Friday, April 12, 2024

Niagara Falls, Canada - Total Solar Eclipse

The city of Niagara Falls is an hour and a half drive away for me. Around the other side of Lake Ontario. They were not right in the middle of the path of totality but close enough to enjoy three and a half minutes of darkness during the solar eclipse that was visible across parts of Mexico, Canada and the US on Monday. I sent this cover down to the main post office last week and it came back with a nice postmark dated 08 April 2024 - the day of the Eclipse.

The city of Niagara Falls is known for the famous horseshoe-shaped waterfalls on the Niagara River. Also some casinos, an indoor waterpark, and an overpriced entertainment district. Something to do for everyone. It was always fun to go down there when my kids were small. Personally though, I prefer touring the nearby wine region. Just across the river is Niagara Falls, New York. They have their own waterfall but it's not as nice :P

Canada Post issued this stamp last month to commemorate the Eclipse. It's an ok stamp but I kind of expected a bit more. It was advertised as having a "glow in the dark" effect but it's really just a faint UV activated glow around the moon. I would have liked to see an actual glow in the dark effect. 

I was in Toronto on the day of the Eclipse. To get under the path or totality I would have had to drive south-west towards nearby Hamilton, Ontario. But the cloud cover was pretty thick across the region all day. For a brief moment the sky opened up and we did get a quick view of the eclipse but mostly it just looked like a cloudy day that wanted to rain. I had a clear view of the horizon to the south and west and I could see the ominous shadow of the moon being cast onto the cloud cover as it traveled westward over Lake Ontario, south of the city. And then just like that, it was over.

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