Ithaca Fall Crawl

July 18, 2021

We’ve lucked out again and have stumbled into an excellent time to be taking a multi-night stay. We had planned on staying three nights in Ithaca, just because Ithaca is Ithaca. It’s working out especially well for us though because we’re staring at another rainy day today. We’d be pretty unhappy if we were trying to break camp and bike north to Auburn this morning, which we won’t be doing until Tuesday instead. In fact, even taking a day ride somewhere looks unpleasant. But Nyah, Nyah, Nyah to the weather gods, we don’t have to. We can just sit around our comfortable motel room if we so choose.

Or we can go for a walk and see what Ithaca has to offer. “Ithaca is Gorges” as the local saying goes, so we map out a walking route to sample the many waterfalls that are right in town and within easy walking distance if you don’t take into account all the the hills and stairs. I whip out a six mile hike that walks up Cascadilla Gorge with its eight waterfalls, crosses the Cornell Campus, and walks back down Falls Creek past its five waterfalls before returning to our room. Now, all we need is a reasonable break in the weather.

We get one right away. It’s supposed to stay dry until about eleven but then rain for the rest of the day, so after breakfast we leave the room and head for Cascadilla Gorge. Twenty minutes later, it starts raining.

Before we give up and head back to the room though, we make it up Cascadilla Gorge far enough to be suitably impressed. It’s a beautiful waterway with one waterfall or rapid after another. There’s a fine trail beside it that serves as a back route from downtown to the Cornell campus, up on top of the hill a few hundred feet above downtown.

On the Cascadilla Trail. The creek is really raging, and the water is just below trail level. For much of the trail there is no railing at all so you need to pay attention if you don’t want to get washed away.

Unfortunately we are only able to see about the lower third of the trail - not because of today’s rain but because it’s barricaded below the Stewart Street Bridge. Beyond that the signs say it’s too dangerous to continue with too much chance of getting brained by falling rocks. We double back to the beginning of the trail and walk up the detour route through the Cornell campus, but before long the showers turn to rain and we decide to just head back to the room.

On the Cascadilla Teail, looking upstream past the spot that the trail is barricaded for safety reasons.

There are any number of impressive and elegant houses in Ithaca, but for some reason I was attracted to these isolated, dead ivy roots. It reminds me of Chinese characters.

Four wet hours later and the day dries out again, this time for good. There’s still time so we set out on our interrupted fall crawl again, but this time in reverse to pick up the ones along Fall Creek that we missed the first time. Fall Creek feels sort of like Watkins Glen, if a city hadn’t grown up alongside it or if it were possible to build a creekside trail beside it. I think the terrain might be too rugged though, or the cliffs too hazardous and crumbling. You can walk right up to the base of Ithaca Falls, the giant final cascade spewing out the mouth of the gorge. But the others upstream are somewhat less accessible. You can get glimpses of them below from the rim trails, or climb back down to their bases and back up again at a few points, but in general the best views are from the series of bridges that span the gorge.

It’s a great experience though, and it’s amazing to have these spectacular features right at your doorstep. And I have to grudgingly admit that it’s even neater than having your very own volcano tucked inside your city limits, as Portland does.

And then there’s that sprawling university up there on the hill blanketing the high ground between the two cascading creeks, its spectacular ivied halls and elegant green spaces towering above the city. There’s a lot to like here. Ithaca looks like it would be a beautiful place to call home for awhile.

Admiring the crumbling creekside strata.

The Stewart Street Bridge. Well, one of the Stewart Street Bridges. It has a twin a half mile to the south spanning Cascadilla Gorge.

The view down Rock Creek from the Stewart Street Bridge. Ahead is the crest of Ithaca Falls, and in the distance is the south end of Cayuga Lake.

Looking upstream from the Stewart Street Bridge. Ahead is Horseshoe Falls, and in the distance the suspension bridge.

There’s a steep stone staircase leading down to the base of Horseshoe Falls. A 108 step staircase. Worth it.

Looking down from the suspension bridge.

From the Thurston Avenue Bridge, we get the best view of Triphammer Falls.

From the Triphammer Footbridge - Beebe Pond and the beginning of Triphammer Falls.

The College of Architecture. A fantastic building with two enormous wings that we’re only seeing about half of here.

Such an interesting bronze. Le Chant does Voyelles (Song of the Vowels), by the Lithuanian sculptor Jacques Lipchitz, 1932.

Lyon and McFaddin Halls, connected by a cloister.

The cloister is a war memorial. Its walls are lined with panels of the names of the students, alumni and faculty killed during World War I.

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Gregory GarceauIt's got suspension bridges and trails.
It's got scenery that never fails.
Up on the hill sits beautiful Cornell,
Blessed with prestige and a magical spell,
But Ithaca is Ithaca
'Cuz those falls are no mythica.
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2 years ago

Susan CarpenterHello Scott
Glad that you and Rachael are liking Ithaca. I've found it a wonderful and stimulating place for short and longer term visits. The rain may dampen biking but it makes for wonderful cascading falls. Looking forward to reading more of your Empire State adventures.
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2 years ago

Jen RahnTo Gregory GarceauBravo!

A gold star for rhyming with Ithaca!!
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2 years ago

Gregory GarceauTo Jen RahnThanks for the praise, Mrs. Grumby, even though I had to take some Adam Sandler-like liberties with my rhyming. ("So drink your gin & tonic-ah / And smoke your marijuana-ca / If you really, really wanna-ca / Have a happy, happy Hanukkah.")
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2 years ago

Scott AndersonTo Susan CarpenterIt’s a pretty exceptional place, alright - great cycling great hiking, and I imagine we’d find the culture pretty attractive too if we came back for a longer visit someday.
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2 years ago

Bob DistelbergSay, maybe you guys should consider western NY when/if you decide to settle down again. Then again, you might have a somewhat different opinion of the area if you were to visit in January. Those lake effect snowstorms can be pretty impressive.
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2 years ago

Scott AndersonTo Bob DistelbergStranger things have happened. There have been dinner discussions along this line already. If the winters get too bad we can always head south to Mississippi or Alabama.
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2 years ago

Scott AndersonTo Gregory GarceauIthaca / mythica? Terrifica!
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2 years ago

Rachael AndersonTo Scott AndersonNix to Mississippi or Alabama! We could go back to Tucson.
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2 years ago

Keith KleinHi Scott and Rachel,
Ithaca is where I would have retired if I’d never seen Burgundy. What an idyllic setting, especially in summer. Of course as a native up- stater, I could not help but think of Cornell, which has some lovely architecture. Sailing on the lake or ice- boating in winter would complement cycling nicely.
Cheers,
Keith
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2 years ago