If you live in the Pacfific Northwest you know what an atmospheric river is. Or you should. Maybe you know it by it's other names like Chinook or Pineapple Express. Regardless, you know it brings winds, warm rain, and can be disastrous for the snow.
Last week we got the firehose pointed right at us. It's not the worst we've ever had, but it was enough to push the river up 375% in 24 hours. At that level the river flows over our island instead of around and the waterfall upstream is roaring.
Thankfully, it occurred on a holiday so Clara, Henry, Treen, and I headed upstream to experience the power of nature. It was impressive. Even though we can only go to the first overlook (the trail is still closed after a landslide) we could see the waterfall pushing more than 3,000 cfs of chocolaty brown water.
Treen was annoyed she couldn't play in the river as usual, but the kids enjoyed seeing the river in a state they haven't for quite a while. (Since the trail closed we haven't been up that much because we're limited to just 1.5 mile of hiking.) Clara borrowed my phone and then decided she'd be the photographer.
It wasn't a long trip, but it was great to reconnect with the trail and ensure the kids experience how the river can change in just a day.
(If you're wondering about the snow at the Pass, the levels dropped about a foot, but there's still a decent amount of snow up there and more is forecast later in the week when the freezing temperature will drop back into normal ranges.)
