Chimney Bluffs State Park 4.77

Chimney Bluffs State Park is a 597acre state park in the town of Huron in Wayne County, New York. The park is situated on the southern shore of Lake Ontario, east of Sodus Bay. From the park's hiking trails, visitors can view the large clay formations at the water's edge for which the park is named.GeologyThe bluffs are formed from eroded drumlins, teardrop-shaped hills of glacial till that were deposited and shaped by glaciers during the most recent ice age. The erosive power of wind, rain, snow, and waves has formed the landscape into sharp pinnacles. Although the pinnacles and cliffs, some of which rise up to above the lake shore, have existed for thousands of years, they are constantly changing and further eroding. The average erosion of bluffs is 1to per year.The Lake Ontario shoreline from Sodus Bay to Oswego has many bluffs, of which Chimney Bluffs is the most visited.Park history and featuresThe Chimney Bluffs area has been a landmark for many years. According to the pamphlet given by the park, smugglers used the area as a landing point while transporting liquor from Canada during Prohibition. The area was acquired by the state of New York in 1963 after having previously been operated informally as a privately owned recreation area.