The site of honeymooning couples, awe struck tourists, bewildered backpackers, international delegates, movie stars, or just local residents who can’t get enough of it’s incredible power and beauty is Niagara Falls, one of the natural wonder of the world that should be visited at least once before you die.
Located on the Niagara River, just an hour from Toronto in the province of Ontario, Niagara Falls is comprised of three gorgeous waterfalls – the huge Horseshoe Falls that are situated in Canada, the American Falls which are just across the border in America and the Bridal Veil Falls.
The Niagara Falls is a sight to behold for all your sense. The thundering roar of the falls mixes with the site of the aqua green water and rising mist, and the smell of the fresh, crisp air cooled by the torrent of water relentlessly spilling over the edge of the falls.
The Niagara Falls are a stupendous sight to behold and have a history just as incredible. Some facts about the Falls:
- Niagara Falls is the second largest falls in the world based on the width
- More than 6 million cubic feet (168,000 m3) of water falls over the crest line every minute in high flow. (Doing some GCAT math means that 10,053,120 pints of beer flow over the falls every minute!)
- The waters in the river are owned partly by Canada and partly by the USA. The international border runs through the middle of the river.
- The Frenchman Samuel de Champlain visited the area as early as 1604 during his exploration of Canada
- Over 50,000 weddings are performed in Niagara Falls every year, The falls became a honeymoon destination in 1801 when the daughter of Aaron Burr (a Vice President of the United States) got married here. Millions have since followed suit.
- In March 1848, ice blockage caused the falls to stop; no water (or at best a trickle) fell for as much as 40 hours.
- The verdant green colour of the water flowing over the Niagara Falls is a byproduct of the estimated 60 tonnes/minute of dissolved salts and rock flour (very finely ground rock) generated by the erosive force of the Niagara River itself.
- The cities of Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada and Niagra Falls, New York, USA are connected by two international bridges, the rainbow Bridge and the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge
- In October 1829, Sam Patch, who called himself “the Yankee Leapster”, jumped from a high tower into the gorge below the falls and survived;
And finally, 15 daredevils (and one cat named Iagara) have intentionally gone over the falls in or on a floating device. Some have survived unharmed, but others have drowned or been severely injured. (Please note that survivors of such stunts face charges and stiff fines, as it is illegal, on both sides of the border, to attempt to go over the falls!)
And those folks are your GCAT facts on the world’s most awesome Falls!
