Visited May 1, 2022 (Also July 16, 2021 -- See below)

Accessed via the Buffalo History Museum, 1 Museum Court, Buffalo, NY 14216

Parking:

Today was also the Cherry Blossom Festival so the parking lot was full when we arrived at 11:00 AM.

Parallel parking was available along Museum Court.  Luckily my husband was the driver.

Also, the Lincoln Parkway provides parallel park opportunities.  

Parking is free on most of the roads bordering the park.  The park is bordered by Delaware, Elmwood & Parkside Avenues, Amherst Street, Nottingham Terrace, Route 198, & Rumsey Road.

Overcast with occasional sprinkles. 67 degrees dropping to 52 degrees when the rain started in earnest 11:00 AM-1:00 PM. 

There were porta potties near the History Museum parking lot because of the Cherry Blossom Festival, however there are often porta potties near the Rose Garden during July for the visitors to the Shakespeare in the Park events.

Dogs on leash are allowed in the park but Wesley stayed home today.

No need for long pants if you are staying on the path.

No poison ivy observed during my visit

No cost to access the parking or the trail. 

I visited Delaware Park with my friend, Melissa, and our husbands for the 7th Annual Cherry Blossom Orienteering Challenge.  Our medium-difficulty map was 2.6 km but we meandered around the park for just shy of five miles.  It was our first orienteering experience and we had a great time.  If you are interested in learning about orienteering, there is a website: www.buffalo-orienteering.org.  We explored the trails and features within sight of Hoyt Lake.

There was very little trash evident.  Many public trash bins were easily available.

It is beautiful and well used by the city's residents.  Despite the wet weather, there were easily over 100 people at the park today for orienteering, visiting the cherry blossoms, running, attending a wedding, walking their dogs, and pushing strollers.. The 350-acre park was designed by Olmsted and Vaux in 1868-1870.  

The paths we used were not marked with any posted names and there was no posted sign with a picture of the park’s map or layout anywhere that I saw.  It was a beautiful park and definitely had Olmstead’s mark with the variety of trees and the layout that invited meandering and relaxing.

The trail surfaces were mostly paved, but trails are dirt and gravel.

The trails were not muddy though there were muddy sections for orienteering competitors leaving the trail. The trail was wide enough to walk side by side and pass people coming the other way.  The trails were not perfectly flat but had no challenging inclines. We walked over bridges and the pedestrian overpass today during our explorations.

We saw gorgeous oak trees and sycamore trees. There were many spring wildflowers and blossoms including bluebells, tiger lillies, swamp marigolds, cherry blossoms, forsythia, dandelions, daffodils, and violets. At this time of year the Rose Garden featured a variety of tulips and daffodils.  We heard many blackbird trills, saw many robins, and saw swallows swooping around the bridge as we crossed over Hoyt Lake.

For more information about the park:

https://www.bfloparks.org/parks/delaware-park/

For a brochure with maps of the parks:

https://view.publitas.com/bopc/olmstedparkmap/page/2-3

Nearby:

The Terrace

http://terracebuffalo.com/

I rarely post places I have not personally visited, but I am putting this here because it is on my goal list. It was beautifully lit at sunset and I would love to eat dinner here before the next Shakespeare in the Park performance that I attend!

Albright Knox Art Gallery

https://www.albrightknox.org/

I have attended a number of events here, and it is in site when you are behind The Terrace or sitting on the steps of Hoyt Lake.  Of course, my favorite was when my daughter’s middle school art club’s project was on display.  I have eaten in their café when I attended an event that was called Art Alive if I recall correctly. I even attended a great concert in their parking lot a few years ago for Collective Soul and Our Lady Peace.  This year, it is undergoing extensive renovations.

The Buffalo History Museum

https://buffalohistory.org/

I visited this beautiful museum years ago when my daughter was still young enough to enjoy an American Girl Doll special event.  When we visited, the museum had an excellent area devoted to the Pan-American Exposition that was held in Buffalo.  This museum is within sight of Hoyt Lake.  The grounds between the museum and the lake are beautiful.

The Buffalo Naval Park, The Waterfront, Canalside, and the Liberty Hound  is about 12 minutes away.

https://buffalonavalpark.org/

https://buffalowaterfront.com/

https://buffalowaterfront.com/canalside

https://www.libertyhoundbuffalo.com/

Visiting the battleship was a fun family outing for us a few Fathers Days ago.  The family visited the Waterfront a few years ago to see the giant rubber duckie!  Across the river from the waterfront area was the Irish Festival a few years ago.  This year it has a different address at Buffalo's Outer Habor.  https://buffaloirishfestival.com/.

Shortly after it opened, we visited Canalside for ice skating and riding ice bikes.  It was great fun.

Today, we had a late lunch at the Liberty Hound which is right by the battleship in the Naval Park.  The drinks and food were excellent.  The service was polite.  The bathrooms were clean.  In warmer weather, I imagine that dining on the patio must be a lovely experience.

