We are planning a summer trip up there with a bounch of boats what are some places to go to by boat. We plan on launching in Seneca and going to cagua so.

All the Finger Lakes are beautiful. You won't be disappointed. We've boated on all of them but prefer Keuka.

ah yes, finger lakes are amazing, Seneca lake offers some sweet spots, there are several hotels on the water, Ramada is very nice, less nice but very nostalgic is the showboat, also Bellhurst Castle, there is a marina right at Watkins Glen the town is right there for walking around etc, some local will need to chime in but i believe there are several wineries to visit that are boat accessible, Sampson state park also offers transient docking if u plan on staying on boats, I think I heard they have cabins but u will have to check, best part about Seneca lake is 600 feet of water = not much to worry about, worst part about Seneca is there are warm spots, again locals will have to chime in, but at 600ft its not the warmest lake,

Cayuga I am not real familiar with, but boated it once 2 years ago, and it was equally as beautiful, only hit two establishments as we were following, not sure how much more there is, heard of some nice sand bars up north end, again contact a local, I'd try Kelly O, hes the king on that lake, keep in mind you will be within a hour or two of 1000 islands, also if traveling through Buffalo and wish to check it out I'm "local" LOL

Hahaha Sam, king........not so sure about that but it is our home waters. Starting with Seneca Lake, you may wish to contact Wellcrafted here on OSO since that is his home waters. He will probably see this thread and chime in, also use search function for Seneca as lots of info has been shared in past.

If planning to travel from Seneca over to Cayuga by boat through the canal system, plan on 2.5 hrs each way. There are two locks to pass through- one is a double; (three day passes are around $10 bought from lockmaster). You can run on plane about 1/3 of the distance(where there are no docks or other boats/kayaks/etc.), the rest is no wake idle zones through towns or past homes with docks. It is a great experience, as long as your boats idle fine.

Cayuga has multiple wineries with docks to visit by boat, as well as several restaurants with docks to enjoy. The big hangout on Cayuga is Sandy Cove towards the north end at Union Springs. If launching on Cayuga there are a few options, will just depend on best fit for your travel plans. Cayuga does not have as many waterside lodging options as Seneca, as it is limited to bed & breakfasts or full service marina transient slips.

Keep us updated of your plans, hopefully your visit happens when we are not traveling for an event elsewhere. Would love to meet up to assist any way possible and join in on the fun.

Thanks guys for the input, we boat in the Chesapeake and looking to do a group run to one of the lakes. Is there anything to do by boat in Ithaca . We visited Senca for a poker run years back, and it is a pretty lake. We also stopped at the castle for drinks and that was a very cool place. We want to come up for three solid days to boat and want to explore but also don't want to be bored.

When are you going? There is a great Poker Run (Battleship Run) in July.

Padraig

If you're bringing a bunch of boats up to the Finger Lakes, you'll probably want to stick to the bigger lakes. Seneca and Cayuga are the biggest, then (working to the west) you get Keuka and Canandaigua. I work at a marina on Canandaigua. Let me see if I can describe each of those four for you.

Cayuga: The eastern most lake and fairly long and wide. It does get pretty shallow at the north end where there is also a canal that leads to Seneca Lake. (These are the only two lakes that are connected by a canal you can drive your boat down.) I don't know much about this lake since I've done the least boating there. I'll leave it up to somebody more familiar with it to fill in the details.

Seneca: Just west of Cayuga and very deep - and thus warms up slowly. No speed limits and plenty of room to run about anything you can think of. There is a US Navy facility anchored smack dab in the middle of the lake that you want to stay away from, but there's lots of room around it. The city of Geneva is at the north end of the lake and Watkins Glen is at the south end. As has already been mentioned, there are at least 3 hotels on the water front. I'm partial to the Rainbow Cove Hotel because it's a little quieter. They do have docks and plenty of room to park your trucks and trailers. Lots of places to eat and drink on the water or a short drive from it. The worst water you'll ever see on this lake is probably 3-5's and a really, really bad day. Most days however you can find shelter along one shore or the other of the lake. Good launch facilities scattered around the lake. I highly recommend the Rochester Offshore Powerboat Association's Battleship Run in mid-July if you want to have some fun with other high performance boaters. You might want to book well in advance if you want to stay at The Showboat or Rainbow Cove though. They routinely sell out on the weekend of the run.

Keuka: Quite possibly the most beautiful Finger Lake and the only one shaped like the letter "Y." Quite a bit smaller than Cayuga or Seneca. The city of Penn Yan is on one north tip, the town of Branchport is at the other north tip and Hammondsport is at the south tip. There's a State Park with a great launch ramp near Branchport. Do not use the public ramp in Penn Yan unless you want a long, sometimes shallow 5 MPH cruise to open water. One thing missing on this particular lake is a good spot to anchor and swim. But, if you don't mind drifting in crystal clear water, you can swim there. There are a number of places to eat and drink right on the water and even more a short drive away. There are no hotels on the water, but one seasonal motel is on the water. The worst water you will see here are 2-4's. But, there are more places to hide from it on this lake. There is a 45 MPH speed limit on this lake.

Canandaigua: About 21 miles long and maybe 120 feet deep at the deepest point. Home of the most expensive lakefront property in the US. (It's true.) A nice public launch facility at the north end of the lake, but watch out on weekends because it gets crowded. There's a hotel and bar right on the water at the north end (right next to our marina) and a great place to anchor, swim and enjoy life (Kershaw Park) right next door. The lake is very clean and warms up early. There is however a 45 MPH speed limit. If you head further south, the lake opens up and gets much less crowded, but there's less to do. This lake and Keuka do get more crowded than the first two on weekends.

There, I think that hits a few high points. Hope that helps!

Tom

Can anyone recommend a nice marina in Ithaca that we can walk to a hotel and bars.
Too Stroked thanks for the info.

http://nysparks.com/parks/35/details.aspx

Treman Marine Park has fantastic facilities and I believe some transient docking. There are a couple of restaurants like the Boatyard and The Farmers Market but kinda long walks. Better off boating across the river to either. The Commons area downtown where most of the restaurants and bars are is definitely a long hike no matter what dockage you find. The Commons area is more of a short taxi ride. There's also a good bar called The Haunt that is accessible by boat but I'd be very careful because it gets shallow really quick and they have pilings, not docks to tie up to. I've seen some shallow draft deck boats and small Bayliner types in there.