SIR ADAM BECK 2 DAM TOUR & FLORAL CLOCK

Our next visit was to the Sir Adam Beck 2 Dam Tour. It was also and additional free admission along with our ADVENTURE TOUR PASS. We went there about 2.50 pm. The tour is scheduled for everry hour till 5 pm. So we were ready for 3 pm Tour. The touring Guides (2 of them) were very much efficient. One guide was there for such a long time that when we were screened a video about the dam, he interepreted every single word from the video in the exact same way and tone!!! he said he has seen that video over 2000 times by now!! The other guide , David was just joining in as a guide so he is in his learning phase. But for 2 days of joining I should say he too was an expert!!!



ABOUT THE DAM:

Sir Adam Beck Hydroelectric Power Stations are two hydro electric power stations in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. The stations divert water from the Niagara River above the falls which flows back into the lower portion of the river, and together produce up to 1,600 MW.
Adam Beck I contains 10 generators and first produced power in 1922. It was originally called the Queenston Chippawa power station and was renamed after Adam Beck in 1950 on the twenty fifth anniversary of his death. The water is diverted through a canal from the Welland River.
Adam Beck II contains 16 generators and first produced power in 1954. The water is diverted from the Niagara River above the falls through underground pipes. A reservoir was created that permits the holding of water, diverted during the night, for use during the day. Adam Beck II is currently undergoing major modification in the form of the Niagara Tunnel Project in order to improve its generation output. This new tunnel is expected to be in operation by late 2009.

The Chippawa-Queenston Power Canal diverts water from the Welland River to the stations. A larger water reservoir stores water behind the station.

SPECIFICS :

PLANT GROUP: Niagara Plant Group

DRAINAGE BASIN: Lake Erie

RIVER: Niagara

IN SERVICE DATE: 1954 Asset Transferred to Ontario Power Generation: April 1, 1999

NUMBER OF UNITS: 16

CONTROL: Attended


The tour was over by 4pm and just in half a mile or so there was this park having the FLORAL CLOCK.

Tourist stop by this place just to see what the clock looks like this season of the year. The Room beneth the clock shows its working, and also has pictures of all the clocks of all the years right from the 70's and how they were designed. Sadly i didn't find one for 1980!! :((


Online Videos by Veoh.com

The planted face is maintained by Niagara Parks horticulture staff, while the mechanism is kept in working order by Ontario Hydro, the organization that originally built the clock. The intricate designs on the face of the timepiece are created with up to 16,000 carpet bedding plants. The floral design is changed twice each year - it features viola in the Spring and four cultivars of Alternanthera along with green and grey forms of Santolina Sage during the Summer and Fall. California Golden Privet and Blue Festuca Grass may be used for contrast.
The grounds surrounding the clock feature bedding displays and a Tower at the back of the clock houses Westminster chimes that greet each quarter hour. If the door into the Tower is open, you can take a glimpse at the clock mechanism and enjoy photographs that show the history of every face design all the way back to 1950.
An attractive feature is a 10-foot wide water garden that curves 85 feet around the base of the timepiece - it is a popular place to make a wish!


Location: 14004 Niagara Parkway, Queenston, Ontario, Canada, behind the Sir Adam Beck Power Plant and near the Lewiston-Queenston International Bridge.

Background on the Floral Clock


The Floral Clock at Queenston was built by Ontario Hydro in 1950. The idea to build the attraction came from Dr. Richard Lankaster Hearn, Hydro’s General Manager and Chief Engineer at the time. While preparing for a business trip to England, Mr. Hearn was encouraged by Hugh Duncan - a Scotsman who was maintenance electrician foreman at the Queenston Generating Station - to visit the floral clock in the Princes’ Street Gardens in Edinburgh. Dr. Hearn did as Duncan suggested and he was very impressed by the beauty of the clock and by its practical value as an attraction.



After his trip to Scotland, Dr. Hearn commissioned Hydro’s Niagara Regional staff to design and construct a floral clock in keeping with the surroundings at the Queenston station. A “Hydro News” article describing plans for the construction of the attraction, credits Pat Ryan and Walter Ewart as the clock’s designers. Hugh Duncan supervised construction of the attraction and was in charge of the mechanical and electrical installation work. (Dr. Hearn later served as Chairman at Ontario Hydro.)



The Edinburgh clock, built in 1903, is roughly 10 feet in diameter. In comparison, the Floral Clock is 40 feet wide, with a planted area 38 feet wide, making it one of the largest such clocks in the world. Each year, the face of the clock is filled with 15,000 to 20,000 carpet plants and colourful annuals, planted in unique, intricate designs. Since 1977 The Niagara Parks Commission Horticulture Department (now Parks Department) have been responsible for designing and planting the face of the Clock and a site maintenance worker regularly checks the official time to ensure the Clock’s accuracy.



The hands of the clock are stainless steel tubing: the hour hand is 14.5 ft, the minute hand 17.5 ft and the second hand 21 ft long. Their combined weight is 1,250 pounds. An ivy-clad, louvered stone tower stands 24 feet tall and contains speakers that every quarter hour broadcast Westminster chimes. Under the clock, accessed by a door at the rear of the tower, the concrete foundation includes three small rooms – one for the clock mechanism and its driving motor, one contains switches to supply the electrical power, and one stores the tools required for maintaining the floral face. The clock mechanism runs in a bath of oil. The mechanical workings are driven by a 5 HP DC motor supplied from a DC drive. A tachometer is mounted on the motor shaft and provides feedback to the drive to control its accuracy.


The Westminster chimes are controlled by a programmable logic controller. The sounds are simulated and are broadcast through 2-25 watt co-axial speakers mounted in the bell tower.
Adjacent to the Niagara Parks Centennial Lilac Garden, parking, washrooms and a small gift shop are provided for the convenience of the thousands of visitors who stop here each year. This floral showpiece has become one of the most photographed attractions in Niagara Parks.

The timepiece is located beside the Sir Adam Beck Generating Station No. 1 and its mechanics are still maintained by staff of Ontario Power Generation (the successor to Ontario Hydro).

©2008 SarathaRavi