Cooperstown NY has many areas of scenic beauty, but perhaps the best -- and least known --is Council Rock Park where the nine-mile long Otsego Lake meets the Susquehanna River.

At the junction of River and Lake Rds., a steep staircase leads to a dream-like shaded area of lush green park land within a maple tree grove meeting Otsego Lake and the hills and mountains in the distance. The steep staircase's landmark is a metallic plaque named Clinton's Dam, a temporary military object which aided the Continental Army in winning the War of Independence, according to the Penn State University Press.

Council Rock Park is the perfect place to have a picnic, sit on a bench, stick your feet in the pristine water and truly enjoy the quiet side of Cooperstown -- although just a minute's walk from Main St. Here, you will find a place that has nothing in common with the heavy baseball theme of Cooperstown. The fact that such opposites can co-exist within a few blocks is a true testimony to the greatness of Cooperstown.

Most vacationers looking for relative solitude in the busy Cooperstown summer will find a respite at Lakefront Park, a block away from Council Rock. Lakefront Park, with its sloping greens, wonderful sunsets and sunrises, and amazing views of Otsego Lake, seems like one of the greatest places in the world. If that is true, Council Rock Park is beyond description. You may not find Council Rock Park prominently displayed in travel guides, but that's immaterial. As evidenced by one view of Council Rock Park, the greatest travel guides live in one's heart through discovery and inspiration.