— Whirlpool Scenic Overlook Trail —
The violent waters of the Whirlpool Rapids flow into the Eddy Basin before entering the Whirlpool.A major change took place here about 7,000 years ago, when water volume was low. The connection between Lake Huron and Lake Erie was cut off and the Upper Great Lakes drained through the Ottawa River and St. Lawrence Valley. Only the flow from Lake Erie went over Niagara Falls, and because of this a narrow gorge and shallow riverbed were formed.
Today, the flow of water coming from the wider Upper Great Gorge is channeled into the narrow section, thus creating the turbulent Whirlpool Rapids.
Upstream you will notice the Whirlpool Rapids Bridges. The first bridge across the Niagara Gorge was built here because of it being the narrowest point.
In 1848 a kite was used to get the first cable across the gorge for building the suspension bridge. In all, five bridges were built in this area alone.
The Lower Steel Arch Bridge (silver) opened in 1897, replacing the Roebling Railroad Suspension Bridge (1855).
The Michigan Central (now Conrail) Steel Arch Bridge opened in 1925, replacing the steel cantilever railroad bridge (1882).
| HM Number | HM1F5Q |
|---|---|
| Tags | |
| Marker Condition | No reports yet |
| Date Added | Thursday, October 23rd, 2014 at 7:52am PDT -07:00 |
| UTM (WGS84 Datum) | 17T E 657443 N 4775888 |
|---|---|
| Decimal Degrees | 43.11936667, -79.06465000 |
| Degrees and Decimal Minutes | N 43° 7.162', W 79° 3.879' |
| Degrees, Minutes and Seconds | 43° 7' 9.72" N, 79° 3' 52.74" W |
| Driving Directions | Google Maps |
| Area Code(s) | 716 |
| Closest Postal Address | At or near Robert Moses Pkwy, Niagara Falls NY 14305, US |
| Alternative Maps | Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap |
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