Sports and the Outdoors

Taughannock Falls State Park. Taughannock Falls State Park. Stunningly steep shale cliffs and rock surround the 215-foot-high Taughannock Falls, which are 30 feet higher than Niagara Falls. A level ¾-mi path takes you from the parking lot to the falls. Autumn is perhaps the most dramatic time of year to see the gorge, but the waterway is breathtaking any time of year. And, unlike many of the rim trails that surround other Finger Lakes gorges, the trail at the glen's bottom here is open all year. Camping and swimming are allowed in season. The park, which straddles Route 89, has playgrounds, a boat launch, and picnic grounds fronting Cayuga Lake. 1740 Taughannock Blvd. , Trumansburg, New York, 14886. 607/387--6739; parks.ny.gov/parks/62. $8 per car. Daily dawn–dusk.