手指湖

You may have heard about the Great Lakes in North America. Well， not far from the Five Great Lakes lies a pattern of beautiful smaller lakes in the west-central section of Americans New York. To be exact， they are between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. These 11 crystalclear lakes spread like fingers across the region， thus， they are known as the Finger Lakes.

As an old saying goes， beauty is in the eye of the gazer. I dare to say everyone who has visited the Finger Lakes will marvel at their tranquility and grace. I am one of these lake gazers. My recent visit to the Finger Lakes only deepened my love for this fertile land， which feeds acres of farmland， and mile after mile of vineyards. Centuries ago， Native Americans settled around these lakes. Their legend lives on in the names of these fresh water lakes： Conesus， Hemlock， Canadice， Honeoye， Canandaigua， Keuka， Seneca， Cayuga， Owasco， Skaneateles， and Otisco.

I spent two days exploring the biggest Finger Lakes—Cayuga Lake and Seneca Lake. The Indian name Cayuga means “Boat Landing”， and Seneca means “Place of the Stone” or “Stoney Place”. These two big lakes are also the most visited ones. Tens of thousands of tourists and summer residents flood into the lake region starting from Memorial Day注1 weekend， which falls on the last Monday of each May. In May， the lake region is covered with lush greenery. From endless fields to rolling hills， from grape vines about a teenagers height in orderly rows to the towering trees that shade the mountain range， each and every perspective offers varied shades of green. The flickering leaves in the sun and the dancing branches in the breeze， together with the palette of flowers， get me every time.

Just when I am bathing in the sea of color， a silver belt in between two mountain ranges shines in front of me. The belt is actually the sparkling water from the lakes. The closer I get to it， the more it pulls me in. From the map you will see both Cayuga Lake （to the east） and Seneca Lake （to the west） are long and thin and next to one another. There is a canal in the north tip connecting both lakes. The Cayuga Seneca Canal connects these two lakes to the Erie Canal which runs through the Finger Lakes to the north. Each lake is connected by rivers ultimately leading into Lake Ontario， which lies on the border between Canada and the United States.

Well， in reality， the silver belt of water can be either Cayuga Lake or Seneca Lake， because both of them sit between two evenly moderate high grounds. However， the statistics show with 40 miles in length and 96 miles of shoreline， Cayuga is the longest of the Finger Lakes and the lowest to sea level; whereas Seneca is the deepest of the Finger Lakes at a maximum depth of 618 feet. Imagine that a 62-floor building could stand underwater！

To visit Cayuga Lake， you wont miss its largest city—Ithaca， which is home of one of the Ivy League注2 schools—Cornell University. And did you know that Connells campus overlooks Cayuga Lake？ As its Alma Mater sings， “Far above Cayugas waters， with its waves of blue， stands our noble Alma Mater， glorious to view. Lift the chorus， speed it onward， loud her praises tell. Hail to thee， our Alma Mater！ Hail， all hail， Cornell！” On this trip I happened to see the proud Cornell graduates in their redand-black caps and gowns， welcomed by joyous families and friends with bouquets in hand.

The Finger Lakes area is New York States largest wine producing region. In fact， the areas wine trails are very popular. These trails showcase local wineries and tastings are often not limited to just wine—beer， juices， ciders and mead can be sipped throughout the region. Its also notable that Seneca Lake seldom freezes in winter. Therefore， there are more wineries along Seneca Lake than any other Finger Lake. And if you need a break from numerous water sports on the lakes—fishing， swimming， canoeing， kayaking， you name it—the Wine Trail， Cheese Trail and Brew Trail may satisfy your sense of taste.

I finished my lake ride along the Y-shaped Keuka Lake. Keuka Lake is the only Finger Lake with an outlet into another Finger Lake—Seneca Lake. Gazing at the fresh water and hearing the waves rocking against the stony beach， I feel as relaxed and reflective as the lake. Lake effect weather is well known in the Finger Lakes area. Perhaps these lakes are as influential to the atmosphere as to humans. This lake gazer is truly hooked.

你可能已經听过北美洲的五大湖。其实，在距离五大湖不远的美国纽约州中西部，还有一个规模较小的美丽湖群。准确来说，它们位于安大略湖和伊利湖中间。十一个清澈见底的湖泊就像手指一样散布于这个区域，因此得名“手指湖”。

有句老话说，情人眼里出西施。我敢说，去过手指湖的人都会惊叹其宁静与优雅。而我就是凝视这些湖（并被吸引）的人之一。最近一次去手指湖，又加深了我对这片滋养了万顷农田和绵延数里葡萄园的肥沃土地的爱意。早在数百年前，美洲土著就已经在这些湖边定居。这些淡水湖的名字至今仍回响着关于他们的传说。它们的名字是科尼瑟斯湖、汉姆莱克湖、卡那迪斯湖、霍尼欧耶湖、卡南代瓜湖、库卡湖、塞尼卡湖、卡尤加湖、欧瓦斯科湖、斯卡尼阿特勒斯湖以及奥蒂斯科湖。

