My wife and I traveled to Niagara Falls a few years ago in the unexpected month of January. I visited the falls with my family back in the late 70’s. It was (in an overused word in describing the falls) awesome. I don’t remember exactly what time of year I went with my family, but my father worked in the Philadelphia school system so I’m thinking Summer. The weather was gorgeous. My brother and I played on the lawns around the picnic areas, we doned short sleeved shirts, and I think I recall ice cream. In 2009 this was not the case. In the long weekend my wife and I spent in January, the darkness encroached at about 3:30 in the afternoon. The temperatures never peaked above 20 degrees fahrenheit, and the windchill bottomed at the magical number of -40 degrees (magical because -40 is the same temperature in both celsius and fahrenheit). One of the things that really burned in my mind from this trip was that Niagara Falls is still there. Every second of every day between 100,000 and 200,000 cubic feet of water flow over the falls. It happens regardless of the time of day or the season (except on the rare occasion that Niagara freezes over). What I took from this experience and why it stuck with me is because when I saw it as a child I was awestruck, and as an adult I was awestruck. The falls looked as different as could be, and it was a totally different experience each time, yet still indescribably mind blowing. If I would have only seen it in the summer I would have missed seeing the mist frozen against the lamppost pictured below, and if I had only seen it in the Winter I could never have appreciated the cool mist against my face, cooling down an energetic young boy. Each place we visit is unique... and each time is just as special.