This weekend I took a trip to visit Niagara Falls. Only two hours from Toronto, visiting the falls is definitely worth going out of your way. If you are coming from the U.S. side, make sure to bring your passport! The best views are in Canada. I thought it was interesting to see the falls in the winter, when many of the attractions shut down. More of the water is also diverted to the hydroelectric plants upstream. While there isn't as much to do and the falls are smaller, the lack of crowds more than made up for it. There were no lines anywhere, and there was plenty of room to take pictures. Here are a few I took that I thought were interesting:
The weather was nice, so we decided to park at Dufferin Islands and walk along the river to the falls. Parking near the falls can be expensive, so I would recommend parking further away and walking or taking the free bus. On our way to the falls we saw a boat that had been stranded in the river for nearly 100 years! An inscription in the park describes the accident:
"On August 6, 1918, this dumping scow broke loose from its towing tug about 1.6 kilometres (1 mile) upriver, with Gustav F. Loftberg and James N. Harris aboard. The men opened the bottom dumping doors and the scow grounded in the shallow rapids. They were rescued the next day by breeches buoy, on a line shot out from the roof of the adjacent powerhouse."
As we got close to the falls, I spotted a rainbow in the mist. A photo doesn't do justice to how swiftly the water was moving.
There are a lot of tourist activities around the falls. Many were closed for the winter, but the elevator down to the base of the falls was still open. The mist and wind were incredible. I had a hard time getting a picture without getting any water droplets on my lense. You can see the bottom observation deck was closed due to being covered in snow and ice.
As part of the elevator ride down to the base of the falls, you can also walk through a tunnel that goes behind the falls. The roar was incredible. Not much to see though, as there was water spraying everywhere.
I thought it would be interesting to include a photo of all the hotels overlooking the falls. I saw people from all over the world who had come to see the falls. In my opinion, one day is all you need to see everything in Niagara. We spent the rest of the trip in Toronto, where there is more to do.
I saw this contraption by the old power station. Does anyone know what it was for? I have no idea myself.
If you ever are in the area, I recommend going out of your way to see the falls. This ranks as one of the greatest natural wonders I have ever seen.
I have had the great opportunity to visit Niagara Falls in the summer, but never in the winter. I clearly remember seeing the waterfalls from behind, through the tunnels and the opening such as the one you have in there with the ice formation. This is such an exquisite shot. Good job!
Thanks for all the information and the pictures. All for one and one for all! Namaste :)
I never had an opportunity to visit Niagara falls. Your photos tempt me to visit the place soon.
Thank you. Due to the time of day we went, getting a good photo of the falls themselves was difficult. Instead I tried to pick out some less common ones.
If you ever find yourself within driving distance of the falls it's worth the trip, but I'm not sure I'd plan a whole trip just around seeing the falls.
Thank you for your advice
I just followed you as well. You've been to some cool places!
I love travelling. thanks
Thanks
amazing,
It's one of the few places in the US/Canada I've wanted to go to but have never actually been... think I'd prefer to go there outside the primary tourist season though... seems like the crowds would be pretty huge, given how famous an attraction it is.
I can only imagine how busy it gets. We walked through an entirely empty room that was just a queue for the elevator down to the base of the falls. And not having to wait to take pictures without other people in them was nice. I didn't mind either that most of the attractions were closed. Staying in Niagara and doing the activities there can get quite expensive. Instead of eating in town, we stopped at nearby St. Catherine's too.