Lake Otsego Boat Tours, Cooperstown

One of the outstanding aspects of the Cooperstown area is the boat trip on the "Glimmerglas Queen" that on the hour takes tourists around nine mile long Otsego Lake. Glimmerglas was a nickname given to the lake by American author James Fennimore Cooper because of the sparkling reflections of sunlight on the lake's dark blue surface. So that tourists may fully appreciate what they see, the delightful lady owner of the boat who also sells the tickets for the trip ($12.50) plays a ten minute tape recorded narrative description of what is to be seen during the trip. The all steel double deck ship, built in Albany in 2002 is masterfully piloted by Capt. Joe Colliga, who carefully maintains a pleasant speed of 9 knots making the trip a joy. The undeveloped shoreline of Otsego Lake rises steeply from the waters edge. About 80% of the mostly pristine shoreline is owned by one family trust, thus this minimal development has kept the lake nearly free of polution. No trip to this area would be complete without experiencing this one hour boat ride.