During the time of year when we find ourselves right between summer and fall, our local residents know that it's the ultimate time to get outdoors to have some fun. While it's still warm enough to be enjoyable, yet cooling down enough that you aren't overwhelmed by the heat, now's the time to head out on a hike here in Western New York. If you're wondering what scenic spots are close to home, check out this loop trail through the woods that will leave you in awe.
Only 15 minutes from Downtown Buffalo, the Reinstein Woods Nature Preserve is a gorgeous place to go exploring.
At this charming park, you'll find an environmental education center tucked away in the woods where you can learn about all this area and the amazing wildlife that lives here.
No matter what season it is, we love exploring the great outdoors that surrounds our beautiful city, and there's no better way than lacing up your hiking shoes and enjoying a leisurely hike and some fresh air. If you need to ease back into your fitness routine, get your steps in and hit these nine easy trails for some of the best easy hikes in Buffalo. Which ones are your favorites? Let us know (and send pictures).
Tifft Nature Preserve is a 264-acre nature refuge with five miles of nature trails and three boardwalks to explore. The hiking here is easy and scenic!
This small, New York state park is a great Sunday afternoon activity. Featuring meadows, trails, and Ellicott Creek, visitors can enjoy an easy hike or a picnic with friends and family.
Eternal Flame Falls is a bit higher on the difficulty scale, but it's still a relatively easy hike to this natural wonder, located at Chestnut Ridge Park. The trail to find it is 1.5 miles round trip.
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Explore Eternal Flame Falls in this spellbinding video:
If hiking back to waterfalls isn't exactly your thing, stick around at Chesnut Ridge and you can enjoy several alternate trails to enjoy. This park provides easy hiking along with peace and quiet in Orchard Park.
If you thought nature was beautiful, just wait until you experience it at the Charles E. Burchfield Nature Center. This spot has some of the most interesting, easy hiking available near Buffalo. Bring your sneakers AND your camera!
Akron Falls Park features several easy hiking trails that meander through a beautiful landscape. There is even a waterfall and a rushing creek to enjoy!
The Reinstein Woods is easy hiking near Buffalo with a 2.8-mile loop trail and plenty of nature to experience! This nature preserve is known for its wildlife - from birds to turtles and beyond.
Walton Woods has a 1.4-mile loop trail. And their paved pathways make for ideal easy hiking, biking, and more. This is one lovely, easy hike near Buffalo you're sure to fall in love with.
Which of these trails are you most excited to lace up your boots for? Now that you know about some of our favorite easy trails around Queen City, let us know which trails you feel offer some of the best hikes in Buffalo. And if you want to amp up your hiking game, check out our friends at AllTrails+. You'll have no idea how you hiked before without it.
The winter months are infamous for causing a lack of motivation. We know it can be hard to get out when Mother Nature is being unkind, but don't let cold weather keep you from working up a sweat! Rather than packing on the pounds, try packing down some snow instead. These nine picturesque trails for winter hiking near Buffalo are perfect for the outdoorsy type! Winter in Buffalo has never been so fun ... or fit!
Tifft Nature Preserve is one of the best spots in Buffalo to unwind and recharge in nature. It's also one of the most popular spots for winter hiking. Trails at Tifft consist of 1.9 miles with a lake, bridges, and year-round opportunities to enjoy! It doesn't get much more beautiful than Tifft for most of the year; in the winter it's especially magical.
Chestnut Ridge Park clearly had to have a spot on this list! While there are plenty of trails to enjoy winter hiking here, the obvious favorite is the Eternal Flame Trail. That's one of those absolutely bonkers, bucket-list-worthy trails you'll only find here in New York (and, thankfully, close to Buffalo).
Reinstein Woods trails run for roughly 2.5 miles and are open from sunrise to sunset daily. While we favor it in the fall, winter hiking at this nature preserve will take you up close and personal to forests, wetlands, and ponds. This wonderful hiking trail near Buffalo is short, easy, and wonderful! If you've never hiked Reinstein Woods, you've never lived - and if you've never hiked it during the winter, you're missing out.
For winter hiking south of the city, Sprague Brook Park is a popular option. This park is also wonderful for camping in NY in the summer months, but the trails here are best from February through November. Trek some (or all) of the 8.6-mile loop to discover all the area has to offer! This one is sure to go down in your favorites list to do again and again.
The Erie County Forest Trail offers some of the most serene winter hiking around. Not only are the Scarbuck Trail and Extension Loops beautifully scenic, but there is also a warming hut and maple sugar shack located nearby. We're not sure it gets a whole lot better than that, honestly.
If nature's beauty isn't quite enough to convince you to take a winter hike, a visit to Burchfield Nature & Art Center should do the trick! This unique location consists of nature trails and woods along the Buffalo Creek, dotted with intricate artwork to brighten up the snowy landscape. Lovers of all things natural and artsy will find a wonderful, warm home here.
When paying a visit to this small town in New York, it's always a good idea to stop by Knox Farm State Park. This park consists of 633 acres and has plenty of easy, scenic walks to offer. While the park is beautiful any time of year, the scenery really stands out while winter hiking. Okay, EVERY state park in New York is amazing all year, but they really do just get even better when covered in snow.
Amherst State Park is one of those lesser-known state parks near Buffalo and has plenty of options for winter hiking trails. Most trails are unmarked, but they are easy to follow in this 77-acre conservation park.
Finally, be sure to visit the Beaver Meadow Audubon Center with its 324 acres to explore! This nature preserve has more than eight miles of groomed and marked trails, perfect for winter hiking, birding, and becoming one with nature.
Where are your favorite places to get out and about during the winter in New York? Share the best spots with us in the comments so we can get outside to enjoy the scenic season!
Should you find that you cannot get enough of the winter wonderland our beautiful state becomes every season, there are plenty more things to do, see and experience! Visit some of the best winter towns in New York, or maybe even embark upon the awesome Christmas lights of New York road trip!
