Frigid Waters…

It’s frigid but not entirely frozen down at the extreme lower end of the non-tidal Delaware River. Chunks of ice were floating by the Calhoun Street Bridge in Morrisville this morning.

An essential tool for those interested in rivers and creeks is the NWS Hydrology page (this links you the Mt. Holly station). There you find the ANNUAL WINTER/SPRING FLOOD POTENTIAL STATEMENTS and much more (ice buildup, snow cover etc.).

 

Right now the flood potential is deemed to be “above normal.” Just a few days ago the Delaware River at Riegelsville gage surged to almost 16 ft. (six feet below flood stage). The river continues to run well above the median flow for January 30 at the Belvidere gage (15,000 cfs compared to 5,000 cfs).

The tributaries are running a bit above normal but that should change over the next string of dry days.

While we typically have little to no ice buildup on the lower Delaware River (with huge exceptions like the Winter of 1996 Ice Flood) the more telling ice and snow statements come from NWS’s Binghampton, NY station, which covers all of the Upper Delaware River.

As of this weekend there is little snow pack in the upper watershed, although thick ice covers the large eddies in the Pocono/Catskill reach of the river. Ice buildup sets up one of the conditions needed to cause a specific type of flood along the Delaware. A quick thaw and heavy rain on top of snow pack and ice jams can create a serious threat to communities along the river. The NYC reservoirs have no impact on this particular flood scenario.

With luck the coming spring thaw will happen gradually without any big storms so we don’t have a repeat of the April 2005 flood.

Storm heading our way...

A Flood Watch has been posted for small streams and rivers in our region. There isn't much snow around on the ground anywhere in the watershed except the mountains, where the deepwater is also still iced over.

The Delaware River, Lehigh River and most smaller creeks and rivers are running at or slightly below normal so even 2 inches of rain should not pose much of a threat for those living along a flood prone stream.

The good news is that most of the rain will be come down overnight tonight and we'll have great conditions for paddling.

Bad news is there will be a return to frigid weather by the end of the week and I am in not fit to paddle the canoe for at least 2 or maybe 3 weeks.

Winter Rivers...

Wading River - January 13, 2010 (photo by Chris Meyers)

I'm averaging less than one canoe trip per week and that won't change until March. The most recent was a wonderful winter trip on the Wading River, a pretty little stream in the New Jersey Pine Barrens. It was a cold day but not too cold for a river trip (about 35 deg.). It was exquisitely beautiful and serenely quiet. Atlantic White Cedar, amazing ice formations, scent of pine and lots of tricky maneuvering around fallen trees = balm for the soul.

It's been nearly three weeks since my last post and since then most of the waterways in the Delaware River Basin have fallen to near normal levels. The NYC reservoirs were up to almost 91% capacity at the beginning of January but have fallen a bit down to 88%.

This is time of year that we begin to assess ice build-up and the amount of snow pack, usually but not always a concern specific to the Upper Delaware watershed. The winter floods and "spring freshets" can be the most destructive of the distinct flood types that occur on the Delaware River.

More on that later, but here is an interesting discussion and list of winter floods that have occurred in New Jersey courtesy of USGS.

Taking a week off for surgery and then plan to take a trip up to Narrowsburg, NY in late January for a look at the river and to do some eagle watching.

On the Rise...

Creeks in the lower Delaware River watershed are rising out of their banks with more rain to come and that speaks to the fact that they had more snow on the ground than many areas upriver from the tidal zone.

The NWS has a FLOOD WARNING issued for the Brandywine, White Clay, S. B. Rancocas, and Cooper to name just a few. The lower Neshaminy at Langhorne was surging for flood stage but that suddenly began to drop so the snow melt might be finished and the rain is beginning to taper off. The Brandywine at Chadds Ford is already approaching flood stage.

The Delaware River at Riegelsville is just beginning to rise and running above normal but not by that much. However the Lehigh River is coming up quickly and that will push the Delaware up overnight but not to 20 feet (22 feet is beginning of flood stage). Piedmont tribs like the Wickecheoke, Locatong and Tohickon are rising rapidly as well and these will impact the river below Frenchtown.

It looks like the aforementioned creeks and rivers that are subject to the flood warning will have a rough night.

Speaking of Floods...

As mentioned a few weeks back, it seems like the watershed of the Delaware River is primed for spring flooding. That was before the big nor'easter that dumped between 6 inches and 2 feet of snow. Fortunately the heavier amounts were in the lower watershed.

A lot of moisture is locked up in the landscape and the equivalent of a few inches of rain sits on the land in the form of snow.

Recipe for a Winter Flood
Ingredients: Saturated soil; generous amount of snow cover; streams running at or above normal; wetlands, ponds and reservoirs filled (to taste). Vigorously stir in a rainstorm and allow to rise overnight.

Ice Man Commeth...

I've managed to get out on the water at least once per week so far this cold water paddling season. Pine Barrens and Delaware River tributaries. It looks like more sustained cold weather is headed to the region so every day on the river is precious. The cutoff point is around 38 deg but that's with sun and no wind, and on shallower not too difficult streams to reduce chance of sustained immersion.

It's a great time of year to be on a swift moving creek.

Myth busting...

The DRBC today released its report on the role that the reservoirs played in the recent three Delaware River floods. I haven't had time to digest it but the Delaware River Basin Commission's interagency study group concluded that the reservoirs played at best, a minor roll.

Their conclusion is not news to me. I've instinctively known this to be true and have spent years gathering data and anecdotal information to help understand the issue. What has been most distressing is having to watch the myth that the floods were largely man-made and caused by mismanagement of the three drinking water supply reservoirs located in upstate New York. The "reservoirs did it" myth took root like Japanese Knotweed and become a pervasive belief among residents of the river valley. The DRBC and others did not effectively respond to the myth makers' emotional-based narrative.

