Chippewa River Floods (March 2019 Edition)

Over the past few days warm temperatures and rain have caused most of the snow around Mt. Pleasant to melt.  Unfortunately the ground remained largely frozen so none of the water could filter into the ground.  The water had to go somewhere - it pooled on the surface and where it could flow downhill entered the local waterways.  Enough water entered the streams that flood warnings were issued for the Chippewa River and several other local streams.  Today I stopped at several parks in the Mt. Pleasant to check on the state of the flooding - here are some photos.

My first stop was Chipp-A-Waters Park.  The river here is well over its banks and flowing over the Riverwalk Trail.  I waded in to the top of my boots but could not get down the trail without getting my feet wet.

Looking upriver near the canoe landing - the Riverwalk Trail is on the right.

Water over the trail

Great Blue Heron resting on a stump in the woods.

Pedestrian bridge across the Chippewa River - the bridge abutment to the left normally sits several feet above the river level.

Mallard ducks swimming over what is normally dry land.

Those ducks should have been on a leash!

This tree is in what would normally be the main channel of the river.

My second stop was at Mill Pond Park.  The Riverwalk trail continues through Mill Pond Park, but several sections are flooded over.

Looking upstream from an island at the Leaton St. parking lot.

The flow under a pedestrian bridge at Leaton St.

Water flows over weirs creating standing waves.

Looking downstream from the pedestrian bridge - the glide in the center is the spillway of the first of five weirs with tree trunks hung up on the second weir in the background.

A small footbridge is mostly underwater on the far side of the river.

My final stop was at Pickens Field.  From there I crossed a pedestrian bridge to the north end of Island Park.  Pickens Field is the northern terminus of the Riverwalk Trail

Flooded ballfield at Pickens Field

The Michigan Vietnam Memorial is surrounded by floodwaters

A kayaker paddles down the road at Island Park

Water levels were up to the bottom of the bridge connecting Pickens Field and Island Park

This is not the worst spring flooding Mt. pleasant has experienced in the past decade.  2014 saw approximately the same water levels and the spring floods of 2013 were higher.  If you type "flood" in the search box to the right you can find pictures from several more years.

High water (21 FEB 2018)

Over the last several days, Mid-Michigan has experienced between 1.5 and 2.0 inches of rain.  Add in melting snow and many local rivers have gone past flood stage.  Here are a few photos from Mt Pleasant's Mill Pond Park, Island Park, and Pickens Field taken early yesterday morning.  Most of these areas flood on an annual basis or even more frequently.

Mill Pond Park

Island Park/Pickens Field

Trail camera photos - 2017 Isabella County floods edition

This morning I went to retrieve the memory cards from my two trail cameras. These cameras have not been touched since 14 June.  I was anxious to see if they recorded any images of the flooding that happened around 22- 25 June.  Both cameras are located in high areas of a swamp/floodplain forest and I knew that there was the potential that they would be in flooded areas.  Because we left for vacation right after the flooding happened this was my first chance to see these pictures.

This first picture is from before the flooding.  This area sits about 2 or 3 feet above the surrounding swamp.  Usually by the end of June large areas of the swamp are dry.

At approximately 5:00AM on 23 June, after a night of heavy rain, there is some puddling visible in this area.

By 5:45AM the water level had risen drastically and there is almost no dry land in sight, with the exception of the immediate foreground.

By 11:15AM even the foreground is covered with a shallow layer of flood waters.

By 12:00 noon, the water had risen several more inches.  This wet fawn does not seem to be enjoying the overabundance of water.

The water continued to rise until at least 4:38PM.

By 5:00AM on the 24 June the waters had receded a foot or more.  The only water remaining was trapped in low spots.  This family of Norther Raccoons (Procyon lotor) was taking advantage of the increased foraging opportunities brought about by the flooding.

This water continued to drain away over the next twenty-four hours.

By 7:30PM on 25 June, this area was essentially back to normal.  The surrounding low areas still retain more water than is typical for this time of year.