Niagara Falls is only a two hour drive from Toronto and was clearly a must-see. We'd been keeping an eye on the weather and today did look like the best day of the week. However, as this was our last full day in Toronto we were going whatever the weather.

Dave was a little surprised to find the Falls were actually surrounded by a large modern town. The town setting doesn't really detract from the experience as your eyes are always drawn to the magnificent spectacle of the roaring Falls which we found mesmerising. Jill had been to Niagara before but she too was still awed by the amazing sight that is the Falls - and this is something she had remembered with clarity! We pretty much did the full tourist thing starting with the Behind the Falls experience and our first plastic poncho moment. A lift takes you most of the way down to the bottom of the Falls where there is a very (that's Dave using understatement) spray-blown viewing platform - hence the ponchos. Hearing the roar, feeling the ground shake and seeing the millions of gallons of water tumbling from 100 feet or more above your head is pretty special. The trip also includes following a tunnel behind the Falls to a couple of openings where you are actually standing behind the waterfall. Signs everywhere say "Slippery when wet!", Dave couldn't quite see why they didn't just say "Slippery!"

Back at the top Jill needed coffee so we went into Elements restaurant which has great views over the main Canadian Falls. We think we had the best views possible from our table although you'll have to take our word as the photos we took were too back-lit to show us or the view well!

It had been quite overcast up to this point but as we walked along the canyon wall the sun occasionally broke through and provided a clear view of the US Falls a little further down the canyon. We had decided that one soaking in Niagara wasn't enough so bought tickets for the Maid of the Mist, a 600 capacity boat that heads right up, close in along the US falls and then manoeuvres right into the arc of the Canadian Falls, surrounded by crashing waters on two sides. This is an experience of proximity to nature's enormous power and majesty that actually merits the description "awesome!" We didn't risk our cameras in the spray storm, another poncho experience, so hope the iPhone shots and photos of the Maid we took from the canyon side do some justice to the experience. The trip is less than $20 and we've never experienced "more bangs per buck" so to speak.

By now the sun was bright and creating a rainbow in the spray so it was back to the car for our cameras and an extended photo opportunity (see the Niagara album for highlights), before we drove back to Toronto tired and happy.