Summer Camp wasn’t enough of an adventure, so Troop 3 is heading to Niagara Falls!
Day 1 – Travel
We anticipated a 7 hour drive to our campsite just north of Niagara Falls, NY at Four Mile Creek State Park. It took closer to 10 hours! Everyone was still in good spirits and we were able to get camp set up fairly quickly upon arrival.
Day 2 – Niagara Falls
With the late arrival, we shifted our day around a bit to accommodate a later start. We were tired! After breakfast, Troop 3 headed out to Niagara Falls State Park. We bought passes for the trolley and hopped on and off all day to get around. We visited Cave of the Winds and the top of the Falls. In the afternoon, we went to the Aquarium of Niagara. Hard Rock Cafe is just a short walk from the Visitor Center Trolley Stop, so that was our plan for dinner.
Day 3 – Lockport & Lewiston
We started the day with a guided tour of the Herchell Carousel Museum. It was a great example of how you can take a merit badge like Wood Carving, and turn it into a career.
Then, we made a quick stop at Platter’s Chocolate, where we got to sample two of their specialties – sponge candy and orange chocolate. Unfortunately, we didn’t have a way of keeping chocolates from melting so we couldn’t purchase treats to bring home, but we did visit their ice cream counter and get milk shakes for the ride to Lockport.
We enjoyed picnicking in Lockport and then in the afternoon, we took a canal cruise up the Erie Canal. We got to see the working locks and hear the history of the canal.
Dinner was at The Silo where we ate well and enjoyed the view of the Niagara River.
Day 4 – Corning, New York
On Sunday, we packed up camp and started our drive home, but we had a very important stop along the way … The Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, NY. Our Scouts enjoyed lunch in the cafe (ramen was a favorite) and toured the museum. Before heading back on the road, we took a glass working class and everyone made a project which they will receive when our meetings resume in September.
We had a picnic dinner on the way home and everyone was back to their own homes by about 10pm. It was a long but wonderful day.
This trip felt more like a vacation than a camping trip, and the scouts have said they would like to go on another troop vacation next summer. I wonder where we will end up?
Photo Gallery
There are over 500 photos from this trip and it would be impossible to share everything here, but we wanted to share a few highlights (WordPress mixes up the order of everything so these are in no particular order).
Leave a Reply