Days 119 & 120 – Niagra Falls, New York

These last couple of days have been immense! We mainly spent day 119 driving from Ohio to New York state, via Pennsylvania. Having made it back into New York means that although Ben didn’t drive in New York City, he will still be able to say he has driven in all fifty states once our journey is complete. An exciting achievement on his part!

Day 120 was unforgettable! Having stayed in Niagra Falls last night (the town nearby not he waterfall itself :P) we were primed and ready, it was time to visit this majestic place! We’d heard from many Americans that we’ve met along the way that apparently the Canadian side of the falls is better and it was suggested that we attempt to go across the border. We decided to stay in the good old US of A, as for us this is a trip of the states and not Canada, and we knew that both tours would show the the same thing so why add border hassle to the mix? Driving to the state park we headed in, the sun has really started making an appearance and it’s mighty warm outside. We are not generally fans of hanging out in the sun, but we’re relieved to find that there was a modestly priced hop on hop off shuttle that tours around the park narrating the various sights. This was a fantastic way to get around and learn about the area, it was also a good mode of transportation to the areas we wanted to visit.

We couldn’t resist making a beeline for the falls, most people leave this to the last part of the day because of the soaking you get. It was so warm we wasn’t worried and we were too excited to wait! After buying our tickets on the Maid of the Mist, a boat that was ready to take us for our water fest! As we headed down to the dock we collected a fetching blue raincoat, for Ben these kinds of things never run long enough in the arms! There seemed no doubt about it, we were going to get a free shower!

Thankfully we didn’t have to wait long, it gets quite claustrophobic in a plastic bag in the heat! We were also lucky that there were not that many people waiting for this boat so once everyone was aboard Ben and myself ended up having the back of the boat completely to ourselves, giving us unspoilt views of the falls and absolutely no protection from the water! We first passed by the American falls, which were fantastic in their own right! As you sail closer you get an idea of the tremendous power behind the water that cascades down over the rocks below, and into the turquoise lake below.

We wasn’t finished just yet as we headed towards the motherlode! The Horseshoe falls, we sailed gently into what looked like light mist, and ended up getting completely soaked by the water, it was like being outside in a gentle misty storm! We had great fun and we were glad of our raincoats! This was one of those moments you knew you could never experience again, it was simply stunning! We gently sailed away looking back at the birds soaring above the steamy water, we’d been in just moments ago. Goodbye Niagra!