Letchworth State Park, Trail 1 from Wolf Creek Parking/Picnic Area

Visited September 2026

Letchworth State Park is in two counties:  Livingston County and Wyoming County. The Gorge Trail (AKA Trail 1) side of the park is mostly in Wyoming County.  Due to recent tornado activity, I called the park to verify that the Castile area of the park was open.

Park Address: 1 Letchworth State Park, Castile, NY 14427

We entered through the Castile entrance and turned left.  We parked at the Wolf Creek Picnic Area.  We did the one-mile out and back (2 miles total) from Wolf Creek to the St. Helena Picnic Area.  Then we did a little more than the one-mile out and back (aproximately 2.45 miles) from Wolf Creek to the Great Bend Overlook.  The full trail is listed as seven miles on the park map.  I mentioned to my daughter that I think that if I was going to hike the entire trail, I would prefer to walk the full Trail 1 by starting at the St. Helena Picnic Area because then I could see each waterfall as it revealed itself on the approach.  But for the first two miles of the trail, at least, I learned that the uphill stairs outnumbered the downhill stairs so I may amend my original statement.

70s degrees Fahrenheit, light breeze, sunshine

There are numerous facilities available for restroom use in the park during the summer season.  Choices are fewer during the winter.  We saw facilities at the Wolf Creek and St. Helena picnic areas. 

Dogs on a 6-foot leash are welcome.   “Proof of rabies inoculation shall be produced if requested by staff. Pets are not permitted in playgrounds, buildings, golf courses, boardwalks, pools and spray-grounds or guarded beaches.”

This park has many miles of trail on both sides of the canyon. Trail 1 is single file in some areas and wider in other areas.   Shorts would have been sufficient on this well-maintained trail; but after last week's head-high weedy experience on Trails 15 and 17, I wore long pants.  This is a nice trail with beautiful viewpoints and benches or picnic tables to rest at. I have been visiting sections of this trail my entire life for geocaching, friend weekends, leaf watching, or family outings.  I was really happy to share today's hike with my daughter as I paused to take pictures and videos or to rest allowing my lungs to catch up.

We saw people white water rafting below in the canyon; we did this years ago and it was very fun.  

Mosquitos were not a problem for us today with long pants, hats, and an application of bug spray.  

Poison ivy on the edge of the trail in a few spots.

Trash was mostly near or at the picnic areas and parking areas.

Due to tree roots and numerous stairs, I think bringing a stroller would be an unpleasant experience.

Vehicle Entrance Fee: At the Castile entrance, we paid $10 at the machine.

The paved parking at the Wolf Creek picnic area will hold approximately 10 cars.  The St. Helena paved lot will hold approximately 20 cars.  The small lot and the parking long the loop at Great Bend Overlook will hold 10+ cars.

While in the park my daughter and I heard a bald eagle call but could not see it through the tree cover.  We saw evidence of a pileated woodpecker.  We saw turkey vultures, wooly caterpillars, grasshoppers, wildflowers, plaintain, gorgeous giant trees (oak, hemlock, pine, maple, and many more), but only two dogs the entire time! 

Letchworth State Park is part of the WNY Summer Hiking Challenge.  I joined the Summer 2021 challenge.  https://outsidechronicles.com/challenge

Letchworth has numerous geocaches.  Many of the ones we found over the years took us to some of the “less travelled” sections of the park so we learned about the park in a way that we didn’t when we just hit the main trails by the falls and the Glen Iris.  Visit www.geocaching.com for more information.

For more information about the park and its trails:

https://parks.ny.gov/parks/letchworth

I strongly recommend peeking at this site.  I didn’t realize that when we saw a man flying his drone last fall, he had been required to fill out a permit to fly the drone! This park allows hunting during the various seasons so hunters have to fill out permits.  It is good to keep this in mind when deciding where to hike in November and December.

Nearby:

We have to drive two hours to get to the park.  We stopped at the Red Osier one year and loved it so much that we came back with my parents to celebrate one of their anniversaries.

https://redosier.com/

6492 East Main Street (Route 5), Stafford, New York 14143

The Glen Iris Inn on the park grounds is very nice.  We have been there to celebrate autumn birthdays and anniversaries a few times.  

http://www.glenirisinn.com/

Calling ahead for reservations, especially during the autumn leaf-watching season, is a good idea.

Genesee Country Museum, 1410 Flint Hill Road, Mumford, NY 14511

https://www.gcv.org/

This is one of my favorite places on the planet.  History comes alive here and to do it justice, do not come with less than five hours to explore.  I will be writing it up sometime this summer as it has five miles of nice nature trails associated with it.  The last time we explored them was in March for their Maple Weekend Event a few years ago and it was a great event.  

https://www.gcv.org/explore/nature-center/

Twisted Rail Brewing Company, 169 Lakeshore Dr., Canandaigua, NY 14424

https://www.twistedrailbrewing.com/menu

This brewery has a beautiful setting to enjoy from the patio, a great vibe, and fantastic selection of beers.  I recommend their stouts and porters.  The wait staff was friendly and efficient when we visited in the autumn of 2019. They had live music on the day we stopped by.

Young Lion Brewing Company, 24 Lakeshore Drive, Canandaigua, New York 14424

https://younglionbrewing.com/brewery 

This brewery had a new, fun vibe, with a Connect Four game that we took out to the patio and enjoyed with our excellent flight of beers when we visited on a gorgeous sunny afternoon in the autumn of 2019.  Clean bathrooms, as I recall.

Reinvention Brewing Company, 9 N. Main St., Manchester, NY 14504

http://www.reinventionbrewing.com/

Prior to COVID, we visited this microbrewery numerous times being introduced to it by relatives of the owners.  It is a nice small place to visit with games that invite you to settle in and enjoy tasting the flights.  Clean bathrooms, as I recall.

Naked Dove Brewing Company, 4048 State Route 5 and, 20, Canandaigua, NY 14424

http://www.nakeddovebrewing.com/

We visited this brewery on the day they were celebrating October Fest 2019.  We played giant Jenga and enjoyed the singing of a German fraulein.  They hosted a hot pretzel vendor and I still regret not buying one.