Niagara Trip Highlights--Day 4

Sooooo-now we begin the short afternoons and long evenings. And not a thing we can do about it! Oh well. Back to the trip.

After a great day at Niagara Falls we began with a beautiful scenic trip to Niagara-On-The-Lake. It is a Canadian town in Southern Ontario where the Niagara River meets Lake Ontario.

We took a walking tour, and had a guide who told us lots of interesting history. It was once the capitol of  Ontario, was a refuge for British loyalists fleeing the US after the Revolutionary War, and was the scene of a bloody battle during the War of  1812. It was also burned to the ground by American troops during that war, but was re-built by some very loyal citizens.
                                    

If you look very closely at the photo of Lake Ontario you can see some small white buildings in the distance. This is a point where swimmers try to make it across to Toronto--similar to swimming the English Channel. It is about 32 miles--depending on how the currents affect the swimmer.

The vegetation was extremely beautiful when we were there. We were told that it was at its best of the season--and that it could be killed by frost very soon.

After the walking tour we had a little time for shopping or lunch--which we really didn't need! Then it was time for High Tea at the Prince of Wales Hotel. The horses and carriages lined up on the side of it were waiting to take people on tours of the town. The tourism group there has really worked hard to keep its old time charm alive!



High Tea in the Drawing Room of the Hotel was wonderful! We were served scones, sandwiches, and elegant desserts too numerous to mention along with our tea. As you can see in the photo below, Ruby, Rick, Janet, Glennon, Sheila, Nancy, Larry, Diane, and Dale certainly seem to be enjoying themselves.

Niagara-On-The-Lake is in wine country. We were a bit surprised to learn that grapes can flourish that far north, but were told that all the water from the lakes tends to make the climate more moderate. However, it also provides the opportunity to let grapes freeze on the vine before they are harvested. Then they are processed while they are still frozen and made into ice wine slushies. Looks like several members of our group were interested in the sampling! I believe some purchases also made it back to Illinois.

                                                                             

After a brief stop at our hotel, we went to dinner at the Skylon Tower. We enjoyed another spectacular view of all the Falls from the revolving restaurant 775 feet above the ground. Yes, we rode the elevator to the top in 52 seconds--even though a few were a little skeptical. After dinner we walked up to the observation deck of Skylon to see fireworks over the Falls--a real treat for sure!