Butterfly at the Botanical Gardens Butterfly Conservatory
My sister Kris and I are staying a few extra days in Niagara on the Lake as a gradual re-entry exercise into the real world as well as to enjoy a bit of rest and recreation.
We slept luxuriously late today and then spent the rest of the time in Niagara Falls going to the Butterfly Conservatory at the Botanical Gardens, riding on the "Maid in the Mist" boat up to the foot of the Horseshoe Falls, and taking the "Walk behind the Falls." Each was a unique adventure.
The Butterfly Conservatory is housed in the Botanical Gardens just between Niagara Falls and Niagara on the Lake. While the gardens themselves are vast, impressive and beautiful, the Conservatory is on another plane all together. Designed as a large walk through dome on several levels interconnected by naturalistic walkways, it is planted with dense butterfly attracting and supporting plants and filled with running water. Butterflies are free flying everywhere throughout the space, between the plants, on the pathways, in the air around your head and face, in the meshed in sky above . There is a sense of awe and amazement so profound that at times all you can hear is the sound of water and the slight whisper of the butterfly wings around your ears. There are butterflies of every size, shape, color and description, puddling along the edges of the streams, flying from flower to flower, resting in spots of sun and gorging at the feeding stations. The streams contain turtles and a few small fish. There is also a hatching area where cocoons are attached to racks open to the space and as they hatch you can watch the butterflies emerge, rest, pump up their wings and then begin their life. After several hours of watching all of this in fascination, we decided we had best move on and make room for other tourists.
Can you spot the butterfly?
Unknown green butterfly top, Mormon butterfly middle, unknown orange butterfly bottom
Since we had bought a 4-in-one ticket packet, we were able to use the people mover bus to take us from the Butterfly Conservatory to the "Maid in the Mist". We left the Botanical Gardens in a full hot sun, but by the time we got to the falls 10 minutes later, a thunderstorm cell had blown up over the falls and it was pouring down rain and hail. The storm continued throughout the boat ride, adding the excitement of thunder and lightning above the river gorge, to the thundering water and soaking mist on the boat. Although we were sheathed in blue waterproof ponchos handed out as we boarded the boat, we were still soaked to the skin on our arms, legs, face and neck.
Horseshoe Falls from the base
After a short period of relatively calm boating approaching the American Falls, we entered a zone of howling wind and mist, the result of the impact of the falling water on the rocks at the base of the falls. The American Falls has an elevator which takes you from the top to the base of the falls and a series of ramps and walkways over the rocks and water of Bridal Veil falls. The free ponchos for that attraction are yellow, and the lines of blue garbed and hooded visitors exiting the elevator tower and walking over the wooden construction was strongly reminiscent of an MC Escher print.
American Falls from the base
Another view of Escher
Another zone of relative quiet followed as the boat progressed towards the Horseshoe Falls and then another zone of howling wind and mist before we stopped at the base of the falls. Here although the air was calmer, converstion was impossible because of the noise of the falls and the boat seemed to continue to move forward, although it was actually the optical illusion of the water speeding past the boat at 40 mph.
By the time the boat returned to the dock, the thunder a lightning had ceased and the rain was beginning to slow so we walked along the shore to the walk behind the falls. The elevator took us down to the base of the Horseshoe falls and a doulbe leveled platform for viewing the water at the edge of the fall up close and personal as it hit the rocks. Another tunnel took us back behind the actual fall of water about 150 feet to where you could look out through an open viewing port 15 feet away as the water thundered down. The enitre space vibrated constantly and occasional gusts of water flew into the port far enough to soak the viewers.
View from the base of the Horseshoe falls
view through the viewing port behind the falls
Thoroughly sated, and dazed by both the sound and vibration of the falls, as well as the press of tourists, mostly school kids with their endless shrieking, laughter, loud converstaion and shoving and rough housing, as well as being taken through endless souvenir buying opportunities as we entered and exited each attraction, we called it quits for the day and found a outside terrace with a view of the falls for lunch.
We hopped back on the people mover to go to the last attraction, the "Whitewater Walk" but by the time we got there we were feeling, wet, cold and in need of quiet and space around us so we headed back to the Botanical gardens to pick up the car and go back to the hotel.
view of the falls after the rain
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