As an Arctic Blast makes its way across the East Coast and Midwest, temperatures have drastically dropped, causing havoc on the highways and leading to many New Year’s Eve celebrations being canceled. However, that same deep freeze has made one of the most beautiful destinations in the world even more spectacular than usual, as Niagara Falls partially ices up.

A real winter wonderland

Starting Friday (Dec. 29), Niagara Falls partially froze, leading to many sharing incredible images and videos on social media. However, despite the fact the falls look frozen, the river is still currently running.

It’s still a pretty impressive spectacle, however, as can be seen from various tweets throughout this article.

The Sacramento Bee quotes History.com as explaining that Niagara Falls has been a leading destination for tourists since the 19th century and reportedly around 12 million tourists head there each year. The three falls straddle the border between Canada and New York and were formed 10,000 years ago by glacial activity. It’s certainly glacial out there right now with the current Arctic blast, which officials expect will continue into the first week of the New Year.

As WUSA9 reports, despite the frigid conditions, tourists are flocking to Niagara Falls to take advantage of the incredible icy scenery. They report that everything is a pristine white, with trees sparkling with ice.

Visitors heading from warmer climates see the icy sight

One visitor is Kevin McGowan, who grew up in Buffalo, but now lives in a warmer Florida. He said his family heads to Niagara Falls to experience the wonders of nature but also the beautiful scenery in winter. He did say the beauty does come with plenty of cold at the moment.

McGowan said many people see the falls in the summer, and it is beautiful then, but a winter Niagara Falls is a different kind of beauty for them to enjoy.

Craig Brien is currently visiting from a warm Australian summer but wanted to see the Niagara Falls, despite the cold. Hailing from Brisbane, Brien said its “freezing.” He went on to say the lowest temperature they experience in Australia is normally around -5 degrees Celsius (23 degrees Fahrenheit), while out there it’s currently around -24 degrees Celsius (-11.2 degrees Fahrenheit). Brien said while it is freezing cold, it’s still better to see it in real life, rather than in a National Geographic book.

So anyone feeling brave and wanting to experience a real winter wonderland should probably start heading to Niagara Falls right now, especially if you would like to bring in the New Year in sheer beauty.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED