Nature Oriented Day Trips
Celebrate Mom with Mother Nature

By Carol Fisher-Linn

    Forget the Mother’s Day Flowers and candy. Take mom on a day trip. Always check if fur-friends are welcome. Some places may not allow, especially nature preserves.

• Niagara Falls from another angle. Niagara Falls is the dramatic apex of the free-flowing thundering waters of four of the Great Lakes into the Niagara River Gorge. But have you been to and experienced the Cave of the Winds at Niagara Falls State Park? Here is where you can walk UNDER the falls on the Hurricane Deck. Tickets can be purchased at the Cave of the Winds on Goat Island or the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Welcome Center. It is a timed attraction – reservations are required. An elevator takes you from the area between the American and Canadian Falls down to the level of the Niagara River at the base of the American Falls. A series of redwood decks and platforms allow sightseers to walk right up to the base of the Bridal Veil Falls with water crashing down right on them and flowing beneath the decking. Future Queen Elizabeth visited in early 50’s, so why not take your Queen Mum? PS: The Maid of the Mist tours are open for the season.

  

    Bonus: Niagara Falls State Park is a Frederick Law Olmstead Park. Olmstead designed New York City’s Central Park, Buffalo’s Delaware Park and Buffalo’s park system. He believed that parks should be places of natural beauty, where “the masses could be renewed.” This philosophy was applied throughout Olmsted’s landscape design for Niagara Falls State Park, with an entire network of footpaths through wooded areas and along the banks of the Niagara River. Go to Buffaloparks.org and discover the many Buffalo tours available for the Olmstead Park system.

• Montezuma Wildlife Refuge – a globally renowned place for birding and wildlife photography. 3395 US Route 20 East, Seneca Falls, NY holds 10,000 acres plus 10,000 more acres of neighboring state land. The first NYS site for the restoration of bald eagles in the 1970’s. Plenty of trails to walk and a three-mile drive on Wildlife Drive to spot wildlife and eagles. There is a cellphone tour available. Visitor Center is open 8am-3pm.Best times to visit for sightings is dawn to midmorning or late afternoon to dark. They can be reached at (315) 568-5987
• Reinstein Woods, located at 93 Honorine Drive, Depew, NY is named after The Woods founder, Dr. Victor Reinstein, the 244-acre preserve is one of only seven nature preserves protected by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Visitor Center is open M-F 9:30am-4:30pm, Saturday, 1-4:30pm, closed Sundays and state holidays. However, trails are always open dawn to dusk, and restrooms are available 8am-8pm. (Reinsteinwoods.org)

   PS: I was privileged to spend many childhood and teen year in The Woods with Dr. Reinstein and family. Worth the visit. Stay on the paths, no pets, and don’t disturb the old growth. It’s a protected nature sanctuary. They can be reached at (716) 683-5959.

    Other day trips to consider:

• Erie County Botanical Gardens on 2655 South Park avenue in Buffalo. Open daily from 10am-4pm, these gardens are the product of landscaping architect Frederick Law Olmsted, glass-house architects Lord & Burnham, and botanist and plant-explorer John F. Cowell.
• Sonnenberg Gardens, Canandaigua, NY. Selected as one of “America’s Castles” by the Arts and Entertainment Network. This Victorian garden covers fifty acres and features nine formal gardens, sculptures, fountains, a restored 40-room 1887 mansion, arboretum, greenhouse, restaurant and two gift shops. 2 hours from Ellicottville. 250 Gibson St. Canandaigua 585-394-4922. Open daily 9-5. www.sonnenberg.org. Mother’s Day special – Mom’s $5.
• Watkins Glen State Park, Watkins Glen, NY. 2hrs 40 minutes from Ellicottville. Retreating glaciers cut the Genesee Country mercilessly, leaving behind breathtaking gorges like Watkins Glen, a rugged chasm remarkable for its varied plant life and breathtaking topography. Walking trails take visitors past ancient rock laid down for thousands of generations. An ancient stream meanders through the gorge, falling from high and low heights creating waterfalls of all sizes and intensities. They can be reached at (607) 535-4511.

  

    Don’t have a whole day? How about a visit to one of these and a nice lunch afterward?

• Zoar Valley/Deer Lick Nature Sanctuary: due to its relatively undisturbed state and unique array of species, the Zoar Valley has been named the top conservation priority among Lake Erie’s gorges.They can be reached at (716) 546-8030. Ext. 29
• Nannen Arboretum, Ellicottville, Cattaraugus County flourishes with trees, herbs, flowers and a Japanese stone garden flourish at the Nannen Arboretum in Ellicottville, Cattaraugus County. (716) 699-2377

   • Roger Tory Peterson Institute, Jamestown, Chautauqua County contains a butterfly garden, trails, wildlife art and nature photography abound on 27 acres at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute in Jamestown, Chautauqua County. 716-665-2473 Another pretty spot is the Jamestown Audubon Nature Center, a 600-acre nature sanctuary with 5 miles of nature trails and an interpretive building with nature exhibits. 716-569-2345.