Swirling Rainbows

by Kirk House

Down in the gorge, the mist swirls and dances. Rainbows rise and fall and dance, shifting and shimmering as the mist boils, scattering the light of the sun through 360 degrees. At Niagara Falls, you look down as well as up for rainbows. At Niagara Falls, the rainbows dance.

When you stand on the edge of the gorge at Niagara, the earth itself trembles and rumbles and shudders under your feet. The roar never ends, never hesitates. The first paleoindians, and the first French explorers, must have staggered when they came across this titan of nature. Nowadays Niagara Falls is world-famous, a staple of cartoons, post cards, great art, bad art, and comedy routines. Everybody knows Niagara Falls. And they're still staggering.

America's oldest state park sprawls along the riverbank, the gorge, American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Goat Island, American Rapids, Horseshoe Rapids, and numerous small islands. You can get around much of the park by car, all of it on foot, and most of it by "trolley" shuttlebus.

Some of it you can even explore by elevator, up to the Observation Tower or down to the Cave of the Winds. The Cave of the Winds trip brings you out well below much of Bridal Veil Falls. If the experience at Prospect Point above the gorge is staggering, imagine being almost under the Falls themselves, gazing up at an ocean of water screaming its way down the cliff, again shaking the earth underfoot but this time blanketing you in spray. Here in the 21st century, we often assume that we've got nature under control. You might change your mind under Bridal Veil Falls.

Wandering the trails, or hopping the shuttle, you get to know the Falls and their ecosystem. Take the pedestrian bridge out to the Three Sisters, small islets off Goat Island, and feel the river's strength as it rushes by and around you.

As you wander, you'll probably spot black squirrels -- actually a natural variant of the commonplace gray squirrel, unusual overall but fairly common in this area. The river is also a birder's paradise -- by some reckonings, 10% of the world's freshwater gulls stop here every spring. You'll never be out of earshot of the Falls, and, on a sunny day, you'll almost always be walking with rainbows.

Niagara Falls State Park
(716) 278-1796
www.niagarafallsstatepark.com

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