Braving the Falls

Yesterday I walked to Canada. Sounds impressive, doesn't it? What if I was at Niagara Falls when I did it? Not as impressive. With everything my brother and I did, I was too tired to post last night. I ended up going to bed early. So as I get ready for another day, I'm posting now to make sure I don't forget anything.

We got an early start so we could get there at a reasonable time. From Ithaca, the drive is about three and a half hours. I was enchanted by the scenery and wished I wasn't driving so I could enjoy it more. The countryside in upstate New York is absolutely beautiful. So many green fields and open skies. Even the houses were pretty. I could tell we were driving through Amish country, especially when we saw a horse and buggy with a gentleman and his daughter in the front seat. But we were past them too quickly for me to see more than a glance.

One of the things that I don't know if I could get used to would be the toll roads. To be allowed to drive on one of the highways we had to take, we needed to pay a toll. We got a little card that showed where we got on the freeway and we paid where we got off. It ended up being about $9 for the round trip. Oh, and the bridge was an additional dollar in each direction--which is still cheaper than bridge toll at home.
We finally got to Niagra Falls shortly before 11:30. We could see the rushing rapids leading to the sharp drop-off as we drove to find parking. My brother and I ate the lunch we brought--a sandwich we got at Wegmans yesterday for the trip--at the top of the falls where we could see the water flowing over the edge. The water was loud!

Public access area at the bottom of the eastern (?) side of the falls.

Niagara Falls observation tower

We took the Maid of the Mist tour which took us around the river at the base of the falls. But before we got on the boat, we went up to the observation deck to see the falls. And it took my breath away.

Have you ever seen something so beautiful that you almost want to cry? Niagara Falls was like that for me. Every view of the falls just filled me with this sense of wonder and awe. To be able to live in a world where such a place exists, it's almost easy to believe that the world is inherently good. It was almost a religious experience.

And then we got on the Maid of the Mist and it got even better. As we approached the falls, the thunderous sound of the cascading water drowned out the boat's PA system that was trying to tell us about the falls. I wouldn't have been able to pay attention anyway because the falls had so completely arrested my attention. I must have taken dozens of of pictures of the falls; I'm only showing a small fraction of them here. The cliffs and the rocks between the two sides of the falls were covered with birds; there were literally thousands of them there and flying around in the air. I think they were nesting there.

The sun came out as we were exploring the public area at the bottom of the falls.

The Canada side skyline

After the boat ride, my brother and I walked around the public areas near the base of one side of the falls, then headed to Canada. One of his roommates told us the view is much better on the Canadian side, so I wanted to get some pictures at the very least. Canada's Customs was very lax. We were asked who we were and why we were there and if we had any firearms. And that was it. When we came back into the US, we had to stand behind a locked door until we were called, and were asked several questions while they examined our passports. Oh, and get this. We had to pay 50 cents each to leave Canada. My brother was outraged by the concept.

Niagara Falls view from Canada

The drive back to Ithaca was long, but we stopped by a service area that had a Starbucks so I could get something to perk me up for the rest of the drive. We finally made it back home, and I was feeling tired but elated.

Dinner that night was barbeque. A chipmunk came by to say hello but quickly scurried off when there was no food to be found, at least for him. My brother grilled some hot dogs that we ate outside right at the barbeque pit as the last rays of the sun were streaming through the trees, creating a green halo of light. It was a perfect end to an already spectacular day.

Today will be breakfast out and hiking south of Ithaca to buttermilk falls.