that flow into Gennessee River.  In some places, the rock walls are over 550 feet high!  I had a lot of fun that day and can't wait to go back!