We Went to a Wonderess Waterfall - Niagara Falls

I had made a reservation at a waterview site at Four Mile Creek State Park, about 15 minutes from Niagara Falls. A lovely park and we do have a great view but could only get a spot for four days.

View of Lake Ontario from our site

A Visitor to our site

Our first full day, we drove over to Niagara Falls State Park. Niagara Falls is actually three waterfalls that straddle the international border between the US and Canada. The three waterfalls are Horseshoe Falls, on the Canadian site and the American Falls on the US as well as Bridal Falls on the American side but separated from the other two by some islands.  We first watched a movie about Niagara Falls which was interesting and included a section on two young children who fell out of an overturned both with the boy actually going over the falls and living to tell about it.

We had read on some blogs that the Maid of the Mist boat tour is a must and we agree.We had to put on raincoats as we would be getting wet and yes we certainly did.

It is amazing enough to see these magnificent Falls but to hear the roar of the pounding water and feel the spray on your face, just WOW.

Totally soaked

After we finished our 30 minute tour, we hopped on the shuttle to go have some lunch. We passed the rapids on the Niagara River that you as they head towards the Falls.

 The restaurant overlooks Horseshoe Falls and we had a nice lunch with a great view. We walked around after lunch just taking it all in. Horseshoe Falls is the most powerful waterfall in North America. The Falls are renowned for their beauty but also as a valuable source of hydroelectric power.

What a great day and great weatherwise as well as we did get some more rain while we were at the State Park.

A Waterfall at Cuyahoga National Park

One day we drove over to Cuyahoga National Park, which is not far from Cleveland.  The Cuyahoga River winds its way through green forests, rolling hills and farmlands. This whole area is so beautiful. On the drive there we pass lots of big homes with lots of property. Both here and in Michigan, we have driven these back roads with these nice well kept homes and yards, most without fencing, unlike Southern California where most homes have at least back fences.
We got to the visitor center with a large parking lot where many visitors start their hiking or biking on the Towpath Trail that goes through the historical area of the  Erie and Ohio Canals. We had though of walking part of the path. However, it is Sunday and there are big crowds. It looks like all bikers and doesn't look like the time to walk, especially as we have Savannah with us. We will have to remember to bring our bikes the next time we are in this area, which we would like to return to. We only got a little taste of the Park and the whole area. Anyway, we had seen a sign down the road for a trail to a waterfall and so that is where we head.

 We got our first look at the waterfall through the trees.  

There had been a saw mill at the top of the hill and some power building. There was still the remains of an electric company on the trail.

We walked along the gorge with views of the beautiful 65 foot waterfall on boardwalks and steps which lead down to a creek.

Note the colors on the rocks at the side of the waterfall.

We walked for awhile on another side trail.

There is also a train ride that you can take through the park. Another thing we would like to do another time.
We could have stayed longer but it is getting close to the Fourth of July and we need to make our way into New York. We have reservations for 4 days at another state park near Niagara Falls and then are going to be spending some time around the 4th in the Finger Lakes area. Originally we had only decided to stay near Cleveland because of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and at Maumee Lake because it was a good middle point between our last Michigan stop and the Cleveland area. We have enjoyed both Michigan and Ohio so much and would love to come back and explore some more. However, for now we continue east with our next stop, New York.

It's Only Rock and Roll and I like it

We had a great few weeks at Maumee Lake. One of the reasons we stayed that long other than the fact that we loved it was a bizarre problem Joe had getting some prescriptions filled. Two days before the end of May, he had gotten a text that his endocrinologist was retiring and to contact his primary doctor. He called his primary doctor and was told they would okay the refills. So about a week later he stopped at Walmart to get his prescription and called the doctor to let them know that Walmart would be coming. Well, it turned out his doctor had passed away in April. They had a doctor that was taking over but she quit within the last week. Yikes, now what to do. He ended up going to a local doctor and got them to okay them. However, he only could get one of them for three months. It is a very expensive one not covered by Medicare and he really wanted to get a generic one instead. He'll have to wait until he gets back to Jojoba and sees a new doctor for that. This all changes our plans some as we were originally not going to get back to Calif until late October or even November but will not need to be back sometime in September. We are still going to go as far as Maine but won't go down as far as Florida as originally planned. No problem, we are flexible.
Anyway we left Maumee Lake SP and made a few nights stop at West
Branch SP southeast of Cleveland. It was a nice park but for some reason I didn't take any pictures. We just spent our one full day there going to Trader Joe's and checking out another park a little closer to Cleveland, which turned out to be our next stop.

Punderson State Park is a large state park with a large natural lake, a manor house and cottages, a golf course as well as a camping area. Another great Ohio State Park. We got there for the weekend and it never got really full, at least in our section.
Saturday we went to The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and, Museum, which was the main reason we wanted to stay in this area. It is right in the downtown are on Lake Erie.

Downtown Cleveland

Harbor Area

Of course being the weekend it was mobbed. The Rock and Roll foundation started 25 years ago to celebrate the music and musicians that changed the world. A few years later the building that would house the Museum was built. The architect for the amazing looking building was the renowned I. M. Pei.
The museum has many galleries showcasing the different periods of time in the evolution of rock and roll from the early days of Elvis, to Motown, Beatles and Rolling Stones,  LA Rock in the 6o's , NY in the Punk Rock Days on up to Hip Hop.All those musicians who were honored as Rock and Rock Hall of Fame inductees are showcased.

Guitars everywhere, including Black Sabbath, the Doors, Bruce Springstein, Jimi Hendrix, Sex Pistols, Soundgarden and more.

Rage Against the Machine Van

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Lots of on stage outfits, such as
Jay Z, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Nicks, Beatles Sgt Pepper outfit, Sly of Sly and the Family Stone and one from the Rolling Stones.

We also watched a film that showed the origins of Rock and Roll which was mostly the blues from the south. Another interesting time which brought back many memories, especially all the rock concerts we attended over the years. We still love rock and roll, oldies as well as current rock music. Hail,Hail,Rock and Roll!!!