Didn't Stay

So very different from last year. We found easy parking on the street. When we crested the levee, we saw why. Festival parking was right on the flood plain.

Thus chasing away all the water fowl we have come to expect on our visits to the Chemung.

I still think RiverFest is worthwhile, but I have come to a few unhappy conclusions.

1-Festival Goers don't care about the River: they just wanna have fun. 2-I am not a Festival Goer. All the activity is unpleasant for me and the crowds are stressful for Ellie, and thereby for me, also.

We sought out our other haunts, and found other entertainment. The Chemung is quite low, so we were able to follow along the shore for a greater distance than usual. If I had not brought my camera, I would have dared to try to walk it all the way up to West Elmira. It was squishy and buggy, and Ellie had a ball.We are getting closer, but this is not really it, just yet. Still, the wooded areas are peaceful and much cooler.

This is what I really came for. Not exactly a closeup. Can't get closeups when a dog is wandering around my feet.

But I 've been watching these little families. I think I mentioned below that on Chesapeake Bay we used to count the goslings each time we visited. Their numbers would drop from visit to visit. Not true here. Most of the babies survive.

Which is why the area has more geese than we need. But that's another story for another blog.

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Little Pond

Overmanagement!

All right, all you "crunchies" can stop frowning. This mower is a very welcome sight. And not just because my Ellie has little short legs and a touch of allergies.

This is the very careful mower who is manicuring the floodplain in preparation for RIVERFEST2007!

It will be held Saturday (June 9, 2007) and promises to be bigger than ever.

Fish hunting, not the same as fishing.

After spotting a few muskrats in the feeder creeks, it was clear that this was going to be a photo opportunity. No muskrats would pose, however:

Even at this distance, I can see that there is definitely some animal out there. The gulls are paying some attention, too.

Whatever it is, it's huge. These are fish, and they are schooling. The slapping and splashing noise is attention getting. Wednesday morning in May and not a fisherman in sight.

Now I'm getting very excited. It's the same feeling I got when I spotted deer while hunting. The very size of these fish is thrilling to see.

They are carp. Almost as big as Ellie. Some of the local people catch these to eat. I'm told they are best when covered in cornmeal and fried.

By the way, these bold fellows were not deterred by me or any other human on the bank. Fishing them would have been so very, very easy.

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Little Pond

Low River in West Elmira, NY, USA

Remember the threat from flooding in West Elmira this past winter? This is why. The Chemung runs very shallow up here. We are walking near the Pirrozolo Park behind the Town Hall and Police Station. The levee ends here.

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Little Pond

The Pond Slayer

I shot this from all different angles, some of which give a very good view of the complexity of this windfall.

This particular view, however, is perfect for showing the Pond Slayer. I took many photos, and trashed most of them. While I was reviewing them, because they look cool, I remembered a program I saw at Educational Images Ltd.

I worked there for thirteen years, during which time I absorbed a lot of biology and earth science.

So. I'm looking at the photos of the windfall, when it dawns on me that I was looking at the likely death of Foster Pond. If the Water Board doesn't interfere, the windfall will decompose and clog the inlet. Remember that the "pond" here is really a boggy branch of the Chemung River that surrounds Foster Island.

The clogged inlet will fill in with detritus from the island, the levee and the various litterbugs that inhabit the area, both human and otherwise. And the pond will eventually be no more.

Wonder if I'll live to see it?

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Little Pond

My little dog loves to poke around these old foundations. And the local kids love to cover them with graffiti! Anyone who walks this area now must wonder that a person could have had enough time to build here. Currently this area floods at least every other year!

When men make plans, the gods giggle. These, I think, are either

fence posts or boundary markers. They delimit nothing now, except perhaps the imagination of someone who didn't think the river could ever come high enough to flood their home. If you come to the river this Spring, be sure to wear something that comes over your ankles. The water is high, the grassy areas are somewhat boggy, and tick season is on the way.

