A half day in the the Finger Lakes region is not enough time to dive into the many treasures of the area but you can make touch the surface of its riches.
Glenn H. Curtiss Museum
Located near the heart of Hammondsport, New York, the Curtiss Museum celebrates all things that can be navigated, be it in air, on land or at sea. Glenn Curtiss began his career by building bicycles and moved on to motorcycles. He attained early notoriety as the ‘fastest man on earth” in 1907 on a V8 motorcycle.
Curtiss was one of the pioneers in aviation, who developed the sea plane as well as many other aircraft designs. The museum also houses a restoration shop which is in the process of the restoration of a 1940’s P-40 that was recovered in Gainesville, Florida in the 1980’s.
The breath of items housed in the museum will leave you amazed. You will find items displayed from Curtiss’s family residences, civil war weapons, bicycles and motorcycles designed by Curtiss and others. Planes, cars and boats fill every nook and cranny of the space.
You need to take time here to digest the impressive contribution that Curtiss made to aviation.
https://www.glennhcurtissmuseum.org/the-jenny.php
Finger Lakes Boating Museum
A short drive from the Curtiss museum, housed in the former Taylor winery, is the Finger Lakes Boating Museum.
Dedicated to the Finger Lakes boating culture, the museum walks you through boating on the lakes from canoes and paddle wheelers to sleek hand crafted antique boats.
Founded in 1996, the museum was founded to preserve the boating heritage of the regions.
Domaine LeSeurre winery
This charming French inspired winery overlooks Keuka Lake. I turned into the parking area, thinking I would just get a quick photograph of Keuka Lake but I ended up staying for a full tasting. Jennifer, my tasting hostess, told me the story of Sebastian and Celine LeSeurre. The two French trained winemakers who settled in the Finger Lakes to unite their French heritage to Finger Lakes wine region. The oval tasting table looks out onto the Keuka Lake and can host a large amount of guests. The LeSeurres’ brought the land in 2012 and opened the tasting room in October of 2013. The winery is in the progress of adding on two larger spaces to expand their tasting experience.
LeSeurre offered twelve wines for tasting as well as a recommended paired tasting. The cost of a selection of five tastings is five dollars and a well enjoyed five dollars, it is. I tried a host of the wines; from Chardonnays (both Oaked and Unoaked), Dry and Semi Dry Resilsings, Gewurztaminer and Cabernet Franc. The crisp and clean flavor Unoaked Chardonnay was so enjoyable, I brought a bottle.
Chatting with the other guests and exchanging stories of our travels to the winery was a treat. This first class winery was an unexpected encounter during my brief adventure in Hammondsport.
The Finger Lakes is a lovely region of New York State. I cannot wait to return and discover more of the gems that surround its many lakes.
