Discover New York ~ 2 Week Trip ~ Part 2

Discover New York ~  2 Week Trip

July 23rd-24th

Niagara Falls, Canada/Devil’s Hole State Park/Toronto

Day 2 at Niagara Falls we decided to spend on the Canadian side. We arrived at Niagara Falls State Park around 9 am and parked in parking lot 1. This is the best parking lot to park in if you’re going to walk to the Canadian side of the falls. It is a short walk across the Rainbow Bridge and much faster than driving. You’ll need to have your passport or a passport card to enter Canada and reenter the US later. You will walk up to the Canadian gate and pass through.

After passing through the gate you will find yourself on the bridge. You will see some awesome views while crossing. 

David on The Rainbow Bridge

American Falls from the bridge

After you cross the bridge you will have to go through Canadian customs. Enter the building and show your passport/card to the officer and answer his questions. They run along the lines of “Why are you visiting Canada?” and “How long do you plan on staying for this visit?” After you collect your passports exit the building and you are in Canada. The park on the Canadian side is very pretty. Decorated with beautiful flowers. There is a paved walkway the entire length of the falls. It’s about a mile walk one way. On the walk you not only get spectacular views but there is shopping available as well a boat ride into the mist of Horseshoe Falls much like Maid of the Mist and a Behind the Falls tour that takes you to the base of Horseshoe Falls. 

The Canadian side of the  Falls is very commercialized. You can walk straight from the falls to the City of Niagara, Ontario. There are restaurants, casinos, theaters, shopping and anything else you could think of to do. We spent several hours walking along the falls and exploring the edge of the city. Here is an interesting picture of the falls from the streets of Niagara.

To cross back into the US enter the border crossing building. Here is the best tip I can give you. Be sure you have $1.50 in quarters or at least a couple of dollar bills. Canada charges you to leave. Every time I think about that it makes me laugh. They do provide doing machines for Canadian or US dollars in case you aren't prepared. Once you have made it through the turnstiles you can then cross back over the Rainbow Bridge. Once you get to the US side you will need to pass through US customs. Stand in the line and then enter the building when it’s your turn. Show your passport and answer the officer’s questions. US officer’s are more serious and ask more pressing questions than Canadian ones. Declare anything you have purchased or are brining back into the US with you and you’re on your way.

We left Niagara Falls and went back to the campground, had a late lunch, picked up Hercules and headed back to Canada. This time we were headed to Toronto and driving. The plan was to meet an old friend for dinner and explore the city. It’s approximately a 2 hour (or less) drive from the campground. 

We started out for Canada at about 3 pm and everything was fine until we got to the outskirts of the outskirts of the city. Toronto is a very large city and what we didn’t know before going is that The Pan American games were being held in Toronto at this time. Traffic was horrendous! A 2 hour trip ended up taking us over 4 hours but we made it just time to have a late dinner with our friend. 

After dinner it was nearly dark but we were able to drive downtown and see a very small part of the city.

The next day we visited Devil’s Hole State Park. This is a relatively easy hike along the Niagara River. Well, easy that, is after you walk down the 300 plus steps down to the river. Whew! 

Once down the steps you can go right, which will take you back towards the power plant or you can go left which is what we did. It’s a very pleasant walk, mostly in the shade along the river.

Be aware that the farther you walk the more difficult the hike becomes. We ended up having to climb up and over boulders. It is doable but more challenging than just a walk on a path. You may turn back at any time if it gets too difficult for you. You will come to a bend in the river that creates a whirlpool. This is pretty interesting and you will notice jet boat tours coming to this spot on it’s tours. You’ll hear the people scream and yell. When we saw this we were disappointed that today was our last day because we would have loved to do the jet boat tour. 

Here is a panoramic view of the Niagara River at the Devil’s Gorge. This was taken up on the ridge not down by the river.

We were ready to head back to the campground and take it easy with Hercules for the rest of the day. Tomorrow we would pull up stakes and be on the road once again for a new destination.