Photos from the Berryville, VA Steam Show

The annual Pageant of Steam, held by the Shenandoah Valley Steam and Gas Engine Association in Berryville, VA during July, is a magical event. Seeing both vintage tractors and steam engines putting around the fairgrounds makes me very emotional. I don't know about you but I feel there simply isn't anything like a restored steam engine belching smoke and steam to get your heart pounding. The occasional toot of a steam whistle is just icing on the cake.

Video from our Niagara Falls Road Trip

Visit Niagara Falls from the Canadian side if you want the best views of the falls.

Visiting Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada - Part 2

If you haven't read part 1 of our trip report you can find it here: Have you been to Niagara Falls?

By this time we were very wet. We took a short (1/4 mile Horseshoe Falls) walk over to the Floral Showhouse to dry out. The conservatory was built in 1945 with the reception center coming in 1980. The entire Showhouse, while small, is stuffed with different wonderful plants. The tropical plant collection is amazing which includes a reported 400 orchids. Tropical bird species flutter throughout the display houses.

Have you been to Niagara Falls? - Part 1

Niagara Falls is listed as one of "Seven Natural Wonders of North America." At peak flow over Six million cubic feet of water each minute cascades over the three falls that make up Niagara Falls: Horseshoe Falls, American Falls (Rainbow Falls), and Bridal Veil Falls (Luna Falls). The highest drop is from the Horseshoe Falls at 173 feet. The American and Bridal Falls are actually a little taller at 182 feet but because of all the talus, or broken rock, the longest continuous drop is more like 70 feet.