Niagara Falls – WOW ! !

Niagara Falls, NY – October 10 to 14, 2012 Our Current Location

We had a long road day and didn’t get into Niagara Falls until after dark. We headed for a Walmart near the Visitor Center to crash for the night. We debated on whether to drive ourselves or splurge on a tour to the Canadian Side of the Falls since almost everyone we talked to said the Canadian side was better.

Next morning we headed to the Visitor Center and decided to go with one of the big names, Gray Line Tours. As part of the process of trying to sell us on additional attractions and tours they asked where we were staying and we said in an RV. In that case, they said, we have a parking area with an electric hookup if you’d like to stay here for as long as you like. SOLD! We got Big Guy and immediately moved over here before anyone else got the coveted spot. As an added benefit, there was a Bob Evans right next door.

We opted for the evening tour, starting at 3PM, because we wanted to see the colored lights on the Falls. The really nice thing was they would pick us up and drop us of at the Visitor Center, so no driving involved. The Canadian side is really built up with hotels, museums, and attractions. Plus everything is very new looking, pristine and clean.

Our first stop was to the Journey Behind the Falls.We took an elevator down 150’ and got to go out on the observation decks at the foot of the falls. The thundering sound and spray were awesome. The poncho really didn’t help much. Then you traveled through tunnels and had more views through two different portals.

The Falls were a ready source of hydro-electric power which has been utilized since the early 1900’s.  The buildings that housed the generating equipment were quite striking.

A walk along the waterfront gave us a great view of Horseshoe Falls.

Part of the visit included “The Whirlpool”, although try as we might, we never did see a whirlpool. Over the whirlpool ran a gondola. Due to a sharp bend in the river right here, many people think they are looking at the US on the other side. In fact the gondola operators thought it was quite humorous that people were trying to sneak into the US only to find out they were still in Canada.

On the way to Skylon Tower, we stopped at the floral clock just before sundown. It is created from up to 16,00 bedding plants and the design is changed twice a year. It is really beautiful and there was still enough light to get some good pictures.

Arriving at Skylon Tower, appropriately after dark, we took the elevator up 775 feet above the river level to the observation deck. It was cold and windy, but oh so worth it. The nighttime surroundings were lit up with neon signs and the Falls were glowing under powerful colored flood lights. We were told the US and Canada share the cost of paying for the flood lights and the power it takes for them to operate.

Long day, great tour. We didn’t get back until around 8:30 pm. Glad we had a guide/driver to allow us to enjoy everything.

The next day we decided to check out the American side. We parked on Goat Island, a New York State Park, where we got to see the Falls up close.

We walked all around Goat Island before walking over to where you could catch the Maid of the Mist.  Frank wasn’t crazy about getting onto the tour boats, and here you can see why.

Of course we took pictures all along the walk. We were both surprised at how shallow the water is. And of course we were thrilled to see several rainbows and even a double one.

We stopped and got some coffee and a muffin then sat on a bench next to the Falls. We were swarmed by birds, who were in no way intimidated by us mere humans. It fact some of them ate out of our hands.

There is a huge Casino in town and naturally we had to check it out.

Finally our visit was drawing to an end and it was time to go. The falls are truly awesome. We have so many pictures even after editing. We thoroughly enjoyed both sides and hope everybody gets to see them at least once in their life. One more item to check off on the Bucket List.

Maine Attractions

Cherry Valley, New York – October 1 to 9, 2012 Our Current Location

Not starting out to be such a great day. Leaving Acadia NP, we scraped a few trees on the way out. Frank went on the roof to check for damage and found the bathroom vent fin was creamed. When we stopped in Ellsworth, ME at Walmart for supplies, the wind caught the front door and broke the opener.  Guess we need to find an RV parts place.

It rained off and on as we made our way to Freeport, ME. One bright spot is that the tree colors are looking good.

Our original purpose was to go to the the LL Bean complex. We didn’t realize that all of Freeport is one big shopping area. It is full of outlet stores, shops, food places and a theatre. This may take longer than we thought.

The city of was kind enough to provide us with a free place to park Big Guy for 4 days while we explored the area. The first night we experienced a little anxiety as we were the only RV parked in the RV Only parking area, while all the other RVs were parked in the car parking area next to the Visitor Center. By the second night the other RVers had finally figured it out and were parking with us.

I can’t believe that in the whole time we were in Freeport we only took a few pictures and those were of the outside of LL Bean. But believe us when we tell you it is an awesome store complex complete with restaurant and coffee shop.

We had an “it’s a small world” experience in one of the stores. We ran into our “cousin” Pam from home. She and Chuck were in Bath, ME and we were able to have lunch with them.

While in Freeport, we shopped til we felt like dropping, went to two movies and took a day trip to Boothbay Harbor. Frank liked the fact that he could head back to the RV and EJ could keep going. We helped the local economy some, but mostly we were amazed at all of the stuff we just didn’t have to have.

Next on the to do list was Cabella’s in Scarboroough, ME. We pulled into their parking lot and found it posted with No Overnight Parking signs everywhere, but there were lots of other RV’s and trucks that didn’t look like they were going anywhere. We asked inside about the parking situation and they told us not to worry about the signs, so we didn’t! Another interesting store, but again, we didn’t find any compelling reasons to turn loose of any of our retirement funds.

Having dry camped for 5 nights, it was time to seek out a full service campground. Oh yeah, and it had to have a Laundromat as underwear supplies were getting critical again. We went a whole 7 miles to Saco, ME. We found a NAPA store nearby and were able to pick up the gas strut that holds the entrance door open. We took the opportunity to replace several other items that had been damaged along the way. It was a very beneficial 24 hours.

Frank had heard about an outdoor outfitter in Kittery, ME and we thought we would check it out on our way to Bow, NH. Wow! Back up the Bus! Big Mistake!!!

Having spent the last 4 months in relative isolation had in no way prepared us for the Kittery Experience. It appeared that every car in a 4 state area was going where we wanted to go.  Only we didn’t find that out until after we turned off on the exit from which there was no way to turn around.  It so happens that Kittery is a MAJOR factory outlet location and we lacked that little piece of information.  The parking lots were full, the roads were full, and there were people everywhere. After several miles we found a place to turn around, and now we had to fight our way back through that mess. Frank’s pretty sure he left permanent hand impressions on the steering wheel. And we didn’t even try and park so we could see the Kittery Trading Post.

Our Maine experience leads us to believe shopping is a major sport up here or at least a favorite pastime.

Somewhere in the last week or so, we overheard some local folks making fun of the name Fernandina, FL. This from people who live in a state with cities that have names like Kennebunkport and Ogunquit. Hmmmph!

Our next stop was in Bow, NH, to visit Franks’ cousin-in-law Joanie, whom we hadn’t seen in many years. We had a great time chatting and catching up. She even provided a place to park Big Guy right next door and an electric plug.  We had a fun visit with her and the “boys”, but we had to keep moving. In the back of our minds we are aware that we don’t want to get caught up here in an early winter storm.

On our way towards Niagara Falls we stopped in Bennington, VT home of the Hemming Motor News filling station and museum.  A good friend, Larry told us to keep an eye open for it and we’re glad he did.

 

 

They also had a great philosophy and sense of humor.

 

 

And at another stop, this one in Cazenovia, NY we did some shopping for a belated birthday present for EJ.

At the end of the day we stopped in Cherry Valley to overnight in a roadside picnic area. Tomorrow we should make Niagara Falls.