Finger Lakes
The Finger Lakes are a group of eleven long, narrow, roughly north–south lakes located directly south of Lake Ontario in an area called the Finger Lakes region in New York, in the United States. This region straddles the northern and transitional edge of the Northern Allegheny Plateau, known as the Finger Lakes Uplands and Gorges ecoregion, and the Ontario Lowlands ecoregion of the Great Lakes Lowlands.
| Finger Lakes | |
|---|---|
Satellite view of the Finger Lakes region in late fall. Lake Ontario at the top left. | |
| Location | New York |
| Coordinates | 42°40′N 76°50′W |
| Type | Finger lakes |
| Part of | Lake Ontario Basin |
| Primary outflows | Oswego River |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Settlements | Ithaca, Geneva, Canandaigua |
| Part of a series on |
| Regions of New York |
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The geological term finger lake refers to a long, narrow lake in an overdeepened glacial valley, while the proper name Finger Lakes goes back to the late 19th century. Cayuga and Seneca Lakes are among the deepest in the United States, measuring 435 feet (133 m) and 618 feet (188 m), respectively, with bottoms well below sea level. Though none of the lakes' widths exceed 3.5 miles (5.6 km), Seneca Lake is 38.1 miles (61.3 km) long, and at 66.9 square miles (173 km2) is the largest in total area.