Scenic Treasures

Fall Foliage Driving Tours

Click to Download Fall Foliage Driving Tour Brochure

View the New York State Fall Foliage Reports

Salmon River Falls

• Located in Oswego on Lake St. in the west harbor area.
• The only park in Oswego to overlook Lake Ontario.
• Offers playground, basketball courts, picnic tables and benches overlooking the harbor and lake.
• Kingsford Bell
  • The Kingsford Bell stands tall in Oswego’s Breitbeck Park. The bell was taken from the former Oswego Starch Factory. The factory was owned by Thomas Kingsford, the namesake for the bell, who is famous for developing an innovative technique in creating starch through a process using maize, Indian corn. The Kingsford Factory stretched along the west side of the Oswego River and employed thousands of residents.

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Deer Creek Marsh

• Located on Rainbow Shores Rd., Pulaski.
• 1,195 acres of wetland and uplands between Lake Ontario and NYS-3 in town of Richland. Viewing tower, parking area, boat access, handicapped access. Scenic vistas, bird watching, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, hunting, fishing, trapping.

Photos taken by Troy Weldy. For more photos and information on Oswego County Wetlands, click here.

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Derby Hill Bird Observatory

• Located off NYS-104B on Sage Creek Rd. in Mexico.
• Weather/hawk hotline, early March to late May: 315-963-8291
• Located on the southeastern corner of Lake Ontario, Derby Hill Bird Observatory is internationally known for the spring-hawk migration. More than 40,000 counted annually. Thousands of red-tailed hawks and hundreds of bald eagles fly over the site each spring. The sharp-eyed may even spot a golden eagle or a ruby-throated hummingbird. In the fall, look for many species of geese, ducks, terns and other migrating water birds. Owned by Onondaga Chapter of the NYS Audubon Society.

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NYS Revolutionary Byway

• Stretching over 150 miles from Schenectady to Port Ontario, the Revolutionary Byway showcases a rich and varied history. It highlights scenic beauty, natural and cultural resources, recreation, and agricultural traditions. The byway, along NYS routes 5, 49, 69 and 13, offers museums, multiple-era historic sites, and recreational activities like hiking, cycling, fishing, canoeing, kayaking and boating.

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Oneida Lake

• This 23 mile lake forms the southeastern corner of Oswego County. The north shore borders NYS-49.
  Oneida Lake was part of Lake Iroquois, formed nearly 12,000 years ago when a glacier dammed what is now the St. Lawrence River and flooded much of Central New York. As climate change occurred and the glacial ice mass retreated northward, the St. Lawrence outlet to the Atlantic Ocean opened, draining most of Lake Iroquois. Oneida Lake remains in a slight depression of the former bed of the much larger glacial lake.

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Oswego Harbor

• Located in the center of the city of Oswego, on Lake Ontario.
• Oswego Harbor has been the site of commercial activity since before the French and Indian war when it was used by fur traders.
• Significant battles have been fought on both sides of the Oswego River during different periods in our nation’s history.
• Today it serves as a scenic hotspot with unique public access on both sides of the river, called the East and West Linear Parks, with a great view of Fort Ontario and the West Pierhead Lighthouse.
• West Pierhead Lighthouse
  • Located on Lake Ontario in the Oswego Harbor.
  • It was built in 1934 and automated in 1967. One of the Port City’s most recognizable landmarks. Not open to the public but a great photo opportunity.

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Oswego River Canal

• Part of the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor
• The scenic Oswego River is part of the 363-mile long Erie Canal, the most successful and influential artificial waterway in North America.
• Download Canalling Guide for more information on the Oswego River Canal.
• For more information on the New York State Canal System, visit http://www.canals.state.ny.us or http://www.eriecanalway.org

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Salmon River Falls Unique Area

• Located on Falls Rd. in Orwell. 1.4 miles northeast of Co. Rte. 22.
• 110-ft waterfall provides a breathtaking view any time of the year. Footpath to the bottom of the gorge is open May 1- Nov. 15. Areas of the gorge are restricted and visitors should use extreme caution. Footpath is closed in winter except to ice climbers, who must register at sign-in area. Owned by NYS DEC. *The path to the base of the falls is currently closed due to erosion. It will remain closed until it has been restored.

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Salmon River Upper & Lower Reservoirs:

• Located in northern Oswego County in Redfield and Orwell.
• For a list of access points, click here
• Split into two reservoirs, the Upper and Lower reservoirs prove very scenic and offer many recreation opportunities.
• Osprey nests, bald eagles sighted, access points for launching kayaks and canoes, fishing.

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Seaway Trail

• 315-646-1000 or 1-800-SEAWAY-T (732-9298).
• This 454-mile scenic highway-waterway parallels the St. Lawrence River, Lake Ontario, Niagara River, and Lake Erie.
• America’s longest National Recreation Trail, the Seaway Trail is recognized for mixed usage by automobile, boat, motorcoach, camper, and bicycle.

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Salmon River Lighthouse & Marina

• Located at 5 Lake Rd. Extension, Pulaski.
• 315-509-4208
• Located at the mouth of the Salmon River, the Selkirk Lighthouse was completed and activated in 1938. Today the light serves as a Class II Aid to Navigation. It is privately owned and may be rented for overnight stays, reunions and weddings. Photo opportunity.

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Selkirk Shores State Park

• Located on 7101 NYS-3 in Pulaski
• 315-298-5737
• The park’s campsites overlook a bluff on Lake Ontario. Along with great year-round recreational opportunity, visitors can lay out on the beach, swim in the lake, or walk along the pier to view the amazing sunsets.
• Selkirk Shores is on the direct migration route for a wide variety of bird species.
• Offers a launch, playground, restrooms, picnic tables and grills, fish cleaning station and partial handicap access.

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Taft Bay Park

• Located on Oneida Lake off of NYS Rte. 49 in Bernhards Bay.
• 315-623-9206
• 2 pavilions with electricity that may be reserved by calling the listed phone number. Park offers a bathhouse, beach with lifeguards, picnic tables, barbecue grills, basketball & tennis courts, volleyball net and ball fields.