Watkins Glen

Watkins Glen needs 1 day: hiking the Watkins Glen Gorge Trail, with 19 waterfalls and stone bridges carved into the rock over nearly 3 km, ending at the shore of Seneca Lake in the late afternoon. June-September is best, with the full trail open (it closes for ice in winter). It's inexpensive. The town lends its name to the oldest NASCAR road course race in the US, Watkins Glen International, and its gorge -carved by glacial meltwater 12,000 years ago- is considered one of the most spectacular water gorges in the Northeast.