Cold temperatures have turned Niagara Falls into a winter wonderland, drawing more people than ever usually visit in January.

Many marveled at the wonderment of Niagara Falls freezing when the temperature dipped earlier this week.

The temperature drop created a visual display of ice formations, mini glaciers and frozen mist at the popular tourist attraction.

But with its constant movement of the raging Niagara River between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie, is the famed falls actually frozen?

Technically, no, says the Niagara Parks Commission.

While there’s the appearance of a frozen falls, Niagara Parks Commission says mist and spray coming from the water creates an ice crust over the raging water, creating the illusion that Niagara Falls has stopped moving.

The water continues to flow underneath.

“Of course we know the falls aren’t frozen over,” Janice Thomason, chair of the Niagara Parks Commission told The Canadian Press.

The icy wonderland that surrounds the falls has attracted more visitors than usual this winter. The images of the “frozen” falls have even garnered worldwide attention with media outlets such as CNN, Washington Post and the BBC taking notice.

“I just wanted to see the ice and the frozen falls,” said Diane Zhao, who made her fourth trip from China to Niagara Falls, Ont. to see it in person. “It’s so huge and beautiful.”

Australian visitor Maya Oxley agreed.

“It’s amazing,” said Oxley, who made the trip to Niagara Falls while visiting her Canadian relatives this week.

According to the Niagara Parks Commission, Niagara Falls has really only stopped once. In March 1848, the falls stopped for 30 hours after millions of tons of ice clogged the Niagara River.

Niagara Falls has turned into an icy winter wonderland

— With files from The Canadian Press
There’s a glassy lake in Canada that froze in the most spectacular way this winter. The winds were so calm and the air was so cold that you can see straight to the bottom when you walk out onto the glassy ice.

Clear Lake is part of Riding Mountain National Park, just 120 miles north of the U.S.-Canada border in Manitoba. Clear Lake gets pretty deep near the center — so deep you can only see blue and black — but near the shoreline the frozen lake is a crystal clear, see-through ice rink.

“If you’re in a shallow area, you can see the sand, the rocks, even sometimes fish,” Richard Dupuis, the park’s visitor experience manager told CBC News. Dupius recommends the ice be six inches thick to stand on it safely. This week’s ice is around seven inches thick — perfect for lots of people on ice skates.

Needless to say, the weather conditions to create a thick layer of smooth, clear ice have to be absolutely perfect. The air has to be cold enough to freeze the water without any wind, which would ripple the surface and create cloudy ice. It also can’t snow.
Caleigh Christie, a Manitoba resident, told the CBC that it’s rare to see the ice so smooth and clear. And the local hockey players and figure skaters are taking full advantage. “There’s not like a single pebble or thing to catch your skates on,” Christie said, “it’s fresh ice… waiting to be bitten into by your skate blades.”
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