Art is a levee jogger. He is currently on his third career. He was city policeman, then a correction officer, and now retired, he works as a substitute teacher.

We first met this last year. It turns out we remember each other from Elmira College, over thirty years ago. We both took a Continuing Education class at night. He's kind enough to say he remembers me, and I do recall a young police officer in uniform in some of the classes!

Baby Dog
inspects

Water

Gate #13.

Never saw

this one

open in 20

years.

Comforting
to know
there are
controls we

haven't even needed for a while.

There:

Now, please don't tell me there is no place to walk your dog in the City of Elmira. This is just one spot on the north side only, and there are miles to work with. Remember to wear sturdy shoes, galoshes in the winter and wet season, and especially to have your dog regularly dosed for parasites and a protected from the fleas, ticks and mosquitoes you WILL find in this area. Goose poop and guano is everywhere.

Coming down to the River in the Spring has shown me a world of birds I wouldn't otherwise see. The Chemung is a minor waterway for migrants. In just the last two days I've seen a male Kingfisher, families of Hooded Mergansers, an American Coot and a Green Heron. That's on top of the Great Blue Herons, Turkey Vultures and the bold, beautiful blue tree swallows we see every time.

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Little Pond

Crisp Spring Morning Finds Ellie on Foster Island

This is one of our favorite spots. We are standing on Foster Island, looking out over the flood plain. The Chemung River is to our left, just barely visible between the trunks in the upper left. We own the place this morning, and Ellie disappears out of sight until I use the whistle.

Ellie sniffing the Spring air. Foster Island in front of the Watergate. We are alone, at 9:00 AM, Saturday, April 14, 2007. There is a severe weather alert for the entire Northeastern US, but we have chosen to enjoy the cool, fresh morning, rather than shop for supplies. I suspect Husband RJ will do that while we are out.

The HuggaMuck!

The first kayak we've seen this year. I know he can't go much further downstream, because the water is low and the dams will stop him. He landed at the Access Site.

It didn't seem like such a difficult winter, but these chews are everywhere on Foster Island. New chews everywhere. The totally frozen river must have created a lot of hardship for the wildlife.

This is a wonderful tangle of a thicket! I love this stuff, because when the greenery comes in, the watergate in the background will be invisible. Also, when we approach we will flush out the ducks and herons and frogs. Every walk will be as if we were miles from the city. But the greenery is well into the future, and snow is on the way this weekend.

High Waters and Goose Poop

Very high water and rushing rapids bring all sorts of things downstream. We often find engine parts and washing machines after a rough winter. The tree lying flat above center is just such an example. The shining water is very fast moving. I keep Ellie away from the edge at this time of year. She's much more interested in the burrows along the levee, anyway.

No closeups of the waterfowl today. They were creating a cacophany of bird calls, almost drowning out the traffic on the bridge. We kept our distance, because, well, frankly, they are very dirty. Goose poop is easier to take when its aged a bit.

This is just plain ugly. It will be years before soil on the boat ramp settles, leaving the bare stones. But the waterfowl don't care. We walked over to the other side of the drainage creek, to allow the birds their space. They watch us warily. A little while later, a car will unload a dog and its owner, and they will chase away the wildlife.

Across the drainage creek the waterfowl are fidgety. They crab and crank, making quick honking noises that are echoed in the squawks and screeching of the gulls. Ducks can't get in a word, edgewise.

Very much a city shot. Rapids alongside the Walnut Street Bridge. The ducks seem to enjoy riding them down to the wide island where the local high schools kids installed an osprey platform. While I haven't seen ospreys yet, there are plenty of sightings of bald eagles. We can always hope.

I won't go out on a limb.

These are probably not the last we'll see of snow tracks. But wouldn't it be nice?

The rapids are absolutely forbidding under the Walnut Street Bridge. They command respect for the power of the Chemung. A few lives are lost every year in this town. Where there are rapids, the water is shallow. The deeper water in the background has terrific undercurrents. The bodies almost always wash up much further down river.

