Niagara Falls

So, having made the decision to fly to Calgary and Heli Hiking from Toronto, a six hour drive from Central PA, we opted to spend a couple days in Niagara Falls on the way home. The Falls are 60 miles southeast of Toronto and 20 miles from the Canada / USA border at Buffalo.

Mrs Bear and I claimed to have seen the Falls roughly 50+ years ago, although she wasn’t so sure after this visit. The are some places that are never forgotten after seeing them the first time … Niagara Falls qualifies for that honor.

Niagara Falls drains water from Lake Erie into Lake Ontario. It was formed by the recession of glaciers during the last ice age. About 5.9 million cubic feet of water goes over the falls every minute. The picture above was taken from our hotel room.

We are on the Canadian side of the Falls, which straddles the border with the USA. The views of the Falls all seem to be on the Canadian side. The picture above is Horseshoe Falls, or Canadian Falls, the premier part of the Falls. Views come and go, depending on the mist levels from the descending water. Staying on the Canadian side is more expensive … but as they say, you get what you pay for.

We did not visit the American side of the Falls … I assume that the hotels are cheaper. Visitors can walk over the Peace Bridge to the Canadian views, or access the boat rides or walk down paths toward the water’s edge on the American side.

The above photo is the American Falls, which is slightly lower at the top, has rocks at the bottom, and has a separate Falls at the extreme right which is called Bridal Vail Falls. The boats can actually get a little closer to these Falls.

Niagara is an interesting combination of magnificent and cheesy … This is a world class geological formation … the length and water density are amazing. But it is also very expensive. Almost everyone takes the boat ride and dresses up in the rain ponchos. We are standing above at another popular attraction that involves going down an elevator and walking to various vantage points underneath the Canadian Falls.

These tunnels were dug initially as part of a Canadian hydroelectric power project.

Back in the room, we were able to look out at a light and fireworks show in the evening.

Here is a rare shot of the Canadian Falls with almost no mist.

One visit for two nights was enough …. Another way to visit would be to do a day visit on the Canadian side, do the boat ride, and leave. This would be a lot cheaper, and it would be easy to stop by on your way to Toronto or Buffalo.