Easy and accessible Nature walks In WNY
Reprinted with permission from the Buffalo News - click here for link with photos.
Paved paths, flat trails, and wooden boardwalks…Western New York has a growing list of trails nicely suited for wheeled visitors, whether it be wheelchairs, scooters, or strollers.
Experiencing nature while rolling, strolling, walking, or meditating is good for us. Connecting with nature often leads to positive outcomes such as a sense of calmness, increased creativity, and a feeling of belonging.
In 1991, Roger Ulrich helped develop Stress Reduction Theory, which claims that just looking at nature reduces stress, improves heart rate, blood pressure, and creates positive emotions. Imagine the benefits of actually immersing yourself in nature! Today, there are great hiking locations with reduced barriers for the wheeled visitor.
Take advantage of the cooler days and stroll down these wheeled-friendly scenic paths that showcase the best of Western New York’s woods, rivers, waterfalls, creeks, and beaches.
Six Wheeled-friendly Scenic Trails
Niagara Gorge Upper Rim Trail, Niagara Falls State Park: This is a bucket list stroll. The Upper Rim Trail follows segments of the 7-mile portage that native peoples and early settlers took to bypass the unnavigable rapids and the falls at Niagara. The paved paths accommodate wheels and walkers and wind through natural plantings that attract butterflies and birds.
The secret to maximizing your enjoyment of this hike is to start out at Whirlpool State Park and head towards Niagara Falls to always have the view in front of you! There are frequently spaced benches to sit and enjoy the view of Whirlpool Point and the Rapids. Continuing to head from the Suspension Bridge towards Niagara Falls, you’ll be treated to ‘secret’ overlooks tucked behind treed earthen berms framing a picture-perfect view of the Horseshoe Falls and the Niagara Falls skyline. As an “out-and-back” trail, you can travel as far as Niagara Falls State Park before retracing your route back to your vehicle.
Traillink: https://www.traillink.com/trail/niagara-scenic-parkway-trail/
Reinstein Woods Nature Preserve, Cheektowaga: Lilly ponds, old-growth forests, and 2.5 miles of flat and graded interpretive trails and boardwalks meander through the 292-acre nature preserve. As you follow the mowed grass and crushed stone paths, you forget you’re surrounded by a suburban neighborhood. Reinstein Woods is a birding hotspot with over 190 bird species observed. During the fall migration, you can see herons, bluebirds, gulls, ducks, warblers, and more.
It is lovingly referred to as Buffalo’s Backyard Wilderness as it is a natural oasis and habitat for wildlife and has one of the largest virgin forests in New York State. You can find numerous cherry, sugar maple, and beech trees up to five feet in diameter that are over 200-years old along these trails.
Trail and accessibility information: http://reinsteinwoods.org/learn/accessibility/
Walton Woods Town Park, Amherst: Weave through the wooded 7-mile paved trail system at Walton Woods Town Park and you’ll wonder why more people aren’t enjoying this peaceful paradise. The park was designed to please the senses with its many intersecting loops and frequently-spaced park benches to watch the wildlife along Walton Pond and Lake Audubon.
The ponds and woods attract migrating birds, turtles, frogs, and butterflies. The woods host a robust population of deer, bunnies, squirrels and an occasional fox or coyote. Tucked into the southwest corner is a rare 6-acre old-growth forest with several 150-year old beech and tulip trees. It's easy to spend a few hours wandering along the paths and enjoying the fall color. For the kids, they’ll delight in discovering several pocket playgrounds hidden in the woods.
Additional information: https://www.amherst.ny.us/content/parks_detail.php?park_num=park_0014
Outer Harbor, Buffalo: The Lake Erie shoreline trail just keeps getting better and better. Starting out at the Buffalo Harbor State Park free parking lot, you can head north with the city-view in front of you. The wide and paved paths accommodate multiple ‘lanes’ for walkers, wheeled-travelers, and cyclists with pleasantly-placed benches, swings, and chairs to stop, rest, and take in the view.
