OWASCO - Trying to avoid the shopping crowds, Craig Anderson and Jim Nervina took a drive instead.

As they passed Cayuga County's Emerson Park in Owasco, they were surprised by thousands of lights twinkling from trees and bushes and on the light poles along the seawall.

“We were driving by, so we thought we might as well check them out,” said Nervina, of Owasco.

Brandon Stewart, of Auburn, and Jacquie Phillips, of Sennett, also were putting off shopping until late in the evening. They stopped by Emerson Park to kill some time and decided to take a walk.

“They're gorgeous,” Phillips said of the lights. “It's really nice to see them all lit up around the park.”

The park used to have a much more elaborate light display with holiday figures, but stopped doing that about three years ago because of lack of corporate sponsorship and competition from the elaborate displays at “Lights on the Lake” at Onondaga Lake Park in Syracuse.

“We couldn't compete with that,” said Michele Lincoln, assistant director of the Cayuga County Parks and Trails Department.

But the subdued display has generated its own following. Lincoln has said the lights serve to complement the natural beauty of the park.

Because the tour is self-guided, Lincoln said there are no attendance figures available.

“We took what is already a beautiful place and emphasized it for the holidays,” she said. “It's pretty.”