Summer Flows

Not long ago, the gentle heat arrived - what feels like the official start of summer. Over the past few weeks I've been watching the migratory song birds arrive along the willow coated fringes of the river. All of the native plants have come alive, sending their bright flowers upward toward the sun. This to a significant degree is what we all wait for. 

Osprey have been back to the North for over a month, and now they seek food for their chicks which are evident along the river.

I've also been very watchful of the river itself in terms of flow, specifically how much water is traveling north. I've been doing the same with other rivers, and thinking about when it is best to travel them, my thinking built around the sometimes tricky balance between fun, safety, and logistical realities involved in paddling canoes, kayaks, rafts and drift boats. 

By Memorial Day water levels had dropped, but still not down to the low flows of high summer. With the arrival of late June the river approaches low summer flows, and for the first time I can see the river bottom with regularity on the upper river. Tiny juga snails are evident on the river rocks, as well as the many stoneflies, and of course freshwater mussels. Fish, from suckers to trout are spotted whisking along the gravel bars, and Osprey dive frequently toward their prey. Everything is bounded still by elements of the wreckage of the April floods.

Amongst the mussel shells, I can see the occasional live mussel holding fast to the river bottom.

Wood debris, human garbage, and growing things can be seen in the masses of root wads and tree trunks blended together in places along the riverside. All of them are testaments to the power of the water just a couple of months back.

While the calendar full of work and life events is packed, it is nice to know that this summer flow will be around for a while longer, meandering between barriers small and large as we arc toward summer solstice and the many warm, sunlit days ahead.