New York & the Mid-Atlantic Trips 2 - Full PDF eBook

blocks are dominated by
the purple, glass-covered
Seneca Niagara Casino &
Hotel.
Three waterfalls
make up Niagara Falls.
You can see views of
the American Falls and
part of the Bridal Veil
Falls, which drop 180ft,
from the Prospect Point
Observation Tower
(%716-278-1796; admission
$1, free from 5pm; h9:30am-
7pm). Cross the small
bridge to Goat Island
for close-up viewpoints,
including Terrapin
Point, which has a fine
view of Horseshoe Falls
and pedestrian bridges
to the Three Sisters
Islands in the upper
rapids. From the north
corner of Goat Island,
an elevator descends to
the Cave of the Winds
(%716-278-1730; adult/child
$11/8), where slippery

walkways go within

25ft of the cataracts

(raincoats provided), the

closest viewpoint to the

Canadian falls.

The Maid of the Mist

(%716-284-8897; http://www.

maidofthemist.com; 151 Buffalo

Ave; adult/child $15.50/9;

h9am-7pm summer, times

do vary so check website in

advance) boat trip around

the bottom of the falls has

been a major attraction

since 1846 and is highly

recommended. Boats

leave from the base

of the Prospect Park

Observation Tower on

the US side and from the

bottom of Clifton Hill on

the Canadian side.

About 2 miles north

of Niagara Falls, NY, is

Whirlpool State Park,

sitting just above a sharp

bend in the Niagara

River – a bend that

creates a giant whirlpool

easily visible from your

vantage point. Steps take

you 300ft to the gorge

below and mind you don’t

tumble into the vortex.

54 p91

The Drive » It’s only a 15-mile

drive north on the Robert Moses

Parkway to the mouth of the

Niagara River, not far from Lake

Ontario, which you can see in

the distance.

2 Fort Niagara

State Park

This park, occupying

the once very strategic

point where the Niagara

River flows into Lake

Ontario, is home to Old

Fort Niagara (%716-745-

7611; http://www.oldfortniagara.org;

adult/child $12/8; h9am-

5pm daily). The French

originally built a garrison

here in 1726 which

was later used by the

British and Americans

in Revolutionary War

battles. More recently,

it was used for officers’

housing during WWI.

It has been stunningly

restored and has

engaging displays of

Native American artifacts,

small weapons, furniture

and clothing as well as

breathtaking views from

its windblown ramparts.

Surrounding the fort

are well-maintained

swimming pools and

hiking trails.

The Drive » Take NY-93 east/

Lockport Rd for around 14 flat,

uneventful miles before turning

right onto Stone Rd and then

Mill St which runs down to the

Erie Canal.

3 Lockport

Northeast of Niagara Falls

is the town of Lockport,

the western terminus of

the Erie Canal, which was

once the transportation

lifeline connecting the

Great Lakes and the

Atlantic Ocean. Governor

De Witt Clinton broke

ground in 1817 on this

public-works project of

unprecedented scale;

it was completed eight

years later at a cost of

$7 million (equivalent to

around $4 billion today).

The Erie Canal Discovery

Center (%716-439-0431;

7

St Lawrence

Seaway

Take I-90 E to Rochester
and then to NY-104
to begin a trip along
lake shores and to the
Thousand Islands.

4

Finger Lakes

Loop

From Letchworth, take
NY-436 E and other rural
back roads to Keuka
Lake for a trip to wineries
and beautiful falls.

LINK

YOUR

TRIP

NEW.YORK.TRIPS.

6

.NIAGARA F

ALLS & AROUND