Collection
Notes |
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Saturday,
April 19, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 3 C / 37 F
Weather: Light overcast, gentle wind.
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: None
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Water Temperature: 12 C / 54 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 10.55 mg/L
River Gage: 2.24 feet
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Notes: No leaves yet but the trees are flowering and the
birds are singing. It's a cloudy morning but it's clearing
and the sun is starting to break through...
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Saturday, April 26, 2003 - 7:40 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 12 C / 54 F
Weather: Heavy overcast, light wind, raining.
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0.2 cm (0.1 inches)
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Water Temperature: 13 C / 55 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 9.3 mg/L
River Gage: 1.24 feet
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Notes: The trees have a beautiful mist of green on them,
made brighter by the wet weather. It is a rainy, damp, gray
morning, but there are lots of birds out. A Great Blue Heron
and a Mallard took off from the river as I walked up towards
the dam; there were, as usual, lots of Starlings in the
field, and one Cardinal sang loudly from the top of a tree
the whole time I was there. The river level is down a lot
from last week, probably due to the dry weather this week,
but it will probably be going back up today.
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Saturday, May 3, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 12 C / 54 F
Weather: Heavy overcast & windy
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0.5 cm (0.2 inches)
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Water Temperature: 16 C / 61 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 9.3 mg/L
River Gage: 1.88 feet
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Notes: A cold and raw morning -- the water felt warm compared
to the air. The leaves are coming out on the trees. Brought
a friend along to take a few pictures.
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Saturday, May 10, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 14 C / 57 F
Weather: Clear
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0.4 cm (0.15 inches)
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Water Temperature: 16 C / 61 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 9.2 mg/L
River Gage: 1.56 feet
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Notes: Clear blue sky overhead. Birds everywhere. A beautiful
morning...
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Saturday, May 17, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 8 C / 46 F
Weather: Heavy overcast
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: None
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Water Temperature: 13 C / 55 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 9.6 mg/L
River Gage: 1.12 feet
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Notes: A cold, raw, windy morning, with heavy clouds overhead;
but this did not seem to bother a Northern Waterthrush that
was working it's way along the muddy bank of the river looking
for food. Also saw a Great Blue Heron flying up the river,
and a Northern ("Baltimore") Oriole singing from
the top of one of the trees along the river. My Mother is
visiting this weekend and I brought her along this morning
so she could see what I'm doing on the river. She brought
her binoculars, without which we would not have been able
to identify the Waterthrush.
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Saturday, May 24, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 10 C / 50 F
Weather: Heavy overcast
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 1.5 cm (0.6 inches)
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Water Temperature: 14 C / 57 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 9.5 mg/L
River Gage: 1.56 feet
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Notes: It's raining, at times only lightly and at times
just short of torrentially. When the rain is coming down
lightly each raindrop makes a bright circle on the dark
water of the river. When it's raining hard the bands of
rain undulate across the river in a constantly changing
pattern.
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Saturday, May 31, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 20 C / 68 F
Weather: Thin overcast, but enough sun to cast distinct
shadows
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 17 C / 62 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 8.7 mg/L
River Gage: 1.88 feet
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Notes: The sun is shining through a thin layer of clouds
and for the first time it's warm enough to almost feel like
summer. The air is still so the trees, now dense with leaves,
are reflected in the smooth moving surface of the river.
Saw something swimming in the river, probably a muskrat.
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Friday, June 6, 2003 - 6:45 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 15 C / 59 F
Weather: Clear sky, calm wind
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 1.45 cm (0.57 inches)
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Water Temperature: 15 C / 59 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 8.8 mg/L
River Gage: 2.08 feet
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Notes: Beautiful cloudless blue sky. Sunlight sparkling
off a heavy dew...
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Saturday, June 14, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 15 C / 59 F
Weather: Cool, calm & cloudy
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 3.9 cm (1.54 inches)
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Water Temperature: 17 C / 62 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 8.7 mg/L
River Gage: 2.28 feet
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Notes: The river is brown with mud and running hard after
the heavy rain of the last few days. Above the river, the
forest is many shades green, green and more green. The willow
and cottonwood trees across the river are a pale, sandy
green. The wet maple leaves are a deep, rich green; and
everything else is somewhere in-between. One flower seems
to have leaves that resist the water, so on it's leaves
the water balls up into little round droplets that each
catch the light and reflect it as a tiny bright spot.
