CAYUGA LAKE(WENY)-- A ribbon cutting was held today at Taughannock Falls state park to announce the first Blueway trail in the Finger Lakes region. 

A Blueway trail is similar to a hiking trail; it provides suggested routes depending on the boater or kayaker's skill level. It also has rest stops, scenic locations and even bird watching. 

Blueway trails are made for nonmotorized watercraft including kayaks, stand-up paddleboards and canoes. The Cayuga blueway trail offers 24 different paddling trip options which are all mapped out and can be found by following this link. The trips vary from novice to expert with the longest trail being 11 miles and the shortest trail being a mile and a half, there are options for everyone. 

Kathy Hochul, Lieutenant Governor of New York acknowledged that this region has been hit very hard by the pandemic and the hope is that introducing attractions like the Blue way trail to the area, it will help to bring in revenue for local businesses that have been struggling. 

“ The restaurants, the diners, the paddle boat companies, the hotels, the restaurants, they were all hurt so badly last year,” said Hochul. “So we need to help them have a comeback, let's have an incredible comeback and tell everybody, yes we were knocked down but we are not out, we are back and we are going to celebrate it with this incredible, incredible  blue way experience.” 

The unveiling of the Cayuga blueway trail also comes at a time when outdoor recreational sports have skyrocketed in popularity; which is largely a result of the year of closed venues and social distancing requirements.  

Dr. Anna Kelles, Assemblywoman for the 125th district, said she is in full support of the Cayuga Blueway and she hopes that it not only encourages community members to get outside and enjoy mother nature but to also understand how important it is to take care of the environment. 

“The ability for everyone to get into the lake and get on the lake and travel across the lake will give everyone a very deep personal connection,” said Kelles. “ We can see of course all of the HAB’s outbreaks that we have had  and I want anyone who comes to the lake to feel a sense of personal ownership.”

Over the past few years, studies have found that Harmful Algal Blooms have been increasing at drastic rates throughout the Finger Lakes region. HABs can be dangerous for both pets and humans to swim in and drink. While HABs are not new, what seems to be new is the presence of HAB’s in the Finger Lakes. According to Seneca Lake Pure Waters Association from 2014-2018, there has been a change from 0 to 41 HAB’s on Seneca Lake. 

One of the main causes of HAB’s is global warming. In the 2015 Paris Accord countries agreed to hold the rise in global average temperature “well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.” 

To meet this goal emissions would have had to fall by fifteen percent in 2019, but they didn't; instead, they continued to climb, making the goal of reaching the 1.5 C mark very unlikely.