Letchworth State Park

The Genesee River didn't carve this gorge so much as inherit it — the last continental glacier diverted the river into a new valley entirely, and the water has been cutting ever since. The result is 14,427 acres of western New York State where gorge walls rise up to 550 feet, three major waterfalls drop between 70 and 107 feet, and 66 miles of trails trace the 17-mile length of the canyon. In 2015 and again in 2020, it won USA Today's Reader's Choice as the best state park in the country. The nickname — Grand Canyon of the East — is earned.