This post is continued from IMAX Niagara Falls – The Movie.
The Daredevil Exhibit at the IMAX Niagara Falls theatre is a gem! Admission is free, and you have the chance to see a large number of the devices that the daredevils used to go over the Falls. The movie discusses briefly the experiences of Blondin and Roger Woodward. As you exit the theatre, you are right in the exhibit, and can’t help but look around.
The Daredevil Exhibit has been open for many years. Over time, the pieces have been purchased outright, some have been donated, and some are rented. All of the pieces shown in Superman II are in the exhibit.
A couple of months ago, long before I received the passed to see the movie, I went into the exhibit and took pictures of all the items and all the signs. I have typed up the descriptions as well. You can find them all in the AccessNiagara.com Daredevil Exhibit image gallery. The images aren’t the best, and even if they were perfect, it doesn’t replace the experience of being there, touching the boats, and sensing what the daredevils went through.
The admission tickets into the movie have a variety of nice write-ups about the daredevils. The two that we had were about Dave Munday and Blondin. As well, the backs of the tickets have a Niagara Falls fact.
Dave Munday was the 13th person to survive a barrel trip over the Falls in 1985. Perhaps the most celebrated of the Niagara daredevils, Munday performed 2 successful trips over the Falls, with his second one taking place on September 27, 1993 in this 1.2m diving bell.
Jean Francois Gravelet (a.k.a. The Great Blondin) performed the first tightrope walk over the Falls between the Canadian and American sides on June 30, 1859. His feats became progressively more daring after his first trip; he was later blindfolded, rode a bicycle, walked backwards, and even carried his manager on his back.
Did you know? One fifth of the world’s freshwater flows over Niagara Falls.
Did you know? Niagara Falls is approx. 12,500 years old. (image not shown)