This is a timely topic because now that the ground is saturated, the coming winter freeze will lock in this background condition and create a higher flood threat for 2010. Flooding along the Delaware is an infinitely complex topic. It's simple and satisfying to believe that the floods will stop if only the powers that be manage the reservoirs.

That myth is more comforting than the terrifying truth that floods are random acts of nature.

The truth is that flooding is natural, desirable and beneficial for the river and its complex ecology. Above all, flooding is inevitable. Only a fool would live on a floodplain believing they can do so without consequence, if only the reservoirs were kept below 80% capacity. Unfortunately, there are many who believe this and they are no friends of the river.

There are at least 4 distinct types of floods, each with its own set of background conditions. And that's the beginning point for the book of Delaware River floods. I can't keep my eyes open so it will have to be written another day.

Riverkeeper's Blog...

Maya Van Rossum, the Delaware Riverkeeper has a new blog that anyone interested in the river and its watershed will want to bookmark. It's a hardcore issue-oriented blog. You'll find the link on my list of river related sites.

One thing that stood out right away is she (or her IT?) managed to make the blog look like a website, a look that I would like to emulate. Please visit Maya's blog and sign-on as a fellow "River Lover"

A new independent film about gas drilling and hydrofracturing is being released! GASLAND is its title and it was done by a young filmmaker from the Upper Delaware Watershed who traveled across the country to investigate the issue in places like Colorado. Hydrofracuring is taking place in the Upper Delaware Watershed in PA and NY as well as the Upper Susquehanna Watershed in PA and many other locations within what is known as the Marcellus Shale Formation.

You can read about the issue in some of my earlier posts or visit the Riverkeeper blog. Another excellent source of information (and great layout) about gas drilling is Bluedaze.

Check out the Delaware Riverkeeper website for information about PA DEP hearings on gas drilling...coming up this week!

Indian Summer fadeout...

Cedar Creek near Double Trouble State Park, NJ Pine Barrens

Bridge Pier in Delaware River between Pt Pleasant & Byram

Here is a story about gas drilling in one of Pennsylvania's beautiful state forests. It's a sad story that is soon to be repeated over and over. The 18% tax the state will earn on the drilling operations will never replace the polluted creeks and contaminated aquifers.

It really looks as if the balmy weather will soon be over but that doesn't mean the paddling season is over, it never really ends. I'm still looking for some significant rain to get the small Piedmont and Highland streams up to a runnable level. Until then there are a number of Pineland rivers to visit.

Last Saturday I joined a group of mostly canoeists from the Mohawk Canoe Club (and Philly Canoe Club) for a trip down Cedar Creek. It lived up to its name with Atlantic Cedars lining the riparian woodlands all the way. Sadly, once we paddled past the Garden State Parkway it became the most trashed stream I've been on since a trip down Toms River a few years ago. Some of the people who live in this region are serious, dedicated slobs.

Hot & Heavy Water...

Gas drilling in Marcellus Shale presents a number of threats to the environment and to the people who reside in the areas targeted for exploration and extraction. Groundwater pollution, spills, truck traffic, air pollution and explosions are all part of the mix.

Add radioactive wastewater to that list and you have the latest threat that has drilling proponents scrambling to downplay yet another serious threat and regulators wondering how to deal with a problem that may not have an economically viable solution.

Read about this latest development in ProPublica.

There is also an article about gas drilling on the Rodale website.

There's an outside chance that we'll receive significant rain from Hurricane Ida depending on how it moves after hitting the Florida Panhandle. That would be a good thing for paddlers waiting for the smaller creeks and rivers to come up before it gets too cold.

Land & Water Appropriations...

Congress passed the Interior and Environment Appropriations Bill for fiscal year 2010. The bill provides a $4.7 billion increase over 2009 and a large chunk will fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund as well as water infrastructure. Follow the above link to read the official summary. I haven't delved into the gory details yet but they can be found here.

I did learn from a separate source that the legislation included $750,000 to the USFWS for the purchase of new tracts of land to expand the recently designated Cherry Valley National Wildlife Refuge, which is located in Monroe County and near the Water Gap.

Indian Summer Light...

Wading River Headwaters

Looie and Grace on the Wading River below Speedwell

Upper Wading River

Grace with the smiling face on the Wading River

Chris on the Delaware River near Carpentersville

Two consecutive days on very different rivers = balm for the soul. Tuesday we paddled the 9-mile Easton to Riegelsville stretch of the Delaware River with a fellow who is a cultural anthropologist with an interest in the river and the people who live along its shores. It was his first look from the center of the river, and what a spectacular, cool fall day it was for a river trip.

Wednesday we headed to the NJ Pine Barrens for a trip on the Wading River between Speedwell and Godfrey Bridge. We put in at the uppermost part of the river and crashed through and slunk under the brush and blowdowns of this extremely beautiful little stream. At the launch site the road was peppered with cranberries that fell off trucks carrying a steady stream of the berries to the Ocean Spray plant. We were in the heart of cranberry country and harvesting was in progress.

This was about 5 full hours of steady paddling with one relatively brief lunch break (approximately 14 miles). The Wading River, particularly the uppermost reach is an incredibly twisting affair and it is mostly surrounded by hardwoods, pine and the beautiful Atlantic Cedar. It's all sand with intermittent gravel bars. The air was fragrant with fall foliage and pine needles, the water a dark tea color that defines the Pine Barren streams.

I look forward to paddling more Pine Barren rivers this coming fall and winter. Thanks to Looie, Grace and Chris for sharing such a fine day on one of the sweetest rivers on the planet.