To me, this is Elmira, New York, USA. The hills roll off into the distance, and the Chemung River cuts the town into distinct boroughs. It is very, very early Spring, and the trees are still bare, the hills still brown.

The drainage ditch in the foreground is actually an inlet right now. The highwaters make our excursion dangerous and difficult. My legs are very tired, so we edge toward the top of the levee, and head home.

Little Pond

20 degrees F, -7 degrees C

And the warmest outdoor spot in Elmira, New York, USA, is right in the middle of the Chemung River.

Totally frozen now, it is possible to cross the river on foot. Safely. The only flowing water was coming from Hoffman Creek, under the city. The inlet was well frozen only a few feet from the culvert.

We skirted the river bank, looking for a good place to land. It was quite warm in the bright sunshine and the river was hard, hard, hard. Ellie ran here and there, looking to me for guidance.

Still and all, ice is very slippery, even, or especially on the Chemung. We moved slowly downriver until we found a good spot. Ellie easily climbed the bank, and I had little trouble. Then we crossed Foster Island and followed the levee to the Fishing Access Ramp. Lots of tracks on the river, human and otherwise.

Upstate New York is glorious on a bright, snow-covered morning!

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Little Pond

HuggaMutt hunts!

What is this, she seems to ask? And you may very well ask. The Mutt is part dachs-hund and part Jack Russell terrier, so there's rather small, floppy ears and the tail points up, rather than the usual doxie's down.

The sweater and skirt are due to the frigid temps. At just about 12 degrees Fahrenheit, or 8-9 Celsius, it is very cold for a small dog tramping through the snow. I take no chances. If it were colder, or if there were a significant wind-chill, she would be wearing her scarf, too.

Incidentally, she hates the clothes, and thinks she looks ridiculous! Gramma has to know for certain that the little one is warm. So let's go hunting.

Ahhh, the follow-through!

Guess she really did find something. There are burrows everywhere underfoot. Ellie's nose knows. We may not see the animals, but she absolutely knows they are there. See the feeder creek in the background. It is frozen through and allows us to walk right across. Frozen through means no cracking whatsoever.

Inviting sight?

Not a track anywhere. Except Ellie's in the fore-ground.

Now, repeat after me: WE WILL NOT CROSS THE RIVER, EVEN THOUGH IT LOOKS FROZEN.

She walks on water.

Only now can Ellie walk on the frozen Chemung River. Not a cracking sound to be heard. Personally, I will wait until I see the tell-tale tracks of the ATV's. Let those fools do the testing.

What people probably expect

when one mentions a frozen river. Here the Chemung is not so ice-choked, as iced over. Very dangerous. See the grey line near the left middle? That is very, very thin, and the water flows very, very fast just under it. A person who falls through would be sucked downriver under the ice. Where he or she would surely die.

But enough happy thoughts. More river below.

Click on "Older Posts."

Frozen Morning, Noisy Crows

Remember the "Morning Bark" and the "Evening Bark" in 101 Dalmations? All the dogs raised a ruckus that drove the owners nuts. At the same time, the dogs themselves were actually passing along vital news. Let's hope these noisy crows are having a "Morning Caw" and not just raising a ruckus. They're always screaming, every morning.

Frozen Morning, Fallen Tree

This must have made quite a racket when it went down. Right now it creates a wonderful sort of apartment house for all sorts of creatures. Aquatic and land animals probably find shelter all through this. Glad the Water Board doesn't over-manage this area.

Frozen Morning, Deer Rub

This looks normal enough. Until one realizes that we are in the middle of a city. But the deer really do travel right through the neighborhoods at night. They eat everything in their paths. It's worse in the summer, when they nip the tops off our flowers!

Frozen Morning, Chewed Tree

This looks to be an abandoned effort by a gnawer. I would swear it was done by kids, but it is way too low to the ground.