It's been a long time since I took the backroads to Syracuse, so a couple of years ago, my brother and I did just that as we headed to visit the New York State Fair.

 

Seneca Lake Geneva
Google Maps Street View
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And I'm glad we did. We traveled on rural two-lane roads including one that offers beautiful views of Seneca Lake, one of the eleven Finger Lakes in New York State. It's been a long time since I've been near Seneca Lake. It was one of the lakes I would frequent many times in my younger years.

How Deep Is Seneca Lake?

Seneca Lake
Photo by Carter Cortelyou on Unsplash
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And speaking of Seneca Lake, did you know that it is the deepest of the eleven Finger Lakes? According to Visit Finger Lakes, Seneca Lake is the deepest at 618 feet. You may think that Seneca Lake is also the longest lake, but according to I Finger Lakes, Seneca comes in at number two for the longest at 38 miles. Cayuga Lake is the longest Finger Lake at just under 40 miles.

But, Seneca Lake has the largest volume of water at 4.2 trillion gallons. Cayuga Lake comes in second with 2.5 trillion gallons according to I Finger Lakes. It's interesting to note that two other lakes that lie in the area of the Finger Lakes but are not considered a part of the group - Waneta Lake and Lamoka Lake. Those lakes are right next to each other between Keuka Lake and Seneca Lake, and I spend many summer days at both.

How Wide Is Seneca Lake?

Keuka Lake
Google Maps Street View
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Visit Finger Lakes states that the lakes were formed over 2 million years ago, during the Pleistocene Ice Age. Seneca Lake is at its widest, 3.5 miles and Cayuga Lake comes in at an average of 1.75 miles.

What Are the 11 Finger Lakes?

Cayuga Lake
Randy Horton
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From west to east, the 11 Finger Lakes consist of Conesus, Hemlock, Canadice, Honeoye, Canandaigua, Keuka, Seneca, Cayuga, Owasco, Skaneateles, and Otisco. I'm ashamed to admit that I've only visited five of those eleven and lived in this region for most of my life. I've got to get out more and discover the others.

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[via Visit Finger Lakes, I Finger Lakes]

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