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Saturday, June 21, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 20 C / 68 F
Weather: Light overcast
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 21 C / 70 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 8.0 mg/L
River Gage: 1.56 feet
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Notes: A quiet morning on the river. For the first time
in weeks the river level is down. The wind is blowing gently
and the sun is shining though a thin overcast. A fine summer
morning for the summer solstice, but it looks like some
rain may be one the way later.
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Sunday, June 29, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 24 C / 75 F
Weather: Heavy overcast, no wind
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 23 C / 73 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 7.2 mg/L
River Gage: 1.42 feet
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Notes: A still, quiet morning on the river. Even the birds,
while still around in profusion, seem to be a bit quieter
than they were in the spring, when each morning brought
forth a cacophony of bird songs.
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Thursday, July 3, 2003 - 6:20 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 22 C / 72 F
Weather: clear, no wind
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 23 C / 73 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 7.3 mg/L
River Gage: 1.34 feet
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Notes: I'm on the river early this morning, in time to
enjoy the beautiful light from the newly risen sun. The
light coming through the trees is making wonderful patterns
on the riverbank. At the monitoring site a golden light
is shining on the underside of the leaves on a towering
sycamore tree next to the river, and the same light catches
the white on the underside of the wings of a pigeon flying
high over the river. Looking down-river the water surface
is black where it is reflecting the trees and silver where
it is reflecting the sky. A white mulberry tree surprises
me by dropping its berrylike fruits into the river next
to me as I am collecting the water samples.
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Saturday, July 12, 2003 - 7:15 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 20 C / 68 F
Weather: fog, no wind
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 1 cm (0.4 inches)
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Water Temperature: 22 C / 72 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 7.3 mg/L
River Gage: 1.30 feet
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Notes: Thick fog this morning! Everything not close to
me is shrouded in gray, from the trees up the river to the
sky overhead, so the world feels drawn in close around me,
in a warm, dark, sheltering sort of way. The mulberry tree
is still raining "berries" into the river. Surprisingly,
many seem to sink because I can see them around all the
rocks on the bottom. A tree across the river is covered
with pink flowers.
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Thursday, July 17, 2003 - 6:15 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 19 C / 66 F
Weather: clear, no wind
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 1.6 cm (0.6 inches)
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Water Temperature: 22 C / 72 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 7.5 mg/L
River Gage: 1.32 feet
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Notes: While the sun is coming up over the eastern horizon,
a three-quarter moon is descending towards the trees, and
towards its own reflection in the dark waters of the river.
As the sun gets higher, its light starts to filter down
to the forest floor and to the surface of the river. On
the fast water below the dam the spots of sunlight on the
river create brilliant white highlights.
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Saturday, July 26, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 24 C / 75 F
Weather: clear, no wind
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0.8 cm (0.3 inches)
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Water Temperature: 24 C / 75 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 7.4 mg/L
River Gage: 1.38 feet
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Notes: The day is just getting started and already it's
hot outside. The sun feels like a furnace and the relative
cool of the shade under the trees next to the river is most
welcome. However, the sunlight reflecting off the river
is creating beautiful patterns on the rock wall next to
the river and on the undersides of the leaves on the trees
above the wall. Sitting on the rocks in the sun is a tiny
purple damselfly. His entire body is purple except at the
very back end where it fades to blue, and his eyes are huge
bulging knobs. He does not move while I stand in the river
and inspect his beautiful colors from about 12 inches away.
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Monday, August 4, 2003 - 7:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 26 C / 79 F
Weather: overcast, "gentle" wind (8-11 mph)
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0.4 cm (0.2 inches)
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Water Temperature: 25 C / 77 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 6.9 mg/L
River Gage: 1.14 feet
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Notes: This morning has the feeling of an approaching storm.
The sky is a heavy, uniform gray, and a gusty wind is blowing
up the river. The clouds are low and moving fast across
the sky. However, as I am getting ready to leave a few small
holes in the clouds reveal blue sky on the other side, suggesting
that sun and blue skies are not so far away. A female mallard
and five ducklings paddle downstream under the bridge as
I wade across the river to clean the gage board.
