Niagara Falls Outdoor Activities

At Puck’s Farm, visitors can bond with 180 acres of the natural environment by learning about harvest-time chores and activities or scheduling weddings and events year-round on the open grounds. Guests of the farm can meet its animal residents, including emus, llamas, and a farm cat, which is much friendlier than a farm puma. For an even more interactive experience with fauna, Puck’s offers pony rides and the opportunity to milk cows and churn butter. Wooded trails traverse the expanse and present one of the many places on the farm where guests can delight in the changing of the seasons. Fall, for example, offers a variety of seasonal activities: visitors can get lost in corn mazes, pick ripened pumpkins, ride in horse-drawn wagons, and stroll through trails speckled with changing leaves. Autumn months also see pigs and goats building their nests for the winter ahead. An onsite snack bar serving hot dogs, hamburgers, and french fries enables guests to refuel for full days of farm activities.

At Fieldgate Stables Ltd., mother-daughter team Susan Coxhead and Michelle Vaillancourt promote horsemanship for riders of various skill levels. Their quiet and well-schooled horses carry students during lessons in various riding disciplines including dressage, hunter, jumper, and cross-country. With detailed, one-on-one coaching, students are encouraged to progress at their own pace and riders are paired with horses based on careful consideration of their temperaments, skill levels, and the compatibility of their star signs. Lessons also teach participants to untack and cool out their four-hooved friends, which keeps them from sweating through the tuxedos they change into post-workout.

For nearly 30 years, Future Flight has unfurled its fleet of parachutes to send riders soaring through the open sky aboard lightweight two-person flying machines. Sky captains brief each patron during a preflight inspection and provide a few minutes of on-the-ground instruction on flying powered parachutes to ensure a safe and fun trip. The seasoned aviators then throttle up a rear propeller from the pilot's seat and rumble down the runway until the attached parachute swells with wind and lifts the craft into the air, sending pairs soaring above the Lake Lavon shoreline at altitudes of up to 1,000 feet. For patrons interested in amateur migration, Future Flight also runs training lessons for solo flying in sport-pilot and Far Part 103 Ultralight craft, and sells new and used vehicles and accessories.

Meet Market Adventures propels singles out of the grocery aisles or from behind the computer screen to help them interact with like-minded individuals during a slate of social events and getaways. Throughout Canada and the United States, participants embark on interactive outings such as pub-crawls, horseback riding, and sushi-making classes that encourage mingling and casual conversation. Clients can also head out on longer adventures to the Grand Canyon, the Costa Rican jungle, or to a dude ranch, which, in spite of its name, is not only for surfers.

In addition to attending in-person events, members can also take advantage of free online services such as online dating, personal matchmaking, and advice and articles from dating experts.

For more than 40 years, DiveAqua has taught novice divers across Canada the subaquatic ropes. The staff's specialty is a comprehensive curriculum of skills and certification instruction that commences in the classroom, where students learn about diving safety and how to use equipment. Afterward, they gear up and head to the indoor pool to learn proper snorkeling and scuba-diving skills while becoming comfortable with the equipment in the gravity-defying environment. Divers opting for the certification participate in open-water dive sessions before receiving their certification card, which allows them to dive anywhere in the world. In addition to conducting instructional classes, DiveAqua offers a variety of professional diving gear, available to rent or own. At each store location, staff members stand by to outfit divers in wetsuits, tanks, and regulators.

Jennifer Green—a seasoned equestrian certified with the Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association—opened Stepping Stones Riding Academy in order to put her passion for therapy and love of horses into practice. A firm believer that time spent horseback riding serves as an invaluable experience for people with visual, physical, and developmental disabilities, Jennifer and her team of trained instructors lead pupils through lessons designed to fuse therapeutic techniques with the excitement of physical activity. The Academy’s fleet of gentle steeds patiently works together with their riders during lessons, deploying their calm and loving demeanors to forge a supportive relationship between student and horse.