Meriwether

The statue of Meriwether Lewis, who along with William Clark, left St. Louis in 1804 on a two year voyage of discovery into what became the Pacific Northwest of the United States. The statue used to be down on the levee by the Mississippi and would be periodically inundated when the river rose high. See this old post for illustrations of how far under Big Muddy it got.

The river is pretty high right now but not in flood. The photo below is the rail of a stairway that goes down to the levee, where you can park most of the year.

There are a lot of pictures from Five Fifths still to edit. What I lack is time. Geez, I thought things would be calmer after doing this job for 42 years but not yet. Maybe soon.

And speaking of years, today is Mrs. C and my 43rd. Hi, sweetie, It worked out, didn't it?        

Lewis and Clark Dry Off

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Just how low is the Mississippi? Let's get a measuring gauge. This is the iconic statue of Lewis and Clark landing at St. Louis after their voyage of discovery to Oregon and back in 1804 - 1806. The first two pictures were taken on Sunday. Then going, going, gone. Those shots are from the floods of 2010 and 2008. That's a lot of muddy water.

Apologies in advance: this may be a light week on comments. Heavy week at work and have to organize my gear and pack for my week at the Maine Media Workshops, heaven on earth for photographers. I'll document it as I go along.

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Rain Gauge

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The bronze statue of Lewis and Clark landing on the west bank of the Mississippi at St. Louis has been on this blog many times before. It's my rain gauge, a marker of the river level. We are now a bit down from flood state. Meriwether Lewis is dry almost to the waist but poor William Clark has nothing but the brim of his hat above water.

By the way, Lewis is not wearing a funny hat. That's the stock of his rifle. And Clark is not using a snorkel, although he needs one. That's the barrel of his rifle poking up out of the water. Why one points down and the other up is something we would have to ask the sculptor.

Sorry for the lack of comments these last couple of days. I'm speaking at a legal conference in Columbia, Missouri, half-way between St. Louis and Kansas City. On the run, as always. The Internet service at the hotel is spotty.

River's Rising

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Late winter has been wet in much of the U.S., certainly the central and upper Midwest.The northern snowpack is beginning to melt. The Mississippi is less than a meter from flood stage at St. Louis and rising. Harry Weber's sculpture of Lewis and Clark landing on our shore is my river gauge. Clark is going blub blub blub in the muddy depths. How long can Meriwether Lewis keep his head above water? Stay tuned.

Meriwether Lewis Gets Wet

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Spring means high water on the Mississippi River as seasonal rain and snow melt from up north reaches is us. My preferred water meter is the statue of Lewis and Clark emerging from the stream on the Missouri shore near the Arch. I've illustrated this on the blog before. Here's a post from when the river level was average - Clark and the dog are able to breathe and their boat is afloat. On the other hand, during the big flood of March-April 2008, only Lewis' hat and lower sleeve stayed out of the Big Muddy. It's all part of life on the Mississippi.

TOMORROW: Thursday Arch Series

Meriwether Lewis Goes Under

Our area is surrounded by rivers and this weekend the rivers were pretty darnn high. It's been in our national news, like this article from the New York Times. The picture in the Times article is in the suburb of Valley Park, along the Meramec River, a tributary of the Mississippi. My photos of that area will follow shortly. The Mississippi itself was on the cusp of flood level on Saturday. Downtown, just below Eads Bridge, is a statue of Lewis and Clark landing in St. Louis. This is how it looks at normal river level. As you can see, if this version of Meriwether Lewis were not made of bronze, the expedition would have gone no further. Nebraskans might yet be speaking French to their corn stalks.

TOMORROW: High water in Valley Park