USA Road Trip-A Witch Wind and Niagara Waterfalls

After the really good weather we had for over three months we were becoming rather complaisant, but no more! The weather gods threw their full fury at us and blew us on the way from Marysville in Ohio to Buffalo, New York. What was supposed to be a pleasant trip across the 90 East and the quiet country road 20 East became a nightmare trip and a 300 mile battle to keep Matilda on the road. The access to the State Park on Lake Erie was closed and so we spent the night in the car park at Wall-mart being rocked to sleep by a gale. There were other roads closed because trees were blown down and a 70+ miles an hour gale blew across the lake causing flooding. According to the lady at the Niagara Falls Welcome centre the boat taking sight-seers to the waterfall was grounded for the first time that she could remember.

A woman at the roadside farm stall in New York grape growing region called it “a witch wind” and said it was probably the worst she had seen. After managing to arrive safely at the falls (well done Matilda!) we were again amazed by the beauty of the sights that have filled us with awe. Difficult to make comparisons but having now seen both Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and Niagara in New York State I can safely say that both are really worth travelling to see – even if gales are blowing! Now it is on to New England and the leaves. It is really cold and so “those leaves must be a changing!”

What was really something was to walk out on the observation deck and see the falls from high over the river and then take the lift down to the river level and walk along the pathway to where you were about 20 meters from the edge of the mass of falling water and could really feel the power – quite an awesome experience! The Canadians say, ”you have the water and we have the view” and that is probably true. But the Americans have made the most of what they have and created a great experience and the lift down to the waters edge at $1 it was a bargain indeed.

Then on Thursday we travelled N/E along Lake Ontario until we got to another excellent State Park called “Fair Haven Beach” near the town of Greece and with the leaves changing, many birds to see and a couple of Deer grazing near our campsite it was another pleasant evening, even if the rain sent us to an early bed in Matilda! After a walk to the “beach” and watching one of the locals who had taken his grandson Hosea fishing and then landed a 20 pound Salmon much to his and his grandson and our delight' Our supper was a feast eating half a chicken each that Lena packed in and I heated on our new cooker. The old one bought at the start of the trip finally packed up and so we replaced it.

Friday was overcast and drizzly but this did not dampen our spirits as we travelled some 200 miles East across New York State through a visual feast as we saw the beautiful colors of the autumn leaves next to the road for mile after mile. The colors varied from various shades of green to yellows and oranges and reds. It was not so much the individual colors that create such a spectacle but the combination of colors. No wonder we got mixed up and referred to the town of Speculator as Spectacular. We ended up camping on Lake George in East New York State and with the prospect of even better leaf colors in Vermont tomorrow and perhaps some sunshine to light them up we go to sleep in anticipation on what tomorrow may bring. It is another long weekend in the USA (Columbus Day on Monday) and so the camp site has been filling up with people who are escaping from the cities to the beautiful Adirondack Mountains and we are indeed privileged to be here also – wish you could be here!