True grit…

The River Wye, early this morning (the sun is just up) in March. The river is at its summer level after the winter rains. More bad weather expected this week so the levels should come back up.

At its low point, one can see the changes that have been made with flood surges going through. The tree stump you see is dead, with a rambler keyed into its base. Two branches that never seem to grow are still there, but the beach that surrounded it has vanished, swept downstream. Gravel and pebbles from upstream has been deposited elsewhere, one local expert estimates that 1000 tons has arrived! That’s 300 HGV loads. the close up shows the missing bit.

The river in this condition reminds me of a Lake District or Scottish river sweeping down a valley with snow melt in it. Consulate cigarettes advertisement had the tag line “cool as a mountain stream”. Never smoked, but I like the description.