Aftermath of Hurricane Sandy

Early this morning, Paul and I went to the Great Falls National Park in Maryland to see what all the rain from Hurricane Sandy might have done to the Potomac River.  Unfortunately, the Park Service had closed the Park because the Potomac was in a "dangerous flood condition".  However, we were able to make our way to the entry of the walkway to the Great Falls overview that had been blocked off by a wire barrier.

The trickle of water that is usually at the entry of the walkway has turned into a raging river in its own right--see photo above.  While I am sure that the Great Falls themselves must be raging, the only thing I can do to show you how much the Potomac River has risen is to compare several photos taken on October 10 to those taken today.

This was the Mather Gorge on October 10 at about 7.30 in the morning looking towards the Virginia side of the Potomac River.

This is the Mather Gorge at 8 o'clock this morning taken from exactly the same spot (but without a telephoto lens).  The Potomac has risen at least 25-30 feet at this point.  While you cannot see the Great Falls from here, you can certainly hear a thunderous roar in the distance.  Probably nobody riding the rapids in kayaks today!

             This was the narrow channel by the walkway entrance on October 10.

                                                

This is the same channel this morning.  I might try to go back tomorrow to see whether we can get to the Great Falls themselves.  I am sure they would look absolutely spectacular.

Meanwhile, back on the C&O Canal, life went on much the same for the local denizens.  This beautiful great blue heron was poised to catch a big fish.....

.....and the deer below were wandering along the tow path not expecting to meet too many people.  Mother Nature is sometimes fierce and unpredictable.   At other times, she is gently reassuring.

This is all a far cry from the devastation in New Jersey, New York and further north.  But they don't let you build houses or subways in National Parks so life just carries on as normal.  If there is a "normal" in the natural world!