Finger Lakes Region
The Finger Lakes is a group of 11 long, narrow, roughly north–south lakes in a region called the Finger Lakes region in Central New York, in the United States. This region is defined as a bioregion and is a popular tourist destination.
The lakes' shapes reminded early map-makers of human fingers, and the name stuck. They are also characteristic glacial finger lakes. Cayuga (435 feet deep, 133 m) and Seneca (618 feet, 188 m) Lakes are among the deepest in the United States, with bottoms well below sea level. They are also the longest Finger Lakes, though neither's width exceeds 3.5 miles (5.6 km); Seneca Lake is 38.1 miles (61.3 km) long, and 66.9 square miles (173 km2), the largest in total area.
Oneida Lake is generally not considered one of the Finger Lakes, but it is sometimes called the "thumb".
The 11 Finger Lakes, from east to west, are:
Cazenovia Lake to the east, although smaller, is sometimes called "the 12th Finger Lake", because it is similar in shape. It is located in Appalachian hill terrain, with a historic village linked to other Finger Lakes by US 20. It may have been formed in the same manner as the Finger Lakes, as satellite photos show three valleys similar in character and spacing to the Finger Lakes east of Otisco Lake. The first is the Tully Valley, which includes a chain of small lakes at the south end that could be a "Finger Lake" that never formed because of a terminal moraine. The moraine caused the Tioughnioga River to flow south instead of north, the opposite of the Finger Lakes' waters. The next two valleys to the east contain Butternut Creek, which flows north, and the East Branch of the Tioughnioga River, which flows south. The next valley contains Limestone Creek, which flows north. The next valley after that contains Cazenovia Lake.
Oneida Lake, to the northeast of Syracuse, New York, is sometimes included as the "thumb", although it is shallow and somewhat different in character from the rest. Onondaga Lake, though located just north of the Finger Lakes region, is not considered one of the Finger Lakes. As with Oneida and Cazenovia Lakes, it drains into Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River. Likewise, Chautauqua Lake, Findley Lake and Kinzua Lake to the west are not considered Finger Lakes; all three drain into the Allegheny River and eventually into the Gulf of Mexico, and in the case of Kinzua and Findley, the lakes are the artificial creation of dams.
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