Irish Famine Memorial

40 La Riviere Drive, Buffalo, New York 14202

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/western-new-york-irish-famine-memorial

This is down the river front from the Naval Park.  It is a poignant place for people interested in the history of America's Irish immigrants.

Shark Girl at Canalside

https://buffalowaterfront.com/activities/shark-girl-at-canalside

Hofbrauhaus

https://www.hofbrauhausbuffalo.com/

Fun place, great German food.

Visited July 16, 2021

Lincoln Parkway, Buffalo, NY

Parking:

I typed into Google Maps “Shakespeare in Delaware Park and it provided the address above which brought me to a set of roads between the Buffalo Art Gallery and Delaware Park.  The Lincoln Parkway provides parallel park opportunities that fill up fast.  My friend Melissa applauded my (rarely attempted) parallel parking success.

Parking is free on most of the roads bordering the park.  The park is bordered by Delaware, Elmwood & Parkside Avenues, Amherst Street, Nottingham Terrace, Route 198, & Rumsey Road.

Sunny and 84 degrees Fahrenheit 7:30-9:00 PM 

I did not see any toilets nor porta potties, however there are often porta potties near the Rose Garden during the summer for the visitors to the Shakespeare in the Park events.

Dogs on leash are allowed in the park but Wesley stayed home today.

No need for long pants if you are staying on the path.

No poison ivy observed during my visit

No cost to access the parking or the trail. 

I visited Delaware Park with my friend, Melissa.  The leisurely ½ mile trail that circles from the Rose Garden past the Casino (The Terrace restaurant) and over the stone bridge returning to the lawn behind the Rose Garden took about an hour while attending a walking performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  There are many more miles of trail and paths to explore.

There was very little trash evident.  Many public trash bins were easily available.

There were easily over 50 people using the park while we were there.  They were biking, running, using the playground, eating at The Terrace, picnicking on blankets, sitting on the steps by Hoyt Lake, and walking their dogs. The 350-acre park was designed by Olmsted and Vaux in 1868-1870.  

The paths we used were not marked and there was no posted sign with a picture of the park’s map or layout anywhere that I saw.  It was a beautiful park and definitely had Olmstead’s mark with the variety of trees and the layout that invited meandering and relaxing.

The trail surface that we used was paved, but there are sections of dirt trail in the park. 

The trail was mostly dry but had some damp areas due to the recent rains. The trail was wide enough to walk side by side.  The trail was not perfectly flat but had no challenging inclines. There were many shaded areas to escape the sun and heat.  We enjoyed sitting on the steps by Hoyt Lake for a visit after enjoying the Shakespeare in the Park performance.  The back sides of the art gallery and history museum were within view.  There were so many people peacefully enjoying the beautiful park that it was hard to believe we were in what I refer to as “the city” being a country mouse as I am.  Even this country mouse enjoyed the section of the park that I saw and look forward to returning to explore more areas of the park.  We have plans to eat at The Terrace and Melissa wants to visit those flamingo paddle boats.

We saw gorgeous oak trees and sycamore trees. I should have taken my tree book with me so that I could identify the many varieties that were there.  They were beautiful.  There were a few wildflowers near the trees, and the Rose Garden hosted vibrant blooms in a variety of sizes and colors.

For more information about the park:

https://www.bfloparks.org/parks/delaware-park/

For a brochure with maps of the parks:

https://view.publitas.com/bopc/olmstedparkmap/page/2-3

For more information about Shakespeare in the Park:

https://shakespeareindelawarepark.org/

Nearby:

Flamingo Paddle Boats on Hoyt Lake at the edge of Delaware Park:

https://buffalomaritimecenter.org/hoyt-lake-boat-rentals/

I have not tried these but they look fun, and my friend Melissa vows to try them out for us!

The Terrace

http://terracebuffalo.com/

I rarely post places I have not personally visited, but I am putting this here because it is on my goal list. It was beautifully lit at sunset and I would love to eat dinner here before the next Shakespeare in the Park performance that I attend!

Albright Knox Art Gallery

https://www.albrightknox.org/

I have attended a number of events here, and it was in sight when I stood behind The Terrace or sitting on the steps of Hoyt Lake.  Of course, my favorite event was when my daughter’s middle school art club’s project was on display.  I have eaten in their café when I attended an event that was called Art Alive, if I recall correctly. I even attended a great concert in their parking lot a few years ago for Collective Soul and Our Lady Peace.  This summer, it is undergoing extensive renovations.

The Buffalo History Museum

https://buffalohistory.org/

I visited this beautiful museum a few years ago when my daughter was still young enough to enjoy an American Girl Doll special event.  When we visited, the museum had an excellent area devoted to the Pan-American Exposition that was held in Buffalo.  This museum is within sight of Hoyt Lake.  Do not miss the garden behind the museum.  I remember it as being lovely.