The Finger Lakes Trail consists of a network of trails in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. The trail system is administered by th
Finger Lakes Trail Conference
(FLTC), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, composed primarily of volunteers.

Description

The FLT is primarily designated as a footpath only trail. The main trail (FLT) is 584 miles (939.9 km) long and extends from the

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

border from

Allegany State Park Allegany State Park is a state park in western New York State, located in Cattaraugus County just north of the Allegheny National Forest in Pennsylvania. The park is divided into two sections: The Red House Area and the Quaker Run Area. It lie ...

in southwestern New York to the

Catskill Forest Preserve New York's Forest Preserve, comprises almost all the lands owned by the state of New York within the Adirondack and Catskill parks. It is managed by the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). , the Forest Preserve covers nearl ...

in eastern New York. There is an additional 400+ miles (643+ km) of branch and loop segments that branch off the main FLT—six branch trails and several loop and side trails. The FLT is part of the 4,600 mile

North Country National Scenic Trail The North Country National Scenic Trail, generally known as the North Country Trail or simply the NCT, is a footpath stretching over from Middlebury in central Vermont to Lake Sakakawea State Park in central North Dakota in the United States; ...

(NCNST) and affiliates with the North Country Trail Association as a partner organization. The NCNST uses approximately 424 miles of the FLT as it crosses New York from Allegany State Park and into Madison County. The Trail System passes over a mixture of public and private land, and also public roads where there is no public or private land available. The main FLT crosses through many New York state parks, state forests and wildlife management areas. The FLT also crosses through the only national forest in New York State and over an additional 400 private landowners property. It is maintained by volunteers from 15 organizations and approximately 60 individual and family trail sponsors, except for personnel of the NYSDEC Operations Crew who maintain the trail in the Catskills. The

US Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...

maintains the Interloken Trail in the Finger Lakes National Forest. The highest elevation on the entire FLT is ~4,200 feet, at the summit of

Slide Mountain (Ulster County, New York) Slide Mountain is the highest mountain, peak in the Catskill Mountains of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located in the Town (New York), town of Shandaken, New York, Shandaken in Ulster County, New York, Ulster County. While ...

in the

Catskills The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined as those areas cl ...

. The lowest elevation is 430' where the FLT crosses the Cayuga Inlet near

Ithaca, NY Ithaca is a city in the Finger Lakes region of New York, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Cayuga Lake, Ithaca is the seat of Tompkins County and the largest community in the Ithaca metropolitan statistical area. It is named a ...

. There are also five fire towers located along or near the trail. The first is the abandoned Mt. Tuscarora Fire Tower in Allegany State Park. The second is the Sugar Hill Fire Tower outside Watkins Glen State Park. The Berry Hill Fire Tower is located outside Bowman Lake State Park. The fourth is the Balsam Lake Mountain Fire Tower and the fifth is the Rock Rift Fire Tower. As of January 1st, 2022 the Finger Lakes Trail main trail has been complete
515 times
(including continuous and section hikes). Joe Dabes ("Java Joe") has hiked the entire trail ten times. Frank Bianco's second of four hikes was completed in a continuous 24 days on June 26, 1997, when the trail was shorter than its current length. The six branch trails have all been complete
134 times
as of Jan 1, 2022. On August 3, 2015, Heather Housekeeper ("Botannical Hiker") completed the first continuous hike of the main trail and all branch trails, in 62 days. When using the trail, it is important to know whether the portion you are using is on private or public land and the rules applicable to that particular portion. Howard_NY_Finger_Lakes_Trail

Those portions of the trail that pass over private lands are subject to rules established by the Finger Lakes Trail Conference ("FLTC") as negotiated with the private land owners. The portions of the trail that pass over public lands are subject to the laws and rules of the political entity that owns the public land. For example, the portions of the trail that are in Allegany State Park are subject to the rules of the

New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (NYS OPRHP) is a state agency within the New York State Executive Department Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Law § 3.03. "The office of parks, recreation a ...

("NYS OPRHP"). The portions of the trail that pass through New York State forests and New York State

reforestation Reforestation (occasionally, reafforestation) is the natural or intentional restocking of existing forests and woodlands (forestation) that have been depleted, usually through deforestation, but also after clearcutting. Management A debate ...

areas are subject to the rules of the

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (informally referred to as NYSDEC, DEC, EnCon or NYSENCON) is a department of New York state government. The department guides and regulates the conservation, improvement, and protection ...

("NYS DEC"). The portions of the trail that pass over county owned lands are subject to the rules of the particular county. This multi-jurisdiction can create a good deal of confusion. For example, there are some designated camping spots ("bivouac" areas and lean-tos) on both private and public lands. On private lands camping is allowed only in specifically designated locations. In some state parks camping is allowed anywhere on or near the trail that is not visible from a road. In other state parks, camping is allowed only in designated camping areas along the trail. On the portions of the trail that pass over New York State forests and New York State reforestation areas camping is anywhere that is at least 150 feet from any trail, road, and water source. Likewise, mountain biking is generally prohibited by the FLTC. In state parks, mountain biking is allowed only if specifically designated by the NYS OPRHP. In state forest and reforestation areas, mountain biking is allowed unless the NYS DEC has specifically posted otherwise. Similar disparate rules apply to possession of firearms, both long guns and licensed handguns. Portions of the trail that pass over private lands are closed during various hunting season (fall turkey season, fall big game season, and spring turkey season.) The portions of the trail that pass over public lands are generally open all year long including public lands on which hunting is allowed. Finger_Lakes_Trail_marker

The FLTC sell
detailed maps
that specify the portions of the trail on public and private lands, and the portions of the trail that are closed during various hunting seasons.

Branch trails

The following trails branch from the main trail: *Conservation Trail - 183.0 miles (294.5 km) - Allegany State Park to Niagara Falls State Park (65 miles (104.6 km) overlaps FLT Main Trail). 0.9 miles (1.4 km) overlaps the

Pat McGee Trail The Pat McGee Trail is a rail trail in Cattaraugus County, New York, United States, named for Patricia McGee (1934-2005). Background Pat McGee was an area legislator of Cattaraugus County who lived in Franklinville, New York, Mid State Trail at PA border. Part of

Great Eastern Trail The Great Eastern Trail is a network of hiking trails forming a long-distance route in the eastern United States. North of Georgia, the route runs parallel to, and slightly to the west of, the Appalachian Trail. As of 2022, it is still under deve ...

*Interloken Trail - 12.0 miles (19.3 km) - Finger Lakes National Forest, Hector, NY *Onondaga Trail - 42.8 miles (68.9 km) - Cuyler, NY to Erieville, NY. Part of

References

External links

Finger Lakes Trail Conference
{{Authority control Hiking trails in New York (state) Long-distance trails in the United States