Niagara Falls (American and Canadian Side) 62 degrees, cloudy skies with occasion rainbows
I met a man from India while waiting for a tram at
the Niagara Falls State Park. We had a brief conversation which ended by him saying
"it's so wonderful God gave America this wonder for all of us to
enjoy" Perfectly stated don't you think? .
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| American and Horseshoe Falls (Canadian side) |
We spent two days exploring with our friends the
U.S and Canadian side of this wonder. The weather was chilly but it didn't
dampen our mood. Our first stop was the Niagara Falls State Park on the New
York side. The Maid of the Mist was running and we all decided to get initiated
right away to the roar of the falls and see it up close and personal. It costs us each $17 (senior discount) and we were given a
blue raincoat to protect us from most of the spray. It was a thrill of ride as
we got up close to the base of the Horseshoe Falls in our small boat. The roar of the water cascading
over the falls was deafening. We loved it! Over 20% of the worlds water goes over this
falls.
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| Observation tower leading down to the Maid of the Mist |
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| Dressed up in our finest |
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| Maid of the Mist |
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| Foot of the American side |
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| Barry is such a handsome dude |
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| Approaching the base of the Horseshoe Falls |
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| Returning back to the American side |
Afterwards we bought a tram ticket for $3 which
allows you to get on and off around the park stopping for different views and
perspectives of the falls. It's a great deal. Our campground pass (Four Mile
Creek State Park) also got us free parking at this park. We all thought the
American side had a lot to offer.
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| Tram bus |
We went back to our campground for awhile after a
nice lunch to rest and then returned again and left our cars at the same state
park. From here it is an easy walk across the Rainbow Bridge to enter into Canada. Our plan was to hang out until
the light show. Daffodils and tulips were flowering all over the place. We were
even treated to a full rainbow across the falls. We thought it was a sign of good times ahead.
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| Randy and Fran |
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| Jann, Fran, and Susie |
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| American and Bridal Veil Falls |
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| Horseshoe Falls at night |
The next day some of us went to visit Old Fort Niagara. It's a very interesting place to visit. This fort was held by French, American, and English solders at different times between the 18th and 20th century. We started off with a very informative movie in the visitor center and then went out to watch a fun musket shooting and toured the building and grounds. It's been very well restored. Admission is $12.
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| British musket reenactor |
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| The beds seemed so short |
Tomorrow we will be crossing the border into Canada for five months. We are all very excited to start this long anticipated trip. .
Looks like you were lucky to have a day when there weren't too many tourists at the falls. Last time we went we said never again. I remember going a long time ago when I was a kid and it wasn't a cheap looking touristy kind of place, at least on the Canadian side as it is now. Having said that I think that everyone needs to see the waterfalls, they really are amazing.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your time in Canada, it is a beautiful and friendly country.
www.travelwithkevinandruth.com
I find the amount of water going over the falls to be totally amazing. We stayed on the Canadian side in 2011 (mistake! expensive!!) and I could stand at the edge watching the water go over for hours. The Fort was interesting also, we enjoyed that, and if you're back that way Niagra-on-the-Lake was a really beautiful town, with the best peaches in the fall!
ReplyDeleteWow what a great day at the falls. We were headed that way too until we got stopped in our tracks. Really envying you 5 months in Canada. Can't wait to see it.
ReplyDeleteThat sure is a wonderful area!
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