10.05 - Day 116 - London to Niagara
Friday 10th May - London, Ontario - Niagara Falls, Ontario (Day 116)
After helping out with school work from Sienna and Seb on the theme of Anzac Day, we check out 11am, thankfully the rain has stopped, for what is currently considered a short drive of 2 hours to Niagara Falls.
The pair of unenthused Holiday Inn reception staff have eyesight such that one almost has his nose touching the screen to see what’s on there, whilst the other is holding a magnifying glass to the screen.
Our room may not be the most modern, but the hotel has a pool (which we don’t use) and EV charging (which we do) and from it you roll down the road to Niagara Falls itself, which is where we rush to despite Sienna’s protestations - “Why can’t I just read? In Thailand we went to one place to see seven waterfalls, why do we need a night to see just one? 10 minutes is all we need.”
American Falls and Bridal Falls right in front of us are impressive, but pale somewhat next to Horseshoe Falls which is the star of the show. It’s an awesome sight leaving you to wonder where does all the water come from? How does it not run out?
The continuous roar of the water crashing into the rocks below and the height of the resulting mist, up above the waterfall itself serve to emphasise its power. One of the best spots is on the corner right where the edge of the river disappears over the precipice - the speed of the water projecting off the edge creating a thick band around the rim where the water turns from dark to see-through like molten glass.
Realising Sienna and Seb don’t just want to stare at it whilst being sprayed by gentle mist, we opt instead to collect the car and drive a few minutes downstream into the parklands, parking up and then descending down a-track-but-not-quite-a-path.
Sienna points out a lizard that then slithers away - Sienna running the other way once she realised it was a snake. She’s coaxed back and then immediately spots a second one coiled up by the path - a Northern Ringneck Snake. It almost seems more scared of us. Almost.
Scrambling to the bottom we reach Whirlpool Beach, a stunted spur of the river resulting in swirling waters lined by a pebble beach. Pebbles which we spend 20 minutes hurling, skimming and tossing into the water (the patient fisherman seem less impressed with our presence).
On the return walk we find the actual trail with 199 stairs, the kids keen for a promised burger. That burger is found at Triple D’s Diner where the one waitress is struggling under a fuller house than normal and malfunctioning payment machines. Friend / customer Eric steps into help, though his actual help is questionable but there’s a degree of entertainment for us.
As ever, surprise and fascination in our journey that we’re familiar with now serves to remind us how unusual and special the trip is. The kids burgers are large for even adult size, the Philly Cheesestack and chips that Kate and I thankfully had agreed to share is easily big enough for two people. It’s a fun and friendly dining experience away from the waterfall and we leave our temporary waiter Eric assuring him we’ll recommend his mortgage broker services.
Back at the hotel by 8pm and we throw another layer on to walk back to the falls to see it lit up. But by 8:30pm it’s still not dark and as much as Seb says he wants to see it, he also doesn’t want to stand waiting for it.
After the kids are in bed, I pop back out to see all three waterfalls lit up by strong projecting lights. Even after watching it I couldn’t tell you the pattern of colour changes, sometimes alternating between red, green, blue and white for a few seconds, sometimes 5+ minutes. But it was very striking; the mist rising up when the waterfall was illuminated in red light suggesting a bubbling volcano.
The rainbow pattern too was worth the price of admission (free) alone. Even if it wasn’t coordinated to the second of a soundtrack like the Bellagio water fountain in Vegas.
