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Soak up the Season with A Fall Foliage Boat Cruise or Train Tour

posted by Teresa Farrell at 2018-10-07 21:13:00

With leaf peeping season in full swing, people are flocking to Upstate New York are flocking to scenic byways, hiking trails, apple orchards and more to get a glimpse of fall’s most brilliant display of color. But there are other unique ways to experience the best of the season that you may not have thought of—specifically, by boat, or by train, with a specialty fall foliage cruise along the lakes, rivers and canals of Upstate New York or a train ride through the changing colors of the forest.


 
Boats tours and train rides are popular in the summer, but a fall excursion offers something unique: the chance to soak in the season’s best show from a one-of-a-kind vantage point. The experience of watching the technicolor trees reflect off the shimmering surface of the water on a sunny day, or the feeling of being surround by a tunnel of beautiful color on a train ride through the woods as the leaves change, allow you to appreciate the beauty of nature’s dramatic fall display in a way that you just can’t quite replicate anywhere else.



Cruising options vary across the state to suit those looking for anything from an afternoon away to a multi-day stay. Companies like Blount Small Ship Adventures offer long-form journeys, like their 9-day Hudson River and Coastal Fall Foliage Tour that leaves from New York City and travels by the Catskills to the Capital Region, then turns back and traverses the Long Island Sound to stops at ports throughout New England.  Meanwhile, some companies that regularly cruise along the Erie Canal, or the waterways of the Finger Lakes, the Adirondacks, and the Thousand Islands either offer specialty fall foliage cruises, which often include food and entertainment, or continue to run their regular schedules during part of the fall.


 
Upstate New York’s scenic railroads are in on the action as well, with special fall-themed train tours offered at the Adirondack Scenic Railroad, the Catskill Mountain Railroad, Central New York’s Cooperstown and Charlotte Valley Railroad, and Western New York’s Arcade and Attica Railroad and Medina Railroad Museum. Most offer fall foliage tours, and many have other special fall-themed rides as well, like harvest and pumpkin tours, Halloween costume parties and haunted rides, and more. So why not enjoy fall from a whole new perspective this year? Be sure to check with the individual railroad or cruise company about pricing, reservations, and more before you plan to board—then just sit back and enjoy the ride.

 
PHOTO CREDITS
View of lake in autumn photo credit DenSmith
Railroad track by water photo credit Cappi Thompson
Red train photo credit Andreas Ravn Moller
Panorama fall foliage cruise photo credit Rod Brazier

 

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