A family hike at the winter lodge at Letchworth – Feb 22, 2015 – 2:00PM

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We will be trying something new on the last Sunday of Winter Break for our schools: a family outing at the winter lodge located in the southern end of Letchworth State Park. There is a tubing hill behind the lodge and the lodge provides inner tubes for the kids (or kid wanna-be’s). There are numerous trails to ski, snowshoe and hike, encompassing the general area around the winter lodge.

Skiers and snowshoers will follow a ski trail toward the Castile entrance.  Snowshoers should walk next to the ski trail and the leader will need to trade off breaking the trail.  Hikers will follow snowmobile trails that have been well packed, allowing a longer winter hike than would be possible in untraveled snow.

The lodge offers a warm cozy atmosphere with a large round fireplace to escape the blistering winter cold that we’ve been experiencing this year.  There are 12 picnic tables inside the lodge with 120 AC outlets located nearby for crock pots. There is also a concession stand that is open on the weekends. There are heated restrooms with inside and outside access.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAWe will have our social in the lodge after the hike. Bring a dish to pass or feel free to contribute a small donation. The wood-burning fireplace is fired up for anyone that wishes to try  cooking a hot dog over the open fire (my favorite).

Things to note:  The workers leave at 4:00pm and lock up the tubes but the hill is still open to sliding provided you have your own tube. CAUTION; only inflatable sleding devices are allowed on the hill.

Directions:

The Portageville Entrance is closed during the winter, so these directions use the Castile Entrance to the park.

From Dansville; at second red light downtown, turn onto 436 and drive 20.7 miles. Turn right onto Rt 19A (outside Portageville). drive 2 miles and turn right onto Denton Corners RD. ; follow signs for Castile Park Entrance. Enter park and turn right at the “T”.drive about a mile and turn right into the lodge road entrance. Follow signs for the Trailside Lodge.

From Geneseo:  Take RT 39 West for 18 miles;In the village of Castile, turn left onto East Park Rd. which changes to Glen Iris Rd. , for 2 miles then turn left onto Denton Corners Rd. Enter Castile Park entrance and turn right at the “T”. Drive about a mile and turn right into the lodge road entrance. Follow signs for the Trailside Lodge.