Museum of the Earth
Two million years of glacial history told in stone
The Museum of the Earth is operated by the Paleontological Research Institution, affiliated with Cornell University, and covers 540 million years of Earth history with particular depth on the Devonian period: the same geological era whose shale layers are exposed in Ithaca's gorges and form the hillside soils along the wine trail. The museum explains why the Finger Lakes look the way they do: glacial advance, glacial retreat, the plunge pools and shale cuts that produced the gorge system. The 40-foot right whale skeleton in the main hall is one of the most complete in the country. The Cayuga Nature Center, with resident animals and exhibits on lake ecology and climate change, occupies an adjacent building. Open Thursday through Monday; admission charged.
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Aurora Brewing Co
Food Drink
A Cayuga Lake brewery and restaurant in King Ferry with a deck overlooking the water, hay fields, and vineyards, plus outposts in Rochester and Syracuse.
Buttonwood Grove Winery
Food Drink
Estate lakeside tasting room with cabins on the property
Cayuga Ridge Estate Winery
Food Drink
A founding member, a gothic barn, and The Copper Oven pizza
Hosmer Winery
Food Drink
70-acre sustainable estate on the western shore
Lucas Vineyards
Wine
Lucas Vineyards is a winery located in Interlaken, Seneca County, featured on the Cayuga Lake Wine Trail.
Sheldrake Point Winery
Food Drink
Gold Coast limestone soils, dock parking available
Thirsty Owl Wine Company
Food Drink
Walk-in and boat-accessible, with an on-site bistro
Seneca Shore Wine Cellars
Food Drink
The winery that sold its grapes to other Finger Lakes producers for 19 years before deciding to bottle the Gold Medal Riesling itself.
Anthony Road Wine Company
Food Drink
The Martini family's Penn Yan operation since 1989, where the Riesling and Gewurztraminer program is serious enough that reservations are strongly encouraged and group size caps at six.
Miles Wine Cellars
Food Drink
A west-shore winery on a quiet road above Himrod that earns the detour most Route 14 visitors never take.
Glenora Wine Cellars
Food Drink
Glenora Wine Cellars offers a picturesque venue for weddings with vineyard views, luxurious accommodations, and exceptional service.
Fulkerson Winery
Food Drink
A west shore Seneca Lake farm with roots going back to 1805, where seventh-generation winemaker Sayre Fulkerson also supplies grape juice to home winemakers across the country.
Toast Winery
Food Drink
A dry-vinifera operation on the east shore where the winemaking steps aside and the Seneca Lake AVA does the work.
Lakewood Vineyards
Food Drink
Three generations of Stamps have been farming the west side of Seneca Lake since 1952, opening the winery in 1989 and growing it to 80 acres without leaving the family.