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take5.ca
JUNE 2012
5 reasons to visit Niagara Falls Niagara Falls in Ontario has a vertical drop of more than 50m and the highest flow rate of any other waterfall in the world. Impressive yes but equally impressive is the Niagara Falls located in Goldstream Provincial Park (16 km north of downtown Victoria, BC). This less popular waterfall may not have the same flow rate as its namesake but compares in height at 47.5 meters. Niagara Falls in Goldstream Provincial Park is easily accessible all year round. Park at Goldstream’s main parking lot and walk 10 minutes along the Visitor Centre trail. Parking is also available on the west side of the Trans Canada Highway. The path to Niagara Falls is not long so add a short yet overlooked hike along the Gold Mine trail and experience a waterfall adventure Ontario’s Niagara can’t beat. If the waterfall is not reason enough to visit I can give you five more. Reason number one – a tunnel. Trans Canada Highway travels through Gold-
stream Park and crosses over Niagara Creek, thus the tunnel. Depending on the time of year the tunnel will have water flowing through. Not enough water that would prevent access from the west side of the highway to the east side where Niagara Falls and the Gold Mine trail are located. Enough that you may get your feet wet pending the season. Walk-
ing through tunnels is always a hit with our children. Heck even I enjoy going through them. Who can resist yelling and screaming just to hear it echo? Reason number two – beginner spelunking. Spelunking by definition is exploring wild cave systems. The “spelunking” near Niagara Falls is not done in actual caves. I would describe it more