FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Jul. 30 & 31, 2018

Driving east from a family reunion in Michigan, Sheri and I briefly entered

Canada to visit Niagara Falls. The tourist season there was in full swing and we avoided some of the crowd by staying out at Drummond Hill next to the site of the bloodiest engagement in the War of 1812: The Battle of Lundy’s Lane. It was here that 1600 British and  American lives were lost in a failed American offensive against British Canada.

Looking across the Niagara gorge to the American side, it was apparent that there were far fewer tourists viewing the falls from the U.S. side than from the Canadian side.  This noticeable lack of tourists is something we would continue to see during our subsequent visits to historic sites in northern New York state. Another first impression is the pervasive economic decline that once-thriving towns along the Erie canal are experiencing and that, coupled with an apparently low level of tourism,  makes for some pretty run-down and depressing neighborhoods and communities.

But the strongest impression, and one of the compelling reasons for taking this trip, is the rich history of these northeastern waterways and the critical role they played in the early development of America. This will be the subject of my next blog about the Seaway Trail.