Hi, everyone!
We took a trip to Niagara Falls this week! Grandma says that Niagara Falls is one of the most famous places for people from other countries to visit. It’s only 90 miles away, but I hadn’t been there yet! Grandma and Grandpa visited Niagara Falls in 1969 and they don’t recall being there any time since! At Niagara Falls, all the water that drains out of the upper Great Lakes and Lake Erie goes into the Niagara River on the way to Lake Ontario. There’s a big difference in the level of the water between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, so that makes rapids and waterfalls! The Niagara River is the boundary between the US and Canada, so we started on the US side before we crossed the border. Even before the water goes over the American and Bridal Veil falls, the river is moving very fast with lots of waves and foam! In 1969, though, the water was completely blocked upstream so that repairs could be made to the stone ledges right below the falls. There was no water in that part of the river at all! Grandma and Grandpa and I walked over to Goat Island on the pedestrian bridge (the arched bridge in the pictures) to get a close-up view of the American Falls and Bridal Veil falls. We even walked over to Luna Island, between the American and Bridal Veil falls! Looking at all the water flowing over the falls, it was hard to imagine the falls being completely turned off. But that’s what the photos Grandma and Grandpa took then show!
This year, though, the area with the best view of Horseshow Falls from the American side was closed for repairs! Grandma said it was a good thing we were planning to cross to the Canadian side of the river, where we’d be able to get close to the other side of Horseshoe Falls. After we hiked around Goat Island, we recrossed the pedestrian bridge and walked up to Prospect Point. There’s a good view of all three falls from there! We could see the hotel on the Canadian side where we were going to stay, too!
Sometimes there are long lines of cars waiting to get across the border, but we got right through! Grandpa drove us down the Niagara River toward Lake Ontario to see some of the sights there. Grandma remembers visiting the floral clock when she was a little girl, so we started there. Then we started back upstream to see the whirlpool. That’s the place where the river changes direction, making the water go around and round. It’s a dangerous place to take a boat! Then we went on the White Water Walk. We took an elevator down to the level of the river and walked along a boardwalk right beside the rapids. Rapids are graded according to how dangerous they are for boating, with Class Five rapids being very dangerous ones that only well-equipped experts should try. The Niagara River rapids here are even more dangerous: Class Six! It was exciting and a little scary to be so close!
When we checked into our hotel, I took a look out the window of our room right away. We could see all three falls! After dark, I watched the lights that shine on the falls change color. They were very pretty! I had a very comfy bed, too!
It was rainy on Friday morning and it stayed cloudy all day. When it stopped raining, we went out walking along the Canadian side of the Niagara River. First we walked downstream to get a good view of the American and Bridal Veil Falls. Then we walked back upstream, toward the Horseshoe Falls. When you’re close to the Horseshoe Falls, it’s hard to tell whether it’s raining or not, because there is always a light mist making the sidewalk wet! After that, we walked further upstream, past the power plant. Grandma wanted to visit the Floral Showhouse, because that’s another place she remembered visiting as a little girl, when it was called the Niagara Parks Conservatory. Monday is Canadian Thanksgiving, so there were special holiday flower arrangements. I made more pumpkin friends!
Our hotel is located uphill from the falls and the park, but there’s an incline railway in just the right place to help us get back! We went right up the hill, then stopped for a treat before we went back to our room. The gelato was yummy!
Friday night, there were fireworks over the falls, as well as colored lights. Grandpa says the lighting on the casinos on both sides of the river reminds him of Las Vegas! I was happy we could see everything without leaving our hotel room!
Saturday. Grandma got me up to watch sunrise. The rising sun lit up the clouds with pretty colors. When the sun actually rose, the mist from Horseshoe Falls turned orange for a little while, too! By mid-morning, the sunshine made the water going over the Horseshoe Falls look silver! That was a nice last look at the falls before we ended our visit!
Love,
Lion-san
What a great sight, Niagara Falls! Nancy-san said she grew up there and only saw the falls when company came to visit. She also remembers Goat Island especially during the Maid of the Mist Festival and one Christmas eve with ice all around which used to be the only time they had lights on the falls. Hope it didn’t take too long for your mane to dry out.