There are always good reasons for being familiar with a place and visiting it at various times of the year. For one thing, the seasons change and with them so does the appearance of places. As they change, plants grow and become greener and blossom. Trees weather the seasons and change their foliage. In the case of today’s post, water freezes, melts, refreezes, drops in level, rises again, reveals and then covers what lies hidden beneath the motion. As winter is winding down, what little snow and ice we’ve had this year is filling the brooks with the groundwater and surface melt giving a nice strong flow and creating some interesting intimate landscape compositions.
I have mentioned before that Dean Brook is a wonderful source of cascades. Several locations along its length have already appeared here and today’s is yet another. I often enter the Houston Gage property across the bridge near where this was photographed, but haven’t made an image of this spot until now.
This is the first of two cascade images along with one icicle shot from this morning. Some times I forget to post the follow ups so we’ll see when the next one pops in. My hip boots were still at home, so I may go back tomorrow and wade in to get a different perspective. But it will be in the 40’s today so much of this may melt or reshape itself.
Stephen Gingold Nature Photography Blog 
I like, and can very much relate to, the way in which you have described the changing landscape, ” … water freezes, melts, refreezes, drops in level, rises again, reveals and then covers what lies hidden beneath the motion.” You got it one. And, as you say, such a chaotic process cannot ever produce the same formations more than once. Each is (literally) unique. D
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And speaking of things ever-changing, go out and look to the north. The northern lights are pretty strong up your way tonight.
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Darn … just read that now (Monday AM)! How did you know that? Do you have access to a predictor on the web somewhere? If so, please forward. I’ve always wanted to view northern lights. Always.
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Usually I hear about it through Facebook posts.Once I hear about them I look at this website for the forecast. There are several other sites. I haven’t researched further but I am sure there are several that predict more in advance than a few hours.
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Thanks. I just checked it out. Had no idea that such a site existed. I should have guessed. It’s now been bookmarked. D
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I imagine that Jim R. knows a few sites too.
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I am planning on finding some ice again today- possibly at the same location to see if there has been a change as a result of yesterday’s warmth. The next several days are to be warm at night as well as during the day so this may be it for massive icicle formation around here.
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Yup. It looks like we’ll have a bit of snow today, changing to rain. And then lots of rain toward the end of the week. I agree that this is perhaps the end of ice-and-snow-season for both of us. Now, it’s on to green grass, trees, and blue sky.
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Happy playing with the ice while you still have it.
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Yup…it won’t be long before the vanguard of Spring ephemerals begin poking out of the earth.
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Beautiful in black and white. B&W adds a bit of mystery, for me at least. I’ve tried to guess if you have a favorite season but I haven’t figured that out- yet.
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It’s hard to choose a season. I always look forward to the spring flowers after the long cold winter. But the anticipation of autumn is pretty strong too.
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I especially like the clarity of the melting ice. The wet rocks play into the attractiveness of the image, too.
Our water rarely changes form (although I have seen Galveston Bay freeze) but it’s always in motion, much like yours. Wind rather than temperature brings our changes. Right now, coastal flooding caused by a strong onshore flow is closing highways. Eventually, the north/west wind will come, and empty the bay. The flushing actually helps the health of the bay system — and it’s lots of fun to watch.
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Clarity of ice is determined by how quickly the water freezes. A quick freeze traps minerals, bubbles, etc and appears cloudy. A slow freeze allows the impurities to migrate and the water freezes clear.
It comes as a surprise to me that your bay would ever freeze considering it is saltwater and you don’t get so awfully cold.
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Well, sometimes we do. In 1983, it stayed well below freezing for days and days. That’s when the bay froze, and killed thousands of fish. Many, many years I’ve seen skims of ice in the marina, and always there’s the chopping ice out of the birdbaths routine — also dragging plants in and out of the house. 1983 was the year the pipes burst at my apartment complex, flooding a courtyard. It made for great ice skating.
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