When COVID hit, travelling became a real difficulty. Once the Canadian government removed the requirement to prove COVID-free before reentering the country, the demand for passports reached a level never seen before. We considered ourselves fortunate that it was only an extra month we had to wait to receive our passports.
When I was waiting (very, very impatiently) for the arrival of the passports, I began to research places to travel to in the USA. To my surprise, there is a waterfall that is on fire, and this made my impatience even more intense.
To tease me even more, Charlene’s passport came before mine, and I would have to wait an extra day before mine arrived.
Then, work!
What is more annoying than having a job when one wants to go somewhere?
UGH!
When our schedules finally synced up, it was the first time that I was in the United States in nearly 30 years. For Charlene, this was her maiden voyage.
The wait was over.
Finally!
It was a warm and sunny day in this park that is located just south of Buffalo. Arriving, I was happy to see a large parking lot filled with cars; this was a positive sign for me that the forced wait was worth it. Leaving, we were awe-struck.
I doubt that we will ever see anything as unique as this!
“I doubt that we will ever see anything as unique as this,” I said to my wife. She would reply with reassurance that we would eventually find something that would come close. I disagreed with her entirely on her statement.
I cannot imagine anything that will ever come close to Eternal Flame Falls.
The journey to the falls was not overly long; a mere 3-kilometre round trip. It was in an area prone to mud and steep in places, and there were lots of roots to watch out for. Once we got down to the river, the sides of the gorge were steep, and looking for an easy and dry path was next to impossible; we decided to walk through the river.
This is where I appreciated the wait for the passports. Had we been there when I wanted to go, the spring thaw would have made the river much deeper and our feet much wetter.
When we arrived at the Eternal Flame Falls, we were fortunate enough to have it all to ourselves. Despite the many people coming and going, we arrived right at the sweet point when nobody was around; an added bonus!
Eternal Flame Falls is the most unique waterfalls in the world. It is the only one with a small grotto that allows natural gas to seep through the shale and shelter it so that the flame is protected from the water. Seeing this waterfall with the fire that it shelters was awe-inspiring.
I wondered what caused the fire to be initially lit and who was the first to see this unique attraction. The size of the flame suggests that there is a large and healthy amount of gas in reserve, and I suspect that erosion will be the only thing that forever extinguishes this natural wonder of natural gas, fire and water.
Eternal Flame Falls is a low-flow waterfall and is likely to dry up in the summer. The location is shown on the following Google Maps that I created: Featured and Waterfalls. I consider Eternal Flame Falls a must-visit because it is the only combination of fire and water that occurs naturally in the entire world.
