Ithaca, New York’s tourism promoters like to play with words and tell is that “Ithaca is Gorges.” They can be forgiven the pun, because the path of Cascadilla Creek through the city fits both the literal and the wordplay.
An inviting way in, at near the midpoint of the gorge.
Unlike the steep drop of nearby Ithaca Falls, Cascadilla Creek drops mostly in small increments, creating shallow pools and interesting views
Last summer, while touring the Finger Lakes, my daughter, my grand-dog and I spent a pleasant morning exploring Cascadilla Gorge, its course from the hills “High above Cayuga’s waters.” as the Cornell University alma mater says down to Cayuga Lake.
I was briefly tempted to follow these students ‘off-trail’ and into the water…
The gorge is often described in brochures and articles as “connecting the Cornell campus to downtown Ithaca,” as if it were built for the purpose, and not carved out by nature.
We were spared meeting them, but it was a little un-nerving because the sign didn’t tell us where they were or what to do about them…
Today, the land in the gorge is owned by Cornell University as part of its Botanic Gardens, which used to be called the Cornell Plantations. You won’t be surprised to imagine why the name was changed, but you might be surprised to hear that the university administration debated the issue for ten years before making a decision.
But while the campus and downtown Ithaca are relative newcomers, the gorge has a history of around two million years; it was formed by the retreating glaciers that also created the Finger Lakes.
Further up, the gorge narrows a bit, and there are several steeper drops
More recently, in the 17th and 18th centuries, the area was home to Iroquois peoples, who had a seasonal hunting camp at the base of the gorge. That era came to an end when most of the Iroquois nations sided with the British in the American Revolution, and were driven off the land when it ended.
The first white settlers showed up after that, and Ithaca’s life began at the base of the gorge; by 1791 several mills had been built along Cascadilla Gorge, although it never became as heavily industrialized as nearby Ithaca Falls.
Hanging on for dear life: A tree with a decidedly tenuous and tenacious grip on the earth.
Cornell and the gorges have a number of connections: Ezra Cornell, the founder, made his money first building mills and waterways for others along the gorges, and then owning his own. His first project was in Cascadilla Creek, working for Otis Eddy. Not all his money came from these projects, though: the big money came from owning a quarter-share in Morse’s telegraph patent.
The falls were a new experience for Luna. At several points she headed into the stream to investigate, but we were unwilling to follow…
The trail through Cascadilla Gorge is a fairly easy one; the only significant steep part was the staircase leading us out of the gorge near the top, and even that could have been avoided if we had continued to the end, where the trail comes out of the gorge and into level land.
If you decide to try the trail, allow a couple of hours; there are lots of pleasant spots to stop for a bit, and even picnic. Street parking at the point we started wasn’t hard, but limited; at the downtown end is within blocks of plenty of parking.
