Niagara Falls

With our rental car we drove from New Jersey to Buffalo to Niagara Falls on November 28th. The difference to the road trip in Tanzania was immense. Wide streets, little traffic (especially no TukTuks 😀) and it was also very orderly. Nevertheless, there are two major similarities. On the one hand, the highways in America sometimes have potholes that are just as big as those in Tanzania, they just happen less often. The second similarity is the disregard for the speed limit. Like in Tanzania, nobody really sticks to the speed limit 🙈.

When we got up this morning we couldn't believe it. There had been 10 cm of fresh snow overnight and everything was suddenly covered in snow. Sudden snowfall and strong winds are not uncommon here due to the Lake Snow Effect. This effect occurs when cold air hits the warmer lakes. The effect can sometimes be so strong that wind and heavy snowfall can reach as far as Washington and New York; at least over 500 km. The result is snow chaos that is even shown on German television. Luckily we were spared the chaos as the people around Buffalo and Niagara Falls are familiar with this weather and it soon stopped snowing.

When we arrived at Niagara Falls we discovered that the state park where the falls are located was almost deserted. We knew that the view from the Canadian side would be better, but we didn't expect so few people. We had also thought about going to the Canadian side, but unfortunately we had forgotten our passports at the accommodation 😬🙈.

In total, Niagara Falls consists of three waterfalls that are at the same height but separated from each other by islands. An average of 600,000 liters of water fall 57 meters down here every second.

As we approached the two smaller waterfalls we realized why so few people visited the falls. The low temperatures and strong wind made it a bit uncomfortable and a thick layer of ice had formed on many objects. This also ensured that some viewing platforms were completely closed. Although we couldn't admire the waterfalls from all angles, we felt like we were in a winter wonderland 🤩.

Tomorrow (November 30th, 2023) we will continue on to Washington, where we will take on another house sit.