My Travel Map

A little bit of showing off:)

  

Canadian sojourn: Thunderbay and around

This summer we took a one week vacation to the town of Thunderbay in Canada. Thunderbay is a town in the state of Ontario close to the US border, and on the banks of one of the Five Great Lakes: the Lake Superior. Our week long trip there was more a family trip, visiting relatives but we did some touristy stuff there too. And it turned out to be such a delightful place! Was quite a welcome surprise!

Thunderbay is quite a small town, with a population of about a lakh or so. So with so few people around, you can imagine how much untouched beauty there would be, specially given how much Canada is known for its natural beauty? Huge pretty houses with well maintained lawns, just staying there is an undefinable luxury.

Just next to where we were staying was a ski trail through the jungles, which during winters is used for cross country skiing, and in the summer is good for walks in the woods. The jungle was dense, with some small wildlife like jackrabbits, bears, hedgehogs and different types of birds. The walks in those woods were the best part of the days, Quiet walks with just nature around..

Stunning views of the jungle and around. And scary too, especially if you hear about how dangerous the bears there could be! We many times did find the bear paw prints too, but managed to avoid any encounter with them:)!

Of the places to see nearby, we visited the Kakabekka falls one evening. (A lot of the names in this area are the original Red Indian names itself, and sound quite different!). The falls were not huge, but so pretty and calm. (I think after the lack of calmness in the last falls we had seen, Niagara, this place seemed like heaven). The area around was green and the pleasant weather added to the perfect ambience! The water in the falls was yellow in colour due to the minerals flowing through them. Here are some photos.. showing the surreal ethereal beauty of this area...

Our second touristy visit was to the Ouimet Canyon. It is a 100 feet deep canyon and the interesting fact about this Canyon is that the vegetation at the bottom is Tundra vegetation which is found at much higher latitudes, in the Arctic region. This is so because the plants at the bottom of the canyon never get sunlight and so have the characteristics of those growing in the Tundra region without sunlight.

Within the canyon also is this natural rock formation, similar to a human figure and was formed over the centuries by water and wind.

We also went to see the Mount Mckay Lookout, which is one of the highest mountain in the area. It is also an Indian reserve where the Indians are allowed to stay as they want without interference from the Canadian government. It was interesting to know how the reserve functions: the Indians who stay there don't pay taxes, and are not governed by the normal laws of the state. They are even allowed to run casinos in the reserve! The view from the top of the mountain was pretty, you could see the entire city from the top, as well as the Sleeping Giant park and the Lake Superior. The Lake Superior is near the city, and apparently there are lot of water based activities to do there which we were not able to do.

Other than that we also visited a cheesefarm, which was a normal Canadian animal farm. The whole visit was very relaxing and fun. And am definitely impressed with Canada, such pristine beauty at every turn! Am sure a lot more Canadian trips are to follow soon:)

Niagara and Finger Lakes region

The Niagara Falls are the largest falls in the world, and located on the border of US and Canada, on the Niagara river. The drive from New York to the Falls is about 7-8 hours, while its much closer from Toronto, about an hour or so. They are one of the most popular places visited by tourists who come to New York and we also saw the falls this summer, from the US side of the border itself.

We drove till the Falls from New York, passing through upstate New York and the state of Pennsylvania. The drive was pretty, especially because it was summer. Lush greenery everywhere, mountains covered with a carpet of green, in varying hues and shades. If the sun is out, the drive becomes a bit too bright, but on a cloudy covered days, its just wonderful to drive through this area. You pass small lakes and drive next to rivers and so on.. The drive sometimes gets too boring and sleepy, but that I think would be true of any long highway drives in western countries. To be truly attentive and awake at all times, you need to drive on the Indian highways I guess, where you don't know when a cow or a goat or a child comes on the road, you do not know:)

Once at the town of Niagara, the place to go is the New York State Reservation on the US side or the Queen Victoria Park on the Canada side. Apparently the view from the Canada side is better, but we did not get a chance to see the Canadian side.

So once at the Reservation Center on the US side, the first realization you have it that it is a proper touristy place! People, shops, eating places, hotels, high rises everywhere! Its just all around you! And the second realisation is the number of Indian tourists there! My guess would be that more than 50% of the tourists there are Indians! Anyways the park is well maintained, green and covered with flowers: good to sit around in the park and view the falls from.

There are a couple of good view points in the park to view the two falls: the Horseshoe Falls and the Bridal Veil Falls.  One from the park itself, one from a viewpoint tower and another from the Goat Island. The falls look regal from each of these viewpoints and are a pleasure to see (and hear!). Here are some photographs of how majestic the falls look from these places!

There are two activities which are popular here: the Maid of the Mist and the Cave of the Winds. Maid of the Mist is a ride in a huge boat which takes you near both the Horseshoe falls as well as the Bridal Veil Falls.

Its soo surreal there, under the falls where you see the full force of the water falling from above you! The whole region is misty here, the sounds are loud and the feeling dreamy! The boat feels so small in front of the huge falls, and while there you also see multiple rainbows along the falls. Other than that, you can walk upto the bottom of the falls and in some caves there, to get a more real feel of the water falling from above: this is called the Cave of the Winds. We did not get a chance to do that though.

After the stop at the Falls, we drove towards the Finger Lakes area and stayed there for the night. This area has a couple of big and small lakes, shaped like fingers.. The area is very very pretty, with small villages here and there, holiday homes on the lakes and a true vacation spot. The whole area also has a very English countryside feel to it, with many old British bungalows in this area.

We stayed in an old Victorian house here, with gardens and flowers all around. We also drove around the Canandaigua lake, a huge elongated lake running for miles. The drive next to the lake took us through winding narrow roads, lined with summer homes of the rich and the wealthy! There was greenery around, with cattle grazing here and there, the typical idyllic English countryside... Sublime and relaxing.. totally serene and calming..! We also visited one of the small villages around for a short stop to see a local town fair and then the pretty drive home!