Two hours of walking, nineteen waterfalls. That's the pitch at Watkins Glen State Park, and it's a fair one. The park sits at the southern tip of Seneca Lake in New York's Finger Lakes region and has been pulling in visitors since the early 1800s — the gorge became a state park back in 1863, and generations of trail-builders have made its cliffs and cascades easy to reach on foot.

The centrepiece is the Gorge Trail, a route that winds past waterfalls, mossy stone and dense green forest, usually taking one to two hours to walk. It's not a tough hike, but the path stays damp and sometimes muddy, so waterproof footwear is worth packing. Along the way you'll climb Art Deco-inspired stone staircases and pass through a hand-carved spiral tunnel — quirky touches you don't expect on a nature walk.

Two stops deserve extra time. The Suspension Bridge delivers the best panoramic view over the falls, though it fills up late morning through early afternoon, especially on warm-weather weekends. Go early or at dusk for a quieter look. Then there's Cavern Cascade, a waterfall you can walk behind via the Spiral Tunnel — standing in its cool spray on a hot summer day is the moment most people remember.

If you have a car, add a detour to Hector Falls on Seneca Lake just north of the park. Water spills over a wide, tiered rock formation often compared to a layered wedding cake, and there's a lookout point where you can park and take it in. Many call it one of the most photogenic waterfalls in New York State.

Practicalities are straightforward. The Gorge Trail runs seasonally, roughly May to October depending on weather, with the 2026 season set to open on May 9; the park itself is open dawn to dusk year-round. Entry costs $10 per vehicle, collected from mid-May to mid-October, and a seasonal shuttle runs at $6 per person each way if you'd rather not hike back up. Ranger-led gorge tours last about an hour and a half. Note that dogs aren't allowed on the Gorge Trail.

Yes, Watkins Glen gets busy — it's one of the most-visited spots in the Finger Lakes. But the crowds come for a reason, and with an early start on a weekday you can have the gorge's best angles largely to yourself. It fits neatly into a Finger Lakes road trip, paired with wine tasting around Seneca Lake or lake towns like Ithaca and Geneva.

For anyone wanting a genuinely spectacular hike without committing a full day to it, this is about as good as short trails get in the eastern US.