[Infact this review is not on US-General but on Niagara Falls , which surprisingly couldn’t be added to the database at this point of time. Incase if MS decides to add this topic in future, maybe this revu can be shifted there.]
This was one of those ’’C’mon, lets hit the road’’ kind offa trip, in the sense that , one fine friday evening I just happend to suggest to my friends that we shd plan to Niagara once.Phat , came a reply from one of my psycho friend , ’’ Why plan? C’mon lets move right now, afterall….’’.So there we were on the road, flat out in 20 mins right in the middle of the night, on our way to Niagara , with 12 hours drive straight. WE had apprehensions regarding the fickle weather in peak winters this time of the year, but still snow or rain , we just decided to proceed.It is these unplanned whacky backpacking trips I treasure the most , than the usual routine ones.
Okay , cutting the personal craps apart ’n moving onto the falls, frankly this is not the ideal time to visit the falls as its the peak of offseason right out here in March, mainly due to crippling chilly weather.Infact even in some of the photos displayed in the visitor info centre, we saw that some decades ago , the mighty falls had completely frozen and ppl were walking down at the bottom of the falls.Fortunately it wasnt so bad when we went, as sun was peeping thro’ the clouds playing hide ’n seek , and the water was flowing , infact I sh’d phrase it as cascading down with majestic splendour.But still it was that terrrible blasting wind carrying along with it the spray of mist from the falls , that really swept me offgurad most of the times and had me virtually frozen with my exposed face totally gone numb .But all was compensated by the specatacle of nature at its very best with that view of trillions of gallons of milky water gushing down the cliff.
There are many viewpoints , but my trip was limited only to the views from the US side.However its said that the views from Canadian side is even more specatcular.Frankly I was awestruck with what I saw across this side of the border, ’n I cant imagine how can it be even more breathtaking. This falls is infact located at a wrong geographical position and acts as a border between US ’n Canada ’n one needs a visa to cross over to either side ’n I was in no position to get one over weekend to enter the Canadian side.Cant they make this popular zone easier for tourists access? Every time one has to cross the border I heard has a huge delay especially during peak tourist season.
The incredible thing of this falls is not the hieght but the width and the magnitude of water(some 3 billion gallons of water per hour) .Its said that only 50% of water is allowed to flow thro’ (in the night its even less) ’n the other half held back upstream to generate power.I just cant imagine the sight if it was suppsoed to flow unhindered without any blockade.Infact its said that 20-25% of fresh water on earth flows thro’ this river.This falls is a narrow part on the path of the Naigara river flowing from one lake to another.
Niagara is divided into 2 falls: American and Horse Shoe Falls. One can really stand almost adjacent to the brink from where the water drops down beside the American falls and walk along the wide turbulent rapids before it takes the final plunge.There is a constant 1-2 rainbows formed at the bottom of the falls bcoz of the spray of water .However now in winter there was thin nice layer of frozen ice all along area next to the falls giving that beautiful shimmering effects under the sunlight.
However the real mighty one is the Horseshoe Falls, which is much wider than the American falls. From this side of the border there is a 3/4ths side view of the concave curvature of the brim and the spectacular front view of it is reserved from the Canadian side.This falls is absolutely thundering with the sound of the water ’n can barely see the bottom of the falls bcoz of mist formed due to the spray of water. One cant imagine the daredevilry act of those who tried to roll down the falls enclosing themselves in wooden casket.
In summer , there would be a boat ride called ’’Maid of the Mist’’ that would take the visitors near the bottom of these falls , but in winters these rides r prohibited.So I missed it , ’n I believe that wud be one out of the world experience!!!
Goat Island and 3 sisters Island:
These 2 islands are surrounded by the rapids and is a good hiking trail.3 sisters Island infact is a serene lush green island connected by small bridges to the mainland ‘n one can actually sit on those huge boulders ‘n splash some water around ‘n gives a astounding views
of the wide wide swift rapids before they plummet down the American Falls.
In the night the entire falls would be lighted up with different hues ’n is a sight to behold. With those snow around these falls ’n the mist , these lights create that magical fairy visual spectacle.
Part 2:
Well this part is reserved for my future road trip , maybe one fine summer day, with views from the Canadian side and that ’’Maid of the mist ’’ rides that tales oen to the bottom of the falls. Till then hope to cherish these memories!!!
[The US side of Niagara Falls is in Buffalo, New York State. ]