Drought and Orchids

We had a drought last summer.  I don't know if the drought has been officially declared over yet, but with the amount of rain we've been getting in the hills so far, and the snow in the mountains, I'm guessing it'll be over this year.  But we'll see what kind of weather we get the rest of winter and this coming spring!

The wetter it is, the more the rivers swell.  I've seen Willamette Falls become almost not even a water fall because of how full the river was.  As in, the river's level was as high as the upper part of the falls, so there was no water falling over a ledge anymore.  This past summer, it was just about the opposite.  In my 3 decades of life, I'd never seen the water fall reduce to such a small trickle.  The rock and man-made structures typically hidden by water were completely exposed.  It was so historically low that I decided to document it.  These photos were taken just up the way from the old paper mill, and across the river from the water treatment plant and the old locks.  Take a look:

As usual I had some orchids blooming at various points during the summer.  Here are a couple of my favorites.

Brassavola Nodosa

Abandoned

There is a part of the city I live in where an old paper mill used to operate along the falls in the river that cuts through town.  I remember getting a tour of it as a young child as part of a class field trip.  The paper mill closed in 2011 with nothing taking its place.  The mill sits empty.

This particular area of the city is rich with history, beginning before any settlers came along.  Local Native Americans used the falls as a gathering place.  Then throughout the 1800s, the falls was used for generating energy for early industries and cities.

After purchasing the abandoned lot in May this year, a developer plans to turn the rotting buildings into something new the city can enjoy.  So far we can only speculate as to the future of the site, but rumors lean toward apartments, shops, restaurants and a nature trail.  While I'm excited for what will be coming within the next couple of years, I am somewhat sad to see the mill torn down.  I decided to photograph the mill recently so I can look back on what it used to be.  Weather hadn't been the greatest, so I only liked one of the photos, which happened to be right as the sun peaked out for about 10 seconds.

Across the river is the locks and what I believe is a water treatment plant.  The locks are necessary to get watercraft up