Our flight from Juneau with Alaskan Air went off without a hitch and we had a very pleasant if somewhat late night at the Crowne Plaza in Seattle. Off to the airport to catch the Air Canada flight to Toronto the next morning and a slow check in was followed by total chaos. I know they are doing upgrades at Seattle Airport and they had five flights boarding in the same area but Air Canada’s boarding plan was random to the extreme and it took well over an hour to complete boarding a 737.
Things didn’t improve in the air and we were very relieved to arrive in Toronto and excited to see Andrew and Christine.
They had been allocated a lovely spacious home in a pleasant suburb of Toronto and we quickly settled in. Christine had prepared a delicious dinner and whilst we ate we made plans for the coming week. They hadn’t been in Toronto long and an unexpected trip back to Ireland had meant they hadn’t had a chance to look around, so it was new to all of us.
Niagara Falls was high on the list so we decided to go there the next day and we had had such successes with our food tours we decided to do one the day after that. Andrew was keen to see Montreal and Ottawa before he started his course so we scheduled those in as well as the Allan Gardens Conservatory, which had come highly recommended, the Toronto Botanical Gardens, also recommended, and the Sky Tower.
No time for lying around with so much to see and we were up bright and early the next day for the hour and a half trip to Niagara. We had looked on line the night before and had tickets for all the attractions so were anxious to get started. A quick breakfast at Maccas on the way and we were fueled and ready. We parked next to Dinosaur Land Put Put Golf and made our way to the Falls.
Niagara Falls is the collective name for three waterfalls that straddle the international border between the Canadian province of Ontario and the American state of New York. Dressed in attractive red ponchos we headed for our boat to take the trip under Horseshoe Falls. 
It is obviously a popular cruise and there were plenty of people on the same mission. 
Fortunately we had got there early and the wait wasn’t too long before we off cruising past the American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls and on to Horsehoe Falls.
The American Falls is the second largest of the three waterfalls and the third, Bridal Veil Falls, is beside it. The volume of water going over the American and Bridal Veil Falls is an impressive 567,811 litres per second, which is approximately 10% of the flow from Niagara River. This coupled with the height of the Falls, 57 meters from the top of the Falls to the river, makes it a spectacular sight. Visitors can view the falls from the American side, where it is possible to approach to within several meters of the edge of the falls. 
Behind the Bridal Veil Falls was a natural cave, the Cave of the Winds, some 40m high, 100m wide and 30m deep. Originally you could descend a staircase close to the falls and go behind into the cave where winds could reach up to 110kph. A rock fall closed the clave in 1954; today, the “Cave of the Winds” is the name of a tourist attraction near the same site. An elevator takes you down to the level of the Niagara River, where a series of redwood decks and platforms allow sightseers to walk right up to the base of the Bridal Veil Falls with water crashing down right on them and flowing beneath the decking. This is where we went the first time I visited Niagara Falls and I can still remember the massive power of the water.
If the American Falls is impressive, the Horseshoe Falls are awe-inspiring. With a height of 59 meters and a width of 793 meters, the average volume of water is 2,271,247 litres per second. They are one of the best-known and largest waterfalls in the world and approaching them in, what seemed, an increasingly small boat is quite an experience. The roar of the water is so loud you can barely hear and the mist so dense you can only make out shapes. A lot wetter thank when we started we emerge out of the falls and, passing the hydroelectric building, head back to where we started.
We wandered back along the top of the Falls, stopping to admire the Police Station 
Looking at the speed and volume of the water going over the edge you couldn’t help thinking it must have been a hell of a ride in a barrel!
We headed back to the top via the Incline Railway, which gave us a good view as we ascended,
and walked back through the various hotel gardens,
past the casino and on to the Skylon Tower. We had debated whether to have lunch there but the reviews were not good, so we only went as far as the Observation Deck where we had a terrific overview of the Falls and the Niagara River beyond.
Niagara-on-the-Lake has a well deserved reputation for being the prettiest town in Ontario. It sits on the shores of Lake Ontario, at the mouth of the Niagara River and is in the heart of Ontario Wine Country. The flower-filled, tree-lined old town features 19th-century buildings and numerous boutique shops, boutique breweries and lovely restaurants.
Near the river sits the 19th-century Fort George, which was built by the British to defend against American attacks.
We had chosen to have lunch at Treadwell’s Farm to Table Restaurant, which had excellent reviews. Stopping on the way to visit one of the wineries we arrived and were ushered to one of the tables on the patio where we watched the world go by whilst we partook of a very pleasant lunch washed down by local wines and beers.
After lunch it was time to do some window shopping. We visited the Christmas Shop, the Hat Shop and a number of other interesting little shops offering all sorts of delights. 
We finally took mercy on the boys and retired to the Exchange Brewery where we tried a couple of their flights of beer.
Feeling rather replete we went for a walk in Queen’s Royal Park on the edge of the lake. It was sunny and warm and there were a number of people swimming. It looked very inviting but we resisted the temptation due to the fact that it was a bit cool, the pollution level was only just above acceptable and we didn’t have anything to swim in.
Instead we decided to visit Wayne Gretzky Estates Winery & Distillery. Wayne Gretzky is a Canadian former professional hockey player and former head coach. Nicknamed “The Great One” he has been called “the greatest hockey player ever” by many sportswriters, players, and the league itself. Gretzky is the leading scorer in NHL history, with more goals and assists than any other player. At the time of his retirement in 1999 and persisting through 2017, he holds 61 NHL records: 40 regular season records, 15 playoff records, and six All-Star records.
The complex is the first of its kind in the region, featuring both wine and distilling production. Nestled among the vineyards, the distillery is home to state of the art distilling equipment, while the winery features a beautiful barrel cellar and collection of Wayne Gretzky memorabilia. You can enjoy a tour, wine and whisky tasting bars, good food and even participate in a cocktail making course. If you are feeling in an expansive mood you can go to the VIP tasting room and try the high-end wines. As is appropriate for such a highflying ice hockey player, the fountain in the courtyard turns into an ice rink in the winter.
We were a little late in the day to do any of the tours but the boys had a fine time at the whisky tasting bar trying out the different whiskies. Not being whisky fans Christine and I settled for one of their special cocktails!
Christine had only had a tiny bit of alcohol and was nominated to drive home. We had a fabulous day and will definitely be back to Niagara-on-the-Lake for another visit. There are still so many places we haven’t visited! For food we need to see Cheese Secrets, Greaves Old Fashioned Jams, Jellies & Marmalades, the Pepper Palace (for all things hot), the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Maple Leaf Fudge and the Fruit Shop Farm Market & Bakery; for clothes and gifts there is Irish Design, the Scottish Loft plus a number of galleries, micro breweries, restaurants and cafes and we definitely need to revisit Beau Chapeaux and the Christmas Shop. Then there are the wineries…………..
Might need to stay overnight!