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Nature Centers in the Finger Lakes

Genesee Country Nature Center

310 Flint Hill Rd. (also known as George St.)

Mumford, NY 14511

585-538-6822 ext. 262

 

The nature center at Genesee Village & Museum.

LOCATION 

The Genesee Country Nature Center is part of the Genesee Country Village & Museum, which is located in the historic Hamlet of Mumford in the Town of Wheatland in the southern part of Monroe County.

INTERPRETATIVE CENTER

The facility has an interpretative center which is generally open to A girl, one of the many children who populate the "village" during the summer, holds a leopard frog from the center pond.groups but not to the general public. This makes it difficult because the only bathrooms in the nature center area are in this building. Consequently, when you pay, and there is a fee ($5.00 in 2010), you will need to use the bathrooms near the admission booth or not go at all. (You may choose to pay the general admission fee of $15.00, which allows you access to the entire facility.)

 

The interpretative center has one large room with only a few displays and a number of confined animals. There is a picnic pavilion behind the center as well as a small frog pond filled with native leopard frogs.

TRAILS

The nature center offers 5 trails and nearly 5 mi./8 km. of trail through 175 acres of woodlands, meadows, and fallow fields. The trails are well marked, so getting lost or confused will probably not be a problem.

 

The Web of Life Trail has some of the best interpretative signs of any of the nature centers in the Finger Lakes region. They are low to the ground so children can see them, made of aluminum so they don't degrade, and easy to read. On this trail you will find many native wildflowers, fascinating geological formations, interesting trees, and, in the spring, vernal pools.

 

One of the excellent aluminum signs along the Web of Life Trail. This sign looks like it's been vandalized by someone using a sharp object to poke and scratch the sign when, in fact, the "vandal" is probably a woodpecker. Male woodpeckers tap on dead trees in a certain rhythm, depending on the species, to establish territories. They like to use metallic objects to tap on because these create a distinct sound that can be heard throughout the woods.

 

The Perimeter Trail takes visitors through several habitats and shows how farmland can revert to woodland. It runs right along the facility's property boundary, providing "edge" habitat that is appealing to a variety of wildlife. The Geology TraA wooded section of the Perimeter Trail.il is short but interesting with more rock formations and visible fossils.

 

Beware! During the summer, there are mosquitoes on all five of the trails. Come prepared. Some of the trails are mowed grass, which can be wet in the mornings. Duck boots are appropriate.

 

The trails are open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekends only, which makes it difficult to bird early in the morning. Trail maps are available at the admissions booth and inside the interpretative center. There are no other maps available, not even signs.

BIKING

No biking is permitted at the facility. However, the Hamlet of Mumford is an interesting place, and peddling around the hamlet and along State Route 36, which runs through the hamlet, can be fun. Wearing a helmet is recommended.

WINTER ACTIVITIES

Cross-county skiing and snowshoeing are permitted on the trails. You may bring your own equipment or rent from the center.

ACCESSIBILITY

The habitat through most of the 175 acres is rocky and hilly with narrow twists and turns around trees and other vegetation. There really is no part of the site that can accommodate wheelchairs.

 

Many moss-covered rocks like these can be found along the Geology Trail.

DOGS

Dogs are not permitted at the facility.

PLANTS

Without looking too hard, you can find many interesting native plants, especially in the spring. The mosses that grow on the rocks aren't uncommon but are lush, and there's a large selection of fungi.

ANIMALS

Mumford is a rural town and wildlife abounds here. You should be able to see red and gray squirrels, deer, chipmunks, and perhaps some other mammals. During breeding season, the Web of Life Trail boasts cerulean and hooded warblers, and elsewhere you should be able to see mourning doves, cardinals, chickadees, nuthatches, titmice, woodpeckers, thrushes, turkeys, sparrows, peewees, phoebes, goldfinches, etc. The vernal pools produce tree frogs, peepers, salamanders, and other amphibians. Snakes should be present, but there are lots of rocks for them to hide around, so you will have to be especially lucky to see them.

 

Children dressed in "village" garb at the nature center pond.

NEARBY PLACES OF INTEREST

Genesee Valley Greenway

MacKay Wildlife Preserve

Mumford

Take a slow walk around the hamlet. Enjoy the shops, buildings, and homes. If the water level is high enough, you may be able to kayak or canoe Oatka Creek. The launch area is on State Route 36 on the northeast side of the bridge over the creek.

Oatka Park

Twin Cedars Environmental Area

 

Updated 22 August 2010

 

 

  

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