A few favorite sites are watching the wind sculptures at Wilkeson Pointe and bird watching near Times Beach Nature Preserve. Much of the route coincides with the 3-mile Independent Health Wellness Trail. Chunks of history are dotted along this path: the marble ‘ruins’ of the 1913 M&T Bank headquarters fondly remembered as “the marble temple” from its Greek Revival style. Another out-and-back hike, explore this trail as far as the Coast Guard Station before doubling back to your starting point.
Additional information: https://buffalowaterfront.com/activities/wellness-trail
Wendt Beach, Town of Evans: A hidden jewel in the Erie County Parks system, Wendt Beach is a ‘quiet’ beach. It is one of the most beautiful places to catch the sunset over Lake Erie. If you are lucky, you may see eagles, turkey vultures, or other shorebirds that frequent the skyline.
The Erie County Parks Department recently repaved and enlarged the parking lot. The improvements included numerous handicap parking spots that make it easy to travel on the level and paved trail system. The wide, paved trail at Wendt is part of the Shoreline Trail system and winds through a shaded woodland forest, changing to an elevated boardwalk trail for a .25 mile through wooded wetlands. Hidden in plain sight are the 15-to-20-foot towering sand dunes that shelter the path from the lake’s breezes. Sand dunes are rare on Lake Erie, but what makes these dunes so special is that they are topped with dozens of ancient oaks and sycamores that stand guard against the Lake Erie winds. These giant old growth trees frame the man-made sand paths that lead to the beach area.
Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge, Basom: Parking at the Visitors Center, there are a few flat and easy gravel trails to consider. The Headquarters Nature Trail is ADA accessible and winds through grasslands, forests, and marshes where you can watch seasonal migratory birds, insects, and ducks.
Starting from the same location is Kanyoo Trail that has beautiful overlooks for spotting eagles, terns, and osprey. The grassland trail leads to a floating metal bridge and boardwalk that crosses over Mohawk Pond that is fun for the more adventurous explorers. Be on the lookout for migrating bluebirds, orioles, and thousands of geese.
Additional information: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/iroquois/visit-us/trails
These are a sample of town, county, state, and federal parks and refuges offering trails with improvements being made throughout Western New York to encourage access to our outdoor and natural areas for people of all abilities. Everyone should have the opportunity to reap the physical, mental, and spiritual benefits of spending time in nature.
Now, go out and take a hike!
Additional Resources:
Often word counts restrict adding all the locations we would have liked to have shared in our published articles. Here is a list of more outdoor accessible trails in Western New York area. Please contact us if you know of more trails to add!
Birdsong Park Nature Trail, Orchard Park: A half-mile paved walking loop that circles open green space. Off of the loop you will find multiple trail entrances into the woods that join to create approx. 1.5 miles of trails that are a mix of boardwalks, grass and gravel paths. Birdsong has four ponds and an abundance of wildlife. The wooden boardwalks and bridges are handicap accessible.
Additional information: https://www.oprec.org/BirdsongPark
Charles E. Burchfield Nature & Arts Center, West Seneca: A quiet and historic location nestled along the Buffalo Creek with over 2 miles of trails and boardwalks that are level and wide. In addition to wheelchair accessible trails, the park has a playground, interactive art, summer concerts, festivals, art classes, exhibits, and guided tours of the gallery and the park.
Additional information: http://www.burchfieldnac.org/park-lands/
Cheektowaga Historic Rails to Trails, Cheektowaga: A smooth, flat asphalt ride that allows you to discover the town's railroad history. About 1.5 miles of trail are built next to an active rail line on the site of the former Lehigh Valley Railroad, which hauled coal from Pennsylvania up to Buffalo and Lake Erie, making this rail-with-trail a hotspot for railroad buffs.
Beginning in the east, the trail departs from the sidewalk along Union Road and makes use of a pedestrian bridge to cross the road, paralleling the active railroad bridge. The trail heads west, separated from the tracks by a wooden and chain-link fence, and quickly enters a tree-lined corridor behind residential neighborhoods. Several neighborhood streets have short access paths to the trail, and trail users can make use of one such path to check out the adjacent Raymond Park, which hosts a soccer field, playground, and other recreational amenities.
