Because the flooding wasn't enough, today it snowed

[siglinde99]

Here are some pictures from Rideau Falls, right near my office.

The falls. Usually, the drop is quite a bit bigger:

Comments

[carriea31]

Wow!  So different from the desert I live in.

[siglinde99]

The joys of living on the edge of the Canadian Shield. We get lots of lakes and rivers, and all the bugs that accompany them. This is the Ottawa River, and it is quite large anyway. It's 3-4 km across upstream a ways, where it opens out into bays on both sides of the river. There is an annual swim across the river there that I have never been brave enough to do because of the cross-currents.

The falls are coming from the Rideau River (big enough for good-sized boats, so long as they can fit in the locks and Canal). It was key for transportation to Lake Ontario and then east down the St. Lawrence to the Atlantic, back in the 1800s. Across from where I was taking pictures is the Gatineau river, which is also quite large. At one time, it wasn't really navigable because it was so full of trees that had gotten lost during log drives. Log driving stopped about 60 years ago, so now it's a really nice place to picnic and swim.

The Ottawa River continues down to near Montreal, where it joins the St Lawrence and eventually the Atlantic.

[spikesgirl58]

Wow, you really are getting hit with water! Sorry to hear about the snow.

[siglinde99]

It's supposed to crest today and then start falling, thank goodness. I think the latest count is over 2,000 people affected in Quebec alone (many in the Montreal area, but also at least 400 right here, plus hundreds more on the Ontario side).

At least the snow has stopped and there was no accumulation. It's still chilly though, with a frost warning again for tonight. When I was a kid, we never planned to plant before the May 24 weekend, but we have gotten used to warm springs. It's a little shocking to remember that frost can still be an issue this late in the year.

[spikesgirl58]

Same here. I remember it was always a gamble back in Vermont to plant before Memorial Day. even then, we often got a late frost.

Hope things will quiet down for your area. It's always scary when that stuff happens. We are getting worried about some of our rivers too because of the snow melt. Thankfully, it's been gradual... so far.