I Loved New York.
Upstate New York is beautiful. It’s jam packed with waterfalls, state parks, autumn trees, and mountains. I hiked and camped in the Adirondacks before the rain came my way. I drove through the small towns that border Lake George, each with their own antique store and cozy diner. I even visited the Grand Canyon of the East, Letchworth State Park. It’s an epic park with leaves of every color completely covering the canyon walls and a three tier waterfall that glows in the sunlight tucked in-between the bursts of color. As I stood in awe at the change towards fall I have been looking for all along, the couple next to me mentioned how the colors weren’t as good as last year. I couldn’t imagine it being more impressive than that and all I could get out was “yeah” in response, lost in the thought of what that may look like while still processing what I was seeing in front of me. Two of my now top five experiences on this trip took place at Niagara Falls, and as much as I’d love to tell you more about the ins and outs of upstate New York, I’ll let the pictures do the talking and get right to the good stuff.
Niagara Falls is the most powerful waterfall in North America and believe me, it does not disappoint. Made up of three falls, American, Bridal Veil and Horseshoe, and connecting Lake Erie to Ontario, the falls divide the U.S. and Canada and stand over 165 feet tall. These facts mean literally nothing until you see it for yourself and stand at the top of the falls. The force and the amount of water flowing over the edge doesn’t even need a number to describe its magnitude, you can actually see how powerful it is. How someone willingly went over them in a barrel or even thought that was a good idea, let alone survived, is unbelievable. Some tourist things are avoidable and some, like the Maid of the Mist, are unavoidable. Sure, you could go and see the falls for just a parking fee and not spend the extra $18.95 but why would you want to do that? Do yourself a favor and do not miss this, it’s worth every penny. It was about 4pm by the time I got to the falls and I went straight for the Maid of the Mist, paid, and walked up the stairs to the observation deck on my way to the boat. Keep in mind, I hadn’t even seen them yet. I came up on the last stair, looked to my left and stopped, probably cutting off a few people in my wake. The sight of the first of the three falls took my breath away. It’s almost indescribable, the sheer size of them and the amount of mist coming off the water below like a thick cloud of smoke that never lets up. They cascade over the edge of what I can only describe to you as a giant crater with a steep and abrupt drop off. The American Falls curved back and forth and flowed around the bend to a shape I couldn’t see yet but assumed was that of a horseshoe. Short on time and excited for more, I headed for the Maid the Mist. I put on the bright pink poncho handed to me upon entry and tried to scope out the best place to be. I ended up finding a spot on the left side of the ferry closest to the falls and eventually made my way up to the edge for a front row view. On each side of the falls were stairs and platforms all covered in tiny pink bubble gum people also wisely wearing their ponchos. A half rainbow followed us along the wall of water careening into the lake below, hitting the large boulders at the bottom and bouncing off, unfazed. There was a break in the action as we cruised by the rocky gorge wall, hundreds of seagulls swooped low over the water and circled the boat, and I remember wondering why we needed a poncho since I wasn’t wet enough to warrant one. I spoke to soon. The boat slowly came up to the side of Horseshoe falls as it got closer and larger and that gut feeling of excitement that usually comes at the top of a roller coaster started to rise in my stomach. If my jaw hadn’t dropped yet, it did now. The mist came over the boat almost instantly, coming down in sheets and mimicking pouring rain as if we were in the eye of a hurricane. An almost 360 degree rainbow took over where the measly half rainbow use to be to my left and I couldn’t help the gut laugh of happiness that came next. The boat bobbed up and down at the bottom of the natural wonder for what felt like an eternity and I held on tight, tucked my camera into my poncho and enjoyed the rest of the ride back to dry land.
I can easily tell you that was one of the most amazing things I have seen in the past 9.5 months. The experience of being right underneath something so powerful and daunting and beautiful is a feeling I doubt I’ll forget. I ended up sticking around a bit longer, eager to see the falls lit up at night, and came back to the observation deck right before it closed. I took some of the greatest photos I will ever take as I watched the falls change from blue, to green, to purple, looking more and more like a portal to another dimension.