Additional information: https://www.traillink.com/trail/cheektowaga-historic-rails-to-trails/
Clarence Pathways Trail System, Clarence: Four trails make up the Clarence Pathways trail system: the West Shore Trail, Newstead Bike Path, Clarence Bike Trail, and Peanut Line Trail. The trails radiate around the Buffalo suburbs of Clarence, Akron and Amherst.
The West Shore Trail in Clarence follows the West Shore & Buffalo Railroad corridor. The paved West Shore Trail travels the rural outskirts of Clarence and connects a number of the town's parks with residential areas and the downtown. Traveling east the trail is bookended by rural farms and fields. In Clarence Town Park the trail shares a low-volume local road for 0.8 mile that provides access to the park and the park maintenance facility.
As the trail passes through downtown Clarence, bike route signs keep you on track. Look for bike lanes on the sidewalk and brick pavers at street crossings. The West Shore Trail returns to a rural setting until reaching Davidson Road. Here the trail becomes the Newstead Bike Path, though there is little noticeable difference between the two.
After 2.5 miles of passing through farmland and woodlots on the Newstead Bike Path, you reach Akron Junction and the connection to the Peanut Line Trail. The Newstead Bike Path continues north and east for another 2 miles through country landscape and near residential developments to the town of Akron.
Additional information: https://www.traillink.com/trail/clarence-pathways/
Grand Island West River Greenway Trail, Grand Island: Newly opened bike path as of 2019. A smoothed paved trail wide enough to accommodate designated bike and pedestrian lanes. The path has beautiful views of the Niagara River and connects two state parks, Buckhorn and Beaver Island.
Additional information: https://www.grandislandny.us/201/State-Park-Trails
Lancaster Heritage Trail, Lancaster: The Lancaster Heritage Trail offers scenic views as it traverses the wooded Lancaster countryside. At each end, kiosks provide a brief history of the trail, which was built on a portion of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western railroad bed dating back to the late 1800s. The off-road, non-motorized pathway is paved and relatively level with three at-grade, well-marked street crossings. Benches made of natural materials, including boulders scattered alongside the trail, provide places to rest on the 4-mile journey.
Additional information: https://www.traillink.com/trail/lancaster-heritage-trail/
Lehigh Memory Trail, Williamsville: The Lehigh Memory Trail lies in the Village of Williamsville. The pathway is a short-paved trail that runs through the heart of the village. The trail runs adjacent to the Williamsville Depot; a historic railroad depot constructed in November 1896, by the Depew and Tonawanda Railroad, a subsidiary of the Lehigh Valley Railway.
Additional information: https://www.traillink.com/trail/lehigh-memory-trail/
North Buffalo Rails to Trails, Tonawanda: North Buffalo Rails to Trails offers a tree-lined paved pathway through Minnesota Linear Park in the University Heights neighborhood. Although less than a mile long, it offers two important links in the community. At its southern end, is the LaSalle Metro Rail Station and, at its northern end, is a connection to Tonawanda Rails to Trails. In addition, the trail provides access to Shoshone Park, which offers a number of amenities, such as a pool, basketball court, tennis court, playground, and ball fields.
Additional information: http://www.traillink.com/trail/north-buffalo-rails-to-trails/%C2%A0
Tift Nature Preserve, Buffalo: Coming soon! The Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences has plans to transform an existing half-mile trail loop at Tifft into a trail that is wheelchair, walker, and stroller friendly.
Tonawanda Rails to Trails, Tonawanda: Tonawanda Rails to Trails offers a paved linear route through Tonawanda. The rail-trail was built atop the former Erie Lackawanna Railway, which carried both freight and passengers in the 1880s. The pathway runs through a mix of residential and commercial areas and links several schools and parks.
Additional information: http://www.traillink.com/trail/tonawanda-rails-to-trails/
