Niagara Falls

near Buffalo / Niagara County, New York, USA
Niagara Municipality, Ontario, Canada
Rating: 5     Difficulty: 1 Niagara Falls is by far the most famous waterfall in North America. It has been the backdrop to many honeymoons, proposals, daredevil stunts, and even key moments in the history of the United States. If you haven't heard of this falls, it's time for you to get out and start exploring the world around you!

To Julie and I, we visited this waterfall with a lot of expectations. But after having seen it, we'd have to say we were quite impressed by its power and size (so much so that it not only topped our Top 10 USA Waterfalls List but also made our Top 10 Waterfalls of the World). In fact, Niagara Falls is said to be the largest waterfall (by volume) in North America. The falls actually consists of three separate components - Horseshoe Falls (see photo above), American Falls, and Bridal Veil Falls. Combined, the falls is said to have an average discharge of a mind boggling over 7000 cubic meters per second. It's said that over 90% of this volume is over the Horseshoe Falls.

The Niagara River marks the border between New York, USA and Ontario, Canada. The American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls lies on the American side while the Horseshoe Falls is considered Canadian even though my maps seem to indicate that the political boundary in the middle of the Niagara River also splits the falls. We felt the falls was easily experienced from both sides so it didn't really matter which side we were on (though waiting in line at the border control could be a total pain, especially heading into the American side). Click here to read about some of the trip logistics and nuances we had to figure out when visiting both sides.

We visited the falls during the early Summer month of June. Thus, we believe that the water volume we witnessed was probably either at its highest for the year or close to it. The volume and power were so evident that the mist wafting up from the Horseshoe Falls segment rose higher than the 167ft plunge itself (note I've also seen reported heights of 173ft and 176ft). Even though we happened to see the falls in perhaps its most voluminous state, we were aware that it also took on a different look and feel at other times of the year (Click here to read a writeup we did discussing the various seasons and conditions at the falls).

The falls is said to contribute a large amount of hydroelectric power to the power grid in the Eastern US and Canada. Perhaps in recognition of this heritage of hydroelectricity, we noticed a statue of Nikola Tesla at the falls. It was he who was credited with being the first to successfully turn the energy of falling water from Niagara Falls into electricity that was distributed for private and industrial use.

Hydroelectricity has been controversial in terms of the environment, and it is especially a bane for waterfalling due to inundation, interruption of waterflow, and collateral damage to the natural surroundings to support hydroelectric infrastructure. However, there's no denying the critical role it has played in allowing certain cities (and even whole economies) to be built up and thrive. In the case of Niagara Falls, human intervention has also meant that the flow of the Niagara River has been regulated in a way that actually slows down the erosion of the falls (roughly 3ft per year). Moreover, it has been said to play a critical role in the evolution of America into the country it is today.

We've been aware that the falls has been a tourist attraction since America's early years (the mid 1800s). So it wasn't surprising that over the last 200 years or so, the attraction has become heavily commercialized. This meant that we could experience the falls in numerous ways but we did feel that each waterfall "excursion" was like an amusement park or carnival ride where we paid to do a particular experience and then moved on to the next if we were so inclined. Indeed, like the tourists of days past, we got drenched at the Cave of the Winds as well as the Maid of the Mist, and we also got to hear and feel the power of the falls from its backside. You can read more about our experiences with these excursions here.

We enjoyed the pleasant strolls on both the American and Canadian sides of the falls which were free if you don't count parking. They allowed us to take in the scenery at our own leisure. And if that wasn't enough, we were able to see the falls at night as they were floodlit with varying colors until midnight. In any case, it was hard to say which side was better as we felt each side was pleasant in its own way. However, we did compose a writeup comparing and detailing our impressions of both the American and Canadian sides, which you can read about here.

No doubt about it. The falls can be experienced and seen in countless ways. We're living proof of that as you can see from the pictures and videos on this page. And with that said, I'm willing to bet there are even more ways to see and experience the one and only Niagara Falls than what we've done. So take a virtual tour by scrolling further to see more photos, videos, links, and more! See if this doesn't inspire your own trip to the Granddaddy of waterfalls in the USA!

Directions: There are many ways of getting to Niagara Falls. If you're interested in reading about our accounts of how we managed to get to the falls, you can read about it in this writeup by clicking here.




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PHOTO JOURNAL

Our first look at Niagara Falls from a hotel room. Notice how the mist rises higher than the height of the falls itself!

Looking towards the American Falls from the hotel room

Now we're one of the ants peering into the Horseshoe Falls abyss

Plenty of onlookers at the falls

Looking downstream at American Falls and the Rainbow Bridge from the Canadian side

Looking down at people by the base of Horseshoe Falls as part of the Journey Behind the Falls tour

More distant view of the Horseshoe Falls

Looking across Niagara Falls towards Bridal Veil Falls

Comprehensive look at both the American Falls and Horseshoe Falls from an elevated lookout deck on the Canadian side

Floodlit Horseshoe Falls

Floodlit American Falls

Looking back at Horseshoe Falls in white light with the Canadian skyline to the right

View of Horseshoe Falls from Terrapin Point on the American Side

Closer to the edge

Profile view of American Falls towards Rainbow Bridge from the American Side

Getting a serious drenching at the Cave of the Winds

Looking down at onlookers by the brink of American Falls

Looking over the brink of Bridal Veil Falls

Looking down at the Cave of the Winds walkway

Getting a very close look at the American Falls

Looking towards the Canadian side from the American side

In-your-face view of American Falls

In-your-face view of the torrent of Horseshoe Falls

Walkers dwarfed by American Falls

Full rainbow as seen near Horseshoe Falls

Almost in front of the thunderous wall of water

Behind Horseshoe Falls

So close to Horseshoe Falls that you can feel the ground tremble

Last look at Horseshoe Falls with bright rainbow before we called it a day

Looking down at Niagara Falls being floodlit at night on our last night


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VIDEOS OF THE FALLS

Sweep of Horseshoe Falls from the Maid of the Mist Tour


View from the brink of Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side


Short sweep of the front of American Falls from the boat


Looking at brink of Horseshoe Falls from near Terrapin Point on the American side


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MAP OF THE FALLS

View Larger Map




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TRIP REPORTS

For more information about our experiences with this waterfall, check out the following travel stories.

• June 13, 2007 and June 14, 2007

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GUIDEBOOKS / OTHER RESOURCES

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NEARBY WATERFALLS

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[Go to the Eastern US Page]


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