Did you know that besides being one of the great wonders of the world, Niagara Falls is also a huge source of hydro-electric power? We learned all about how energy is harvested from the power of the rushing water with a visit to the Niagara Power Project Visitor Center located just 4 miles downstream in the Niagara river gorge. I highly recommend stopping here if you have any one in your party interested in science or physics or is just plain curious.
While the exhibits are fairly dated there is a lot to learn here if you take the time to look and read as opposed to just running around and pushing buttons. So maybe not so great for real little kids, but my teens especially my boys who are taking STEM classes in high school found it really interesting learning how the power of the water turns turbines which in turn power copper wire coils surrounding large magnets that generate electrical current. They also learned about the difference between Edison's model of direct current versus Tesla's model of alternating current.
There is also a very nice viewing deck that shows the intake system for the water and the Niagara River that leads to the falls.
I truly hope the visitor's center invests some money into their displays as I am sure there are plenty of visitors just like us who would take the time to learn. If you're crew is sufficiently sophisticated or old enough to understand the concepts by all means check this out. It's a worthwhile side trip from the falls and just a few minutes away.
