Seneca County High Point Trip Report

south county line 400' east of USGS BM 1,633' (1,640 ft)

Date: July 14, 2000
Author: Dan Case

What is probably upstate NY's easiest county highpoint (and maybe the whole state's, as it's the only one that a public road goes right over) can be reached by turning west on West Seneca Road off NY 96 at the Tompkins-Seneca line just north of Trumansburg.

Follow it up an ever-rising series of gentle bumps, past the lands of Finger Lakes National Forest (the country's smallest) about 6.5 miles to the crest of the high ground between Seneca and Cayuga lakes. The road changes to dirt, but never gets too narrow or rough.

Just past the HP, there is a small cemetery on the south side (in Schuyler County) that has parking. The HP itself is the middle of the road, but there is some land along the inside of a fence to the north that may be as high. There is a nice view down toward Seneca Lake and up its valley.

The landscape up here is really different than what I had expected -- the many open pastures have a barren, windswept look I normally associate with the west. Perhaps that's why it's an NF.