我花了两天时间游览其中最大的两个湖——卡尤加湖和塞尼卡湖。“卡尤加”这个印第安名字的意思是“船登陆”，而“塞尼卡”的意思是“石头之地”或“多石之地”。这两大湖泊也是游客最多的湖。从阵亡将士纪念日（每年五月最后一个星期一）的那个周末开始，就有成千上万的游客和避暑住客如潮水般涌入手指湖区。五月的手指湖区郁郁葱葱，像盖着一层绿色的毯子。从无垠的田野到起伏的群山，从十几岁少年那么高的成排葡萄树到树冠遮山蔽谷的参天大树——从各个角度望去，都可以看到深深浅浅各种不同的绿。在阳光下熠熠生辉的叶子、在微风中轻轻舞动的树枝和如调色板般多姿多彩的花儿，看得我如痴如醉。

我正沐浴在这片色彩的海洋之中，眼前的两山之间忽然出现一条闪耀的银带。这道银带其实是波光粼粼的湖水。我越靠近，它越令我目眩神迷。从地图上可以看到，（东面的）卡尤加湖和（西面的）塞尼卡湖形状修长，彼此相邻。在北端有一条运河连着这两个湖。这条卡尤加——塞尼卡运河将两个湖连接到了横向流经各湖以北的伊利运河。每个湖最终都通过河流连接到位于加拿大与美国交界的安大略湖。

实际上，那道银带般的湖水可以是卡尤加湖或者塞尼卡湖，因为两者均位于同样中等高度的两山之间。不过，统计数据显示，最长处达40英里（64.4千米）、湖岸线达96英里（155.5千米）的卡尤加湖是手指湖当中最长、海拔最低的一个;而最大深度达618英尺（188.4米）的塞尼卡湖则是最深的——想象一下，水底可以放得下一栋62层的高楼！

去卡尤加湖旅游，一定不要错过附近最大的城市——伊萨卡市，常春藤盟校康奈尔大学就位于此地。你知道吗？康奈尔大学校园正好俯瞰着卡尤加湖。正如其校歌所唱：“卡尤加湖碧波荡漾，高高站在湖面之上，是我们崇高的母校，华美荣耀。让我们齐声同唱，歌声激越，将她大声称颂。向你致敬，我们的母校！致敬，向你致敬，康奈尔！”这次旅行，我恰好碰上康奈尔大学毕业生的亲友团手持花束，笑容满面地迎接穿戴着红黑相间的帽子和长袍的骄子们。

手指湖区是纽约州最大的葡萄酒产区。事实上，该地区的葡萄酒之旅很受欢迎。这些路线展示了当地的酒厂，而品尝也往往不局限于葡萄酒——在这里也可以品尝到啤酒、果汁、苹果酒和蜂蜜酒。值得注意的是塞尼卡湖即使在冬天也很少结冰，因此塞尼卡湖附近有比其他手指湖更多的酒厂。如果你在钓鱼、游泳、独木舟、皮划艇等众多水上运动之余需要稍事休息，那么，葡萄酒之旅、奶酪之旅和酿酒之旅或许可以满足你的味觉。

我在Y字形的库卡湖边结束了这次旅行。在这些手指湖中，只有库卡湖有出口通往另一个手指湖（塞尼卡湖）。凝视着清澈的湖水，听着浪花冲刷着遍布石头的湖岸，我感到如湖泊一样宁静澄澈。众所周知，手指湖区有显著的湖泊效应天气。也许这些湖泊对大气的影响与对人的影响不相上下。我这个凝视湖泊的人，深深地入了迷。

Rnow More

北美五大湖（Great Lakes）是世界最大的淡水湖群，是北美洲的苏必利尔湖、密歇根湖、休伦湖、伊利湖和安大略湖等五个相连湖泊的总称，有“北美大陆地中海”之称。五大湖除密歇根湖属于美国外，其余四湖均跨美国和加拿大两国。五大湖总面积24.5万平方公里，其中美国占72%，加拿大占28%。总蓄水容量约2.3万立方千米，约占全世界淡水总量的五分之一。

法语小知识

夏洛蒂·勃朗特曾经在《简·爱》里写到“Beauty is in the eye of the gazer.”这句话中的gazer可以用beholder（观看者）代替，意思是，不同的人对美的定义都不同，也就是我们常说的“情人眼里出西施”。例如：Personally， I cant understand why she finds him attractive， but they do say beauty is in the eye of the beholder.（就自己而言，我真搞不懂她为什么觉得他有魅力，但他们说，情人眼里出西施。）

Rnow More

康奈尔大学（Cornell University）是一所位于美国东北纽约上州伊萨卡市的世界顶级研究型综合大学，另有两所分校位于美国纽约市和卡塔尔教育城，是著名的常春藤联盟成员，共有四十多位师生曾获诺贝尔奖。

康奈尔大学由埃兹拉·康奈尔和安德鲁·迪克森·怀特于1865年建立，為八个常春藤名校中唯一一所在美国独立战争后创办的大学。康奈尔大学的立校之本是任何人都有获得教育的平等权利，是常春藤盟校中第一所实行性别平等的男女合校大学，招生录取上不分地位身份，不分信仰和种族，并且其校训的宗旨是创建学科齐全、包罗万象的新型综合性大学，因而该校一直被誉为美国历史上第一所具有真正意义的全民大学。

注1：美国阵亡将士纪念日（每年5月的最后一个星期一）是美国悼念在各战争中阵亡的美军官兵的纪念日。

注2：常春藤盟校指的是由美国东北部地区八所大学组成的体育赛事联盟。它们全部是美国一流名校，也是美国产生最多罗德奖学金得主的高校联盟。