Today we were thrill seekers and spent more of the day wet than we did dry. That’s what Lou says, I happen to agree. Particularly about the wet part. Still we had loads of fun while we were at it.
First up for the morning was pancakes with maple syrup, well ok I know that’s not adventurous but hey its breakfast and I decided I should have something that’s Canadian. That would be the Maple Syrup part…
After breakfast we booked on the Jetboat Tour, which really wasn’t as expensive as we were expecting. Following directions we walked down to catch the tourist bus that runs up and down the main drag all day long dropping people off at points of interest all day long. We managed to find that without too much hassle and ended up at the Whirlpool Jet Tours Office in short order.
We left our bags behind. They warned us we were destined to get wet. Very wet. Now we didn’t flinch from that although we could have done the jet boat that has fancy hydraulic covers to keep one dry but we thought that was for the spineless coward types.
They piled us all up onto a bus and we headed off further down the road to the jet boat dock. They gave us jackets with the reminder that while they would help cut the wind and keep us warmer they would not do a thing to keep us dry. They then handed us the lifejackets. Off we went and Lou and I ended up in the very front row of the jet boat.
We headed off down river at a rather sedate pace for a bit before the boat picked up speed then flung around in a 360 degree turn accompanied by cheers from all of us as we then headed up river towards the Devils Hole. A class 5 rapid. So far so good. We were all still in the boat and dry. I didn’t think the dry part was going to last much longer.
We went past the Devils Hole rapid, powered up then the boat performed another 360 degree turned and powered down river towards the rapid. We all braced just like we were told, just in time for the first wave of water to hit us square in the face, followed in quick succession by several more as the boat was tossed around as it powered its way through the rapids. We came out the other side cheering, clapping and hollering for more and yes. We were all saturated to the bone just as promised.
We made several runs with similar results before continuing up towards the Whirlpool, a class 6 rapid. Just before getting there the boat powered up and spun around once more, showing off for the people on the viewing platform above and the cable car above us. We didn’t mind. It was fun. Then they took us over for a closer look at the Whirlpool. They asked if we’d all like to go through it and we all cheered. Unfortunately there was the little problem of it being a tad illegal so we couldn’t do that. Sigh.
We headed back down towards Devils Hole for a couple of more runs through. Our second last ride we were told was called the ‘Burger King because it’s the home of the big whopper’. The last ride was called ‘Happy Hour - because its all you can drink’ and drink we did!!!
We piled off the boat, all very wet but smiling, laughing and generally in a great mood. I handed back the rain jacket telling them as I dripped all over the ground that they should get a refund because it was defective and I got a little wet. They laughed.
We rode back in the bus to the office playing tag with the next group. Although these were the soft spineless types who didn’t want to get wet. Had a bit of a chuckle as I heard them complaining that they were going to get wet because the seats were wet on the bus.
We decided to walk for a couple of stops to dry off a little and at least the sun was out so it was warm enough.
In town we tracked down some food for a late lunch then dropped our bags off at the hotel. Next up on the itinerary was the Maid of the Mist. They promise that we’ll get wet as well. Although since we were both already wet it didn’t really worry us I just didn’t want to risk my camera gear getting wet.
Complete with the really long blue plastic rain jacket (it was a shame to have to part with that glorious fashion item - Lou) we climbed onboard securing a place on the rail downstairs since the rails on the upper deck were already claimed. The Maid of the Mist headed off towards the falls at a rather more sedate pace than the jet boat. We passed by the American Falls on our way to the Canadian Falls were the Maid of the Mist proceeded to go side on to the falls and get as close in as it could get. The spray from the falls was strong enough to sting the eyes and yep, we got wet again. We also had all the water from the upper deck washing down on us as well. It was an amazing view of the falls though!
Still if you do your hood up really tight and huddle in the middle of the boat you could stay reasonably dry. But what is the fun of that?
After that little adventure we headed back to have a shower and change into dry clothing. For the evenings activities we intended to stay dry. We made it into a bar/restaurant just before the skies opened up and it started to rain steadily. We settled in for dinner and a few drinks people watching until the rain stopped. Or we hoped it would since neither of us had any more dry clothes.
We finished dinner and the rain also finished which was remarkable timing. We walked down towards the Sky Wheel but got diverted towards the glow in the dark golf, Lou’s eyes lit up at the prospect of playing, not that she was using delaying tactics at all to avoid a ride on the Skywheel - Lou’s not real good with heights. It wasn’t dark enough yet for the Sky Wheel so we played a round of glow in the dark golf. Lou won the first inaugural golf challenge as one would expect. Still all things considered I didn’t play too badly.
Next up was the Sky Wheel. We purchased tickets and went for a ride and it provided spectacular views of the Falls.
That was pretty much it for the day. What fun!
