Niagara Falls, Ontario

Friday, May 25

We left the Cleveland KOA on Friday morning but not before a gentleman from CT stopped by to say hi. He and his wife retired in December, sold their home and bought a motor home… having never camped before. People are gutsy! Maybe by selling everything you guarantee you’ll like camping because you’re out of other options!

We had about about a 225 mile drive today. I was a little worried about getting stuck at the Canadian Border with the holiday weekend traffic, but it wasn’t bad at all. We drove up with passports in hand and were asked by the agent “Where do you live? Why are you in Canada? Where are your accommodations? Are you traveling with any firearms? Goodbye.” If we’d answered “yes” to the firearms questions, his next response probably wouldn’t have been “goodbye.” Just sayin. I had Kya’s rabies vaccination with me but he didn’t even notice her in the backseat. She was quiet as a church mouse. We were done in 2 minutes flat.

We settled at the Niagara Falls KOA. It was hot and they had a pool, so I headed over. It was just me and a Canadian couple. We got to talking. They had just come from Indiana and a rvillage.com rally. Apparently it’s a website where you can find other RVers staying at your campground and connect with them. Kinda cool. We’d heard about it from another couple, too. We talked for awhile until the water got cold and we all opted to get out!

After dinner, Gary and I headed downtown to see the Falls at night. We brought Kya with us. As usual, she was our show stopper. The seas part and conversation stops when she walks by. Or, alternatively, we can’t walk two feet without someone wanting to pet her or ask about her. It’s pretty funny! We did manage to see the Falls with the evening lights on them. Very pretty!  Eventually Kya was getting a little antsy with all the people so we decided to leave.

Saturday, May 26

After heading into town the night before and spending $20 on parking, we decided the better plan was to take the Wego bus which is the local service for the Niagara area. There is a stop  directly in front of the campground with stops all over Niagara Falls. It’s used by locals and tourists alike. Cost was $24 for a 2-day pass. If we were smart, we would have bought the Adventure Pass for $65 each which entitled you to four attractions and free Wego bus service. But, alas, we had already purchased our tickets for the Hornblower Boat Cruise, which was one of the attractions from the Adventure Pass, so missed out on that. Sometimes we’re too smart for our own good.  Exchange rate is very favorable to Americans right now…. roughly 28%… so the American dollar goes pretty far.

We left Kya in the RV with the air conditioning running and headed into town to the see the Falls in daylight. The Falls are made up of the American Falls, smaller Bridal Veil Falls and the largest of the three, Horseshoe Falls. They are all in the same area. Views from the Canadian side are better, that’s the reason we chose to camp on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. You look across the Niagara Gorge at the American and Bridal Veil Falls and you see the USA on the opposite side. It’s amazing how close everything is. It’s not as if there is just one spot to see the Falls. You can walk along the walkway on Niagara Parkway for a mile or two and see all three Falls. They are simply… there! Even when you’re not directly in front of them, but walking down from various streets, you can catch a glimpse or hear the pounding water. Truly remarkable. It was crowded, but not as crowded as it was the previous weekend when it was Canada’s three-day holiday. We would not opt to visit Niagara Falls in July or August. I think it would be crazy busy! The falls are amazing. Horseshoes Falls, largest of the three (and on the Canadian side) is so named for its horseshoe shape, stands 13 stories tall and has 1/5 of the world’s freshwater crashing down. The American Falls appear to be as tall, but not as wide, and Bridal Veil Falls is so named for the bridal veil shape. Very narrow.

We had tickets to board the Hornblower Boat Cruise. It’s the Canadian version of Maid of the Mist. Both boats outfit passengers in ponchos to protect you from the mist. Our ponchos were red and Maid of the Mist passengers get blue ones. The Hornblower was a 700 passenger catamaran that sails past the American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls and lands you in the middle of Horseshoe Falls so you can feel the spray and the mist and the pounding water. A cool experience!

We stopped for gelato before heading back to the campground in the afternoon. We were talking to the server and asking where we can catch the Wego bus to get back to the KOA and he said “is that where the strip club and massage parlors are? Ummmm, I don’t think so. I think I would have noticed those.” Turns out they are the next stop down in front of another campground. Guess we got lucky! Yikes!

Gary wanted to do a little gambling at night in the casino downtown. He is his mother’s son after all! He’d won the previous two times on this trip when he gambled so he was trying to make it 3-for-3. And, of course, he had to wear my lucky iwatch with the pink band. I spent the time checking out the shops in the galleria, eating ice cream, buying chocolate, and sitting outside on a park bench with my kindle reader and listening to the pounding of the Falls and catching glimpses of them through the trees. It was a beautiful night. Gary did come out ahead so he did make it 3-for-3 in the winning category.

Sunday, May 27

We hopped on the Wego bus and headed north on the Niagara Parkway to head to the Botanical Gardens and specifically the Butterfly Conservatory. It’s the third most popular attraction in Niagara Falls according to Trip Advisor. A find! They have over 50 different species of butterflies flying free throughout their 11,000 sq. ft. Conservatory. A 600 ft. path winds its way around the Conservatory creating different views to observe them as they eat at the food trays set up for them, forage for nectar at the various plants, or bask in the sun. Truly a unique experience.

Colors and patterns of butterflies are used as protection. Many are camouflaged because their wing colors or patterns are similar in appearance to the surfaces they rest upon. Some wings are adorned with large spots making them appear like the eyes of a larger animal. And some use bright colors like orange and red to appear distasteful. We also learned that the average lifespan of many butterfly species is two to three weeks. All that beauty gone in such a short period of time.

After the butterfly experience, we traveled back to town by bus and enjoyed looking at the Falls for awhile longer, then we headed back to the campground for another swim in the pool before heading to Letchworth State Park in New York State on Memorial Day.