You've now made it to the Finger Lakes! The Finger Lakes refers to a group of 11 long, narrow lakes in New York which are generally oriented north to south. Two of the lakes, Cayuga and Senega, are also some of the deepest in the United States, with depths of 435 and 618 feet respectively. And while none of the lakes have a width exceeding 3.5 miles, Seneca Lake is 38.1 miles long.

The Finger Lakes are part of the Iroquois homeland. For nealy two centuries, the Iroquois were able to prevent colonization and displacement, which would often involve pitting the French against the British. However, by the late 18th century, the French had left Canada, weakening Iroquois power, especially relative to the steadily increasing population of European-Americans. In additon to this, there was internal strife, which eroded the political unity of the Iroquois. This led to a civil war amongst the Iroquois when during the American Revolutionary War, some sided with the Bristish, and others with the Americans.

Today, aside from being a tourist attraction, the Finger Lakes are home to thinks like wine and craft beer production. This area in fact produces more wine than anywhere else in New York, with over 100 wineries and vineyards. The great depth of the lakes provide a lake effect to the vinyards around their shores. In addition to that, the production of craft beer has exploded, with the number of breweries doubling since 2012 (all information courtesy of Wikipedia.com, image courtesy of RochesterNY / Public domain).