Riverside Transformation!

Longtime readers of this blog would likely know well where I most love to paddle.  There's a three-mile stretch of the Hudson River between the Spier Falls and Sherman Island dams, where the river forms the northern boundary of Saratoga County, NY.  I started paddling here back in the early 1990s, as soon as I'd acquired my own solo canoe and could dawdle along river banks as slowly as I liked, without any bossy guy in the stern impatient about my wanting to wait for dragonflies to return to their cattail perches. Here, along these banks where forested mountains fall directly to the water's edge, and where the river detours behind a large island and small coves form the shoreline where orchids happily grow, I years ago found so many plants I had never seen before, my desire to know their names was first inspired. And continues to this day.  This stretch of the Hudson is truly the birthplace for my passion for plants. And ultimately, for this blog.

My return to paddling here this year was delayed while I recovered from knee-replacement surgery. Now that I'm healed sufficiently, imagine how truly eager I was to once again slip my canoe back onto these beautiful waters. Then also imagine my disappointment to discover I couldn't do that. At least, not yet.  The Hudson's waters had been held back to allow for dam repairs upstream, and shin-deep mud lay between dry land and a narrow course of still-navigable water.  My knee is strong enough by now to lift me in and out of my boat, but I did not wish to test my knee's strength by lifting it in and out of sucking mud.

Ah, but even though disappointed I could not reach the water, I still was struck with awe at this sight. Acres and acres of the small yellow flowers and bright-green leaves of Golden Hedge Hyssop (Gratiola aurea) had beautified the riverside, transforming the muddy flats to glowing carpets of gold. This was the view looking downstream.

And here is the view looking upstream, with masses of those same tiny yellow flowers creating a golden halo around one of the river islands.

I could see that at least one paddler had endured the sucking mud to reach the water. But paddling so far from the banks and their floral treasures is not why I paddle here.

I did manage to walk along the shore on the mudflats closer to where the banks start to rise, exploring the banks on foot. But the dried ruts of mud made walking difficult.  Nevertheless, it astounded me to see the Golden Hedge Hyssop filling every inch of mud that wasn't already occupied by rocks. Native to most of eastern North America, this plant is usually found on tidal flats, sandy shores, and river or stream floodplains. The plants themselves have been present all summer, covering the bottom of the river in shallow areas, but they do not bloom until the water recedes, granting them both sunlight and air.

Here's a closer look at the golden trumpets of the Golden Hedge Hyssop's flowers.  

Teetering along on the semi-dry mud near shore, I was hoping I might find the nice patch of Great St. John's Wort (Hypericum ascyron) that I used to see growing right at the water's edge.  And so I did.  But too late to see their gorgeous bright-yellow flowers that by now had yielded to large fat seedpods.  This over-hot summer seems to have hastened their blooming. Only some shriveled brown wisps of their showy petals remained.

One of the few other wildflowers I did find blooming along the banks was a single plant of Water Hemlock (Cicuta maculata).  Although this plant resembles other members of the Parsley Family, do not confuse it with edible members of this family, like carrots or parsley, and take a taste.  It will kill you dead if you do.  Kind of pretty, though.  And insects seem to be able to dine on the flowers' nectar or pollen with impunity.

This next flower was more than just pretty: it was spectacular!  If the water had been higher, I would have found dozens of Cardinal Flowers (Lobelia cardinalis) decorating the banks by now. But this perfect solitary stem was sufficiently thrilling in its gorgeousness.

Where a tiny trickle of springwater dampened the mud, this pretty patch of Common Pipewort (Eriocaulon aquaticum) looked as perky as ever.

I sought in vain, though, for the spectacular blooms of Lesser Purple-fringed Orchid (Platanthera psycodes) I used to find along this stretch.  Here's my photo of one I found just last summer, blooming in late July.  Since a few florets yet remained unopened on that date, perhaps I may yet find some still blooming if the river's water gets restored to normal heights this week.

And guess what?  I drove by this section of the Hudson today, and the water has returned to its normal level.  Guess where I'll be paddling this coming week!