Sailing near ithica

prospect · Joined: 16 Jan 2001 Posts: 33

I'm thinking about relocating near ithica.Anyone out there sail those fingerlakes Question

Wind-NC.com · Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 3:30 pm Post subject:

I had a friend who lived on Cayuga (?) who sailed all the time. I visited him once and scored a nasty 4.7 day with head high swell rolling up the lake! Super fun sailing. I'm not sure how often it happens, but hey, you can always "sample" wine when it's not blowing! Smile

wdsurf · Joined: 22 May 1999 Posts: 335

senaca on s/se wind,ithaca on n/nw winds,durand beach lake onterio nw,buffal,n.y. sw gotta drive but you can sail. Very Happy

shredvet · Joined: 05 May 2000 Posts: 17

I lived in Ithaca about 15 years ago and sailed Cayuga for about 8 years. The south end had a windsurf shop (Daves) on the west side, with a very good lauch for N, NW, NE winds. For south, SW, etc we'd go up a couple of miles to Myers point where there was a little park jutting out into the lake. If we were adventurous and wanted to travel, Seneca Lake(?) at the north end (near Hobart and William Smith College), has a nice park on the north west corner which is great for the southery flows. Of course if you really want to travel there is the Great lake with lots of launching spots near Rochester. I only did that once so I can't speak to it. Lake winds are a bit up and down but with a good fetch we had alot of really good days.

mpnv · Joined: 09 Jun 2006 Posts: 20

Wow, this brings back too many good memories. I grew up in Rochester, went to undergrad at Hobart on Seneca Lake and went to vet school in Ithaca.

Lots of good advice here. A few more things to consider: 1. Lodi Point on Seneca Lake is much closer than the state park in Geneva and the swell is similarly awesome on a south or southeast wind. If you have time however, the sailing in Geneva is awesome. 2. Myers is great on a northwest, but gets very gusty when wind is more westerly. 3. Due north winds can be awesome in Ithaca at the sailing center. The shop in Ithaca is long gone, but there is an active windsurfing club in Ithaca (I dropped off the mailing list last yr, so I'm not sure how to get in touch anymore). 4. East winds can rip at Oneida Lake north of Syracuse, but is very hit or miss. 5. Many more spots on Lake Ontario than those mentioned above-consider Chimney Bluffs, Sodus, Fair Haven....... Durand Beach in Rochester on a northwest wind is a great place to experience Great Lakes wave sailing for the first time. The beach is miles long w/ no jetties or piers. If you're an experienced high wind/wave sailor, Webster Park near Rochester is awesome on westerly days, but has a pretty sketchy launch.

Lastly, you need a longboard to truly enjoy the lakes. Yes, there are many nuker days in the spring and fall, but you'll get skunked much less if you have a rig for light winds).

Shredvet, are you a vet school grad? I graduated there in 2005.

-Mike

shredvet · Joined: 05 May 2000 Posts: 17

Hi Mike
Yes, I graduated from the vet school in '76 but didn't start windsurfing until around '80. I was a faculty guy in the small animal clinic from 85-94 which is when I sailed Cayuga. I didn't have a ton of time to be too adventurous in the area and thus the lack of specific site detail. Now I live on Buzzards Bay in MA and the wind is much better. Jay

mpnv · Joined: 09 Jun 2006 Posts: 20

Hi Jay,
Great to hear about another windsurfing vet school alum ! I'm in the Reno/Tahoe area now. I grew up in the finger lakes/Lake Ontario area, so spent lots of time exploring the sailing there. Like you, sailing was somewhat limited during my time in Ithaca (but I still got a few good days in 8^) )
Take care,
Mike