Sunday on the River

 Sunday, June 30:
A hot sunny day today, with NO RAIN!  Lately, the rains have been coming down furiously in our region, causing terrible -- even fatal -- flooding along creeks and rivers in areas to the north and west of us.  When my husband and I drove up to Lake Luzerne today to have lunch at the Upriver Cafe, which sits on the banks of the Hudson River, we didn't know what we would find.  Happily, all was well along the river up there, and we enjoyed a fine meal with a beautiful view from the cafe's porch. Later diners saw a much more disturbing view.  See Update at the end of this post.

After lunch, we walked down to the rocks above Rockwell Falls.  Here, we could see that the river was full and running fast.  I would not have wanted to venture out on that roiling water in my canoe, especially where the river narrowed, picking up speed as it surged and roared through a rocky gorge.

The river was so full, the waterfall was nearly obscured by churning waves of exploding water.

There was not much botanizing to be done at this site, with most of the shore underwater.  But I did find some nice clumps of Narrow-leaved Mountain Mint, topped with spiky green hedgehogs of flower buds and just a couple of tiny, purple-polka-dotted blooms.

Update:  TERRIBLE NEWS:  Only a couple of hours after we visited here, patrons of Upriver Cafe reported seeing a man in a raft go over Rockwell Falls.  As of Monday morning, July 1, his raft had been found but his body had not.   Heavy rains again today will make the river even more dangerous for boaters and swimmers.  Please stay off and out of the river until the waters subside.