For many decades an "unofficial" swimming hole and summer recreation area for South Buffalo residents (including inimitable former mayor Jimmy Griffin), Gallagher Beach is one of Buffalo Harbor State Park's marquee attractions. Buffalonians flock to Gallagher Beach in the summer months to walk and bike along the new boardwalk and to enjoy sunbathing, fishing, kayaking, and windsurfing. (Swimming is nominally prohibited, but enforcement is lax, and if you visit you'll likely see folks in the water. However, it's probably not a good idea to follow suit.) Gallagher Beach is easily accessed via the Shoreline Trail and is also adjacent to Tifft Nature Preserve.
Free
For many decades an "unofficial" swimming hole for South Buffalo residents, Gallagher Beach is one of Buffalo Harbor State Park's marquee attractions, offering sunbathing, fishing, kayaking, and windsurfing. (Swimming is nominally prohibited, but enforcement is lax, and if you visit you'll likely see folks in the water. However, it's probably not a good idea to follow suit.)
Free
If you've been to Buffalo before, you may remember this place as Dug's Dive, who were famous for charging premium prices for the lake views from their dining room while cutting corners on food and service. Have things improved? Yes and no. The ambience has definitely been kicked up a notch (though you still won't feel out of place in shorts and boat shoes), and the menu is more considerate to those who don't like seafood (while there's plenty of the former to choose from, the best-loved options include the house special "Boatyard Burger" and the apple walnut salad). On the other hand, the food itself gets mixed reviews, and the service is, if anything, worse than before. Still, Charlie's is the only game in town on the Outer Harbor, and those views over the lake are pretty impressive.
Mon-Thu 11AM-9PM, Fri Sat 11AM-10PM, Sun 9AM-8PM·$20-45
Operated by the Buffalo Museum of Science, Tifft Nature Preserve is 264 acres (106 ha) of greenery that serves as an important wetland habitat for native wildlife such as beaver, fox, turtle, deer, and 264 species of native and migratory waterfowl. George Washington Tifft's dairy farm was later used as a transshipment terminal for the Lehigh Valley Railroad and then as a garbage dump; by the time it became a nature preserve in 1976, it had already "rewilded" on its own to a great degree. The preserve has been thoroughly cleaned up since the days of heavy industry, and today the nature trails and wildlife viewing stations at Tifft are one of the best ways for Buffalonians to get "back to nature" without leaving the city limits. The 75 acres (30 ha) of freshwater cattail marsh are one of Western New York's largest natural expanses of this type of ecosystem. Fishing on Lake Kirsty is popular in the summer, as are guided nature walks; in winter, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing are on offer. The Makowski Visitors' Center is open all year.
Wed-Sat 10AM-4PM, Sun noon-4PM·Donation