Houghton College Forest Trails

Houghton College
1 Willard Avenue
Houghton, NY 14744

Nestled within the Genesee River Valley

and surrounded by the rolling hills of

Western New York, the Houghton College

forest provides one of the best places for

hiking in northern Allegany County. The

forest features 4+ miles of trails that are

open year-round to students, community

members, and the general public. Not only

is this living laboratory widely used by

Houghton College professors for teaching

students about the local ecology, but it

also provides a wide array of recreational

activities including hiking, trail running,

skiing, snowshoeing, and geocaching.

White pine, ash, hemlock, hickory, red and

sugar maples may be found throughout the

forest, though the most impressive trees are

undoubtedly the towering red and white oaks.

In addition to the ubiquitous squirrels, the

forest plays home to such creatures as deer,

chipmunks, fox, skunks, and numerous species

of salamanders. Monarch butterflies occasionally

breed in the meadow along the back side of the

Overlook Trail near the wild apple orchard.

Bird watchers should keep an eye out for

hawks (especially broad-winged and redtailed),

woodpeckers, crows, ravens, blue

jays, cardinals, and various other songbirds.

One particularly noteworthy resident of the

Houghton forest is the enormous pileated

woodpecker (hint: listen for the jungle-like

cackle and look for the distinctive red crest).

View the Houghton trail map online at

https://www.houghton.edu/admission/visiting/campus-map/houghton-trail-map/.