In New York and Niagara Falls

9/4/15 – 9/8/15   ---In New York

Friday, 9/4 on the road to Niagara Falls.  I caught a bad cold in Pittsburgh on the last day, and doctored up right away.  I beat the sore throat, but the cough and bad sinuses got me.  I slept most of the way to Niagara Falls.  The campground I had planned on going to was private, and had no extra room, so I called the New York State Parks reservation line and got lucky.  This was Labor Day weekend, and I had completely forgotten about the holiday.  I got the last spot (out of over 210 spots) in a state campground called 4 Mile Creek State Campground (about 10 miles north of the falls).  It was beautiful, and our spot was on the back street facing Lake Ontario.  The spaces were wide and lots of trees and grass.  But, no cell service and no internet.  A long day on the road and we were all beat.

Saturday, 9/5 – Tom decided not to go to the Pierce Arrow Car Museum, mostly because he wanted to work on the RV on the roof.  He bought new vent covers and wanted to get them installed.  I was happy to over-medicate myself and spend most of the day sleeping. 

Sunday, the three of us took off for Niagara Falls.  Mom was looking forward to seeing the falls and so were we.  We parked in the first parking lot we came to (it was for the Discovery Museum and Aquarium).  I went in and bought Trolley Car tickets for the day and we got on the Trolley right away.  The guide at the front told us that the lines for the boat right were HOURS long yesterday (“you know it IS a holiday weekend,” she said), but they look pretty good this morning, so if the boat ride was on our want list, she suggested that we do it first.  We followed her instructions and were so glad of it.  The line wasn’t too bad.  I would say that it took us about 30-45 minutes from the start to getting on the boat, and all of that time we were walking toward the boat.  The weather was perfect in the morning.  We donned our blue ponchos (that they provided) and found a good spot to see.  The boat is called the “Maid of the Mist”, and boy is there a lot of mist.  You get completely soaked with all the spray from the waterfalls (the American Falls and Horseshoe Falls), especially your feet, as the poncho does not cover your feet.  Here are some pictures (hope the video works!).

Horseshoe Falls

The boat ride was wonderful and the thunderous roar of the water was amazing.  The only thing I didn’t like were all the pushy people (and there were a lot of kids in strollers).  They load about 600 people every hour on 3 boats – spaced about 20 minutes apart.  Then came the longest wait – the line for the elevator up 200 feet to the observation level.  But, we met a very nice couple from Maine who helped us and even gave us a tip on where to get the best lobster. 

At the Obsevation Level (Canada in the back)

We then went to the Visitor Center to see the IMAX movie on Niagara Falls, but the line was too long, especially after waiting in line for 30 minutes to use the restroom.  We decided we were done with the mass of humanity there, so we left to look for a good place to get lunch.  No luck there, the city of Niagara Falls isn’t very inviting.  In fact, it looked old and dirty and a lot of the stores were empty.  We went back to the RV and had lunch and a much needed nap in the most beautiful campground to date.

4 Mile Creek Campground

Lake Ontario at 4 Mile CG

9/7/15 – Monday – Labor Day

We had a lazy morning and left the campground around 11:00.  By this time, everyone else had already left to head home and work after the holiday weekend.  These pics do not do it justice.  The spaces were wide enough for two rigs and a tent.  They all had a fire pit, and the view on the Lake side was beautiful.  It looks like the ocean, not a lake.  We have reservations in Campbell, NY where we have planned more tours.  Hopefully, we will have cell service and the internet.