Finding Fires - Traversing Tompkins Freestyle Trail

How did Tompkins County rise from the ashes? See the fires that blazed through these towns, and how they rose again.

**This tour was originally developed in 2021 for The History Center in Tompkins County's annual fundraiser Traverse Tompkins: Finding Fires*

The 2021 Traverse Tompkins explored Tompkins County through historic fires that impacted all corners of Tompkins County. Whether you stop at the site of the A&P fire rumored to be retaliation by the Mob on the present day Commons, or trek over to Trumansburg to learn about the master craftsmen who doubled as the Podunk Arsonist, our fires of interest are a great way to learn more about Tompkins County.

The tour starts on The Commons in downtown Ithaca, and winds through several stops downtown before heading west. After a quick out and back to Tutelo Park, follow the Black Diamond trail for a series of fires in Trumansburg. You'll head south with some rolling climbs to reach Newfield, and then meander east through forests to Danby. After Danby, the tour takes you through Brooktondale and Caroline before turning north to Dryden. The series of fires in Dryden spits out riders onto the Rail Trail up to Freeville. Follow Route 38 North to Groton, before tacking west to reach Route 34. This stretch eventually drops you into Cayuga Heights and Cornell for a series of fires before dropping riders back onto The Commons for a well deserved finish!

ACCESSIBILITY NOTES ABOUT THE TOUR:

Intended to be a driving tour or an avid biking trail.

Smaller subset walking or cycling Finding Fires tours can be found on PocketSights for the Town of Dryden, Village of Trumansburg, and Town of Ithaca.

Cycling trail details: Tompkins County Trail(117 mi)- (Tompkins County Strava Trail), 7,444ft of Elevation Gain

Listen to the tour on SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/tompkinshistory/sets/finding-fires-tompkins-county-trail