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Niagara Falls is a memorable and speculator sight. Located on the Niagara River in western New York State and southeastern Ontario, Canada, there are two cataracts or large falls. The Canadian, or Horseshoe, Falls is on the Canadian side of the river, and the American Falls is located on the United States side. The waterfalls are separated by New York's Goat Island.
An aerial view of Niagara River taken from a helicopter, with the Canadian Falls below and the American Falls to the upper right. The Rainbow Bridge is above. A photographic enlargement provides greater detail.
As glaciers moved north during the Ice Age about 12,000 years ago, water from Lake Erie flowed over the Niagara Escarpment, a ridge extending from Ontario into New York. Since then, erosion caused by the currents has pushed the waterfall some seven miles upsteam to form the Niagara Gorge. And this process continues today. The Canadian Falls recedes at an average rate of 5 feet per year while the American Falls is eroding annually by 6 inches.
"Maid of the Mist," a tourist boat, approaches the horseshoe shaped Canadian Falls.
The rapids of the Niagara River quickening toward the edge of the Canadian Falls.
The French explorer Samuel de Champlain is believed to have visited the falls in 1613. Following his trip to the falls in 1678, the Flemish monk Father Louis Hennepin wrote an account of his experience. Today, millions of visitors journey to Niagara to enjoy the view from the river side, observation towers, boats and the Rainbow Bridge located downstream from the two falls.
At the base of the American Falls are the remains of a 1954 rock slide.
The river rushes over the American Falls with the Canadian in the background.
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