Historical Spot: Historical Information
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Brighton Memorial Library – Children’s Literary Garden
Location: Brighton, NY This super short paved garden trail is located just next to the Brighton Memorial Library. The path starts out with several wooden archways and is lined with literary quotes related to gardens and wonder. There is a bench, a small fairy garden, and a memorial. Around the other side of the library… Read more
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Butterfly Nature Trail at Macedon Canal Park
Location: Macedon, NY This unique trail located 25 minutes southeast of Rochester is considered a “Forever Wild for Everyone Trail”. Along this accessible, stone dust trail there are numerous things to look at including informational signs about birds and butterflies, gardens, fairy houses, benches, painted rocks, and some old relics and info about the history… Read more
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Ellwanger & Barry Park
Location: Rochester, NY This small park is located southeast quadrant of the city of Rochester, NY. There is a large sandbox, a field, and two playgrounds where neighbors have brought toys for children to enjoy. There is a very short paved loop path which is great for kids. The park has benches, picnic tables, a… Read more
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Ganondagan – Granary Trail at Fort Hill
Location: Victor, NY Note: There is hunting allowed at Ganondagan. Do your research before visiting these hiking trails and take safety precautions. Ganondagan, located 25 minutes south of Rochester, is the original site of a 17th century Seneca town. Today, it is home to the Ganondagan State Historic Site and miles of beautiful trails. The… Read more
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Genesee Country Village & Museum – Historic Village
Location: Mumford, NY GCV&M is located 30 minutes west of Rochester, NY. It is the largest living history museum in New York State spanning 600 acres. The village and museum offer an immersive experience of 19th-century American life. It features 68 relocated and restored buildings from the Genesee Valley region, representing three time periods: Pioneer… Read more
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Great Embankment Park
Location: Pittsford, NY This park is located along the Erie Canal 15 minutes east of Rochester, NY. We parked in the lot by the bathrooms and walked up the steep, gravel path to play on the really nice playground! We then continued along the stone dust path to the canal and walked along the stone… Read more
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Grimes Glen Park
Location: Naples, NY This beautiful waterfall hike is located 1 hour south of Rochester, NY. There is a wooden bridge and dirt trail along the creek at the beginning of the hike, but when it became steep and sketchy we went down and walked through the creek instead. It was helpful to have solid, grippy… Read more
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Hamburg Clock Tower
Location: Hamburg, NY This clock tower on the shore of Lake Erie is located near Buffalo, just over 1 hour west of Rochester. We stopped here to park and stretch our legs on a drive and enjoyed the beautiful lake views and the informative historical signs. There were a few benches and a paved deck,… Read more
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Honeoye Falls
Location: Honeoye Falls, NY We visited this beautiful and accessible waterfall located 25 minutes south of Rochester, NY. We parked in the lot next to the Mendon Town Clerk (also shown as Vest Pocket Park on Google Maps). From there, you can walk right up to the viewing platform next to the building overlooking the… Read more
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Krull Park
Location: Olcott, NY This park is located on the shore of Lake Ontario, 1.5 hours west of Rochester, NY. It’s a lovely view with the lake down below, with many benches and picnic tables as well as an observation deck overlooking the water. There are many shady trees, restrooms, pavilions, and tic tac toe shelters.… Read more
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Lock 32 Canal Park
Location: Pittsford, NY This park is located 10 minutes east of Rochester, NY. This is a beautiful spot to access the Erie Canalway Trail for a stroll along the canal. There are benches and informational signs near the parking lot. If you walk west along the canal, you will pass by the historic lock 32… Read more
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Mohawk Valley Gateway Overlook
Location: Amsterdam, NY This overlook is located 3 hours east of Rochester, NY. A paved walking path leads to a bridge with beautiful views over the Mohawk River. There are beautiful flowers in the summer, benches, artwork, historical information, and more. According to the official website, the MVGO bridge is open from Spring until the… Read more
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Onondaga Lake Park – Salt Museum
Location: Liverpool, NY This museum is located at Onondaga Lake Park – just over an hour east of Rochester, NY on the shore of Onondaga Lake near Syracuse. The museum contains exhibits and artifacts about the history of the salt industry of Syracuse. The building was constructed from timbers taken from actual salt warehouses! Trail… Read more
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Pratt’s Falls County Park
Location: Pompey, NY This beautiful park features a waterfall and pond and is located near Syracuse, roughly 2 hours east of Rochester, NY. This park features a 137 foot waterfall and is the site of Onondaga County’s first mill operation in 1796. We wandered around the beautiful ponds, checked out the accessible viewpoint over the… Read more
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Veterans Memorial Park (Rush)
Location: Rush, NY This small park is located 20 minutes south of Rochester, NY. There are no trails in this park but there is a veterans memorial, gazebo, and you can walk down the grass for two viewing platforms of Honeoye Creek and the small waterfall over the dam. The dam was once part of… Read more
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Vitale Park
Location: Lakeville, NY This is a lovely lakeside park located 30 minutes south of Rochester. There are two parking lots: a gravel lot on the west side of the park and a larger paved lot near the playground on the east side. Vitale park has two paved loops that connect by the “Freedom Bridge”. My… Read more