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Saturday, August 9, 2003 - 6:30 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 24 C / 75 F
Weather: heavy overcast, calm
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 8.3 cm (3.3 inches)
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Water Temperature: 25 C / 77 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 7.3 mg/L
River Gage: 2.5 feet
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Notes: There is a lot of water coming down the river this
morning! Last week I could see the bottom clearly. This
week the water is brown and murky, and it pushes against
me as I wade out into the river. The air is warm, dense
and still and occasional showers pass through as I collect
the samples. I watched a mallard float right to the lip
of the dam before taking off and landing below the dam.
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Saturday, August 16, 2003 - 7:30 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 25 C / 77 F
Weather: clear and calm
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 26 C / 79 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 6.9 mg/L
River Gage: 1.32 feet
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Notes: A tranquil summer morning. The river is back down
to a more normal level after last weekend's high water.
The air is still and warming up quickly as the sun climbs
above the trees. Looking up through the trees, the sky is
bright blue.
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Friday, August 29, 2003 - 6:15 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 15 C / 59 F
Weather: clear and calm
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 21 C / 70 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 7.4 mg/L
River Gage: 0.92 feet
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Notes: For the first time since early summer it feels downright
chilly out this morning. The river water seems warm by comparison.
The hints are here that summer is fading into fall. The
sunrise is getting later too; I'm at the river in time to
see the first orange light from the sun hitting the trees,
as the sun creeps up over the horizon to welcome in what
promises to be a beautiful end of summer day.
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Saturday, September 6, 2003 - 7:15 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 17 C / 63 F
Weather: clear and calm
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 1 cm (0.4 inches)
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Water Temperature: 21 C / 70 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 7.9 mg/L
River Gage: 1.20 feet
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Notes: A grand and glorious morning. The air is crisp and
the sky is brilliant blue. Fall is definitely on the way.
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Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 7:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 18 C / 64 F
Weather: overcast, "gentle" wind (8-11 mph)
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 20 C / 68 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 8.0 mg/L
River Gage: 1.04 feet
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Notes: It is a gray, damp morning that gives every impression
of rain on the way. When I arrived at the site this morning
there were a few hints of blue in the sky, but now it is
a uniform gray overhead. A fitful breeze is blowing -- hitting
different trees at different times and alternately setting
the leaves and branches into motion and leaving everything
still and calm.
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Friday, September 19, 2003 - 6:15 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 21 C / 70 F
Weather: overcast, "gentle" wind (8-11 mph)
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 21 C / 70 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 8.1 mg/L
River Gage: 1.54 feet
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Notes: I arrived at the river before sunrise, so under
the trees it was still quite dark, but a bank of white flowers
next to the path glowed like there was a light shining on
it. Sunrise revealed low, gray clouds and early rain showers
from the former hurricane Isabel, now tropical storm Isabel,
which is currently centered over western Pennsylvania and
headed north towards New York and Canada.
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Saturday, September 27, 2003 - 8:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 19 C / 66 F
Weather: fog and calm
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 20 C / 68 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 7.8 mg/L
River Gage: 1.00 feet
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Notes: It's a still, foggy morning. The only movement on
the surface of the river is tiny ripples from water drops
falling off a tree. Even the leaves at the tops of the trees
appear almost frozen in place most of the time. However,
just once, out of nowhere, a cold breeze sneaks down through
the trees to where I am next to the river, as if to serve
as a subtle reminder that it is now officially fall and
colder weather is on the way.
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Saturday, October 4, 2003 - 7:00 AM.
Data Collected By: Bruce Hooke
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Air Temperature: 10 C / 50 F
Weather: partly cloudy and calm
Rainfall in the past 48 hours*: 0 cm (0 inches)
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Water Temperature: 14 C / 57 F
Dissolved Oxygen: 9.2 mg/L
River Gage: 0.94 feet
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Notes: I can see my breath this morning and the air has
the crispness that I remember from the spring, when I started
the monitoring season; only now the sunrise is revealing
a beautiful fall morning that will mark the end of the monitoring
season. The river is low and quiet this morning, in contrast
to the high water of the spring and early summer, and the
water is cold again, as it was back in April. The still
water above the dam perfectly reflects the blue sky and
white clouds overhead. A few minutes ago, as I was getting
close to the end of my tests, the sun suddenly broke through
some low clouds on the horizon and bathed me, the river,
the trees, and everything else in its brilliant light.
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* Note: Rainfall amounts are record at a rain gauge about a mile WSW of Donigian Park. These rainfall amounts should be view as approximations because trees may shade this gauge under certain conditions.
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