Having requested a few couch surfers and coming up short, I camped for the evening and spent my Monday doing something I never in my life thought I would, flying. One of the couch surfers I requested, Alex, has his pilots license and with many years and over 600 hours of flying under his belt, facts I would come to learn later, I felt safe enough to eagerly say yes to his proposal. His 1967 Mooney looked brand new. The engine was, nobody panic, and other than the presence of small ashtrays in the side of the doors, I would have guessed it was as well. The small four seater was waxed to perfection, the teal and white paint job screamed retro, and I still couldn’t believe I was about to take a scenic tour of the falls in the cutest plane I had ever seen. I’m not the biggest fan of flying or heights but as I told Alex, I know a good adventure when I see one. Flying over Niagara Falls for a better view and onward to Lake Placid for the day was absolutely an adventure I was not about to pass up. I quietly watched as he pulled the plane out of the hanger with ease and did his safety check and when all was ready we stepped onto the wing and dropped down into the small body of the plane. It was cozy, that’s for sure. I could just barely see over the wall of buttons and switches and when Alex showed me how to move my seat up, I politely declined. I was close enough, I thought, let's not push it. I strapped myself in and putt my noise cancelling headphones on, aligning the mouth piece where I thought it should go and got my nerves under control. The propeller in front kicked into gear and spun so fast I lost sight of it. I looked around anxiously for the oh shit handle and found it, somehow instantly feeling better, and we started down the runway. The moment we left the ground all of my nerves were left behind as well. I took a deep breath and smiled, still not speaking in fear of distracting Alex from a smooth take off, and held back what I was sure were my eyes welling up from amazement. It was unreal. We headed towards the falls not too far away and did a big loop over the twin cities of Niagara Falls on both the U.S. and Canada side. You would think the falls looked small from above, but they didn’t. Sure, scale is all relative, but compared to everything else down there they looked just as massive as they had when I was standing below them less than twenty four hours prior.
Being the perfect pilot, Alex kept asking if I was alright and letting me know that whenever I wanted to turn around we could. He'd crack jokes and take my mind off the light turbulence that would pop up, telling me all about how he got into flying and how he and his wife met through couch surfing. Having traveled this long and seen so much, the question I get all the time is what’s your favorite place. This is a loaded question and always hard for me to answer. If I'm being honest with you all, I hate this question. It’s not just about a place; there’s place, experience, and people, three different questions. Keeping this in mine, I took a moment, then asked, “what’s your favorite thing about flying?” I knew I had asked the right question when he smiled and told me how much he enjoyed the freedom of flying mixed with the need to be alert and in control. I definitely understood that, good answer.
Lake Placid was less than two hours away but still a haul and Alex jokingly pointed out that we could have flown to Philly in the same amount of time. I never thought of that. I was surprisingly content up there in that tiny contraption and the ride was mostly smooth and painless. Being able to see the ground and focus on the beautiful turning leaves and small lakes cut out of the Adirondacks, made the trip a lot more relaxing and enjoyable. I knew we were close when mountains started to appear on the horizon. I love Lake Placid and have been there a few times so when Alex suggested it, I jumped at the chance to go back. It’s a wonderful little town, home to the 1980 winter olympics and a fictional thirty foot long man eating crocodile in a great old movie everyone should go watch. Needing a good stretch after climbing out of the plane, we did a short hike nearby and enjoyed the fresh air before heading back to Niagara Falls.
The take off among mountains is a bit rougher than that of a city. It seemed as though the mountains created their own pocket of turbulence that I could not wait to get above. It felt like we were the toy plane a kid got a hold of at playtime and I breathed deeply over and over again and gripped onto my oh shit handle until my knuckles were white. Still, I knew we’d be fine and Alex’s calm demeanor was incredibly reassuring. I kept that thought in mind as I silently freaked the fuck out, excuse my language, until we were smooth sailing back to Niagara Falls. Day turned to night by the time we got back and I barely noticed when we landed. I was too focused on catching sight of Niagara Falls at night and it only took me a moment to spot it, not at all surprised when I could see its purple mist from a mile away wafting into the air like a beacon.
Wow.
Yet another once in a lifetime experience brought on by couch surfing. I can't wait to host people and hopefully have an impact on their travels like they have had on mine.
I think I'll keep my feet on the ground for the time being. On to more adventures.
'Til next time.
- G.
The Photo:
The Falls.
Niagara Falls, New York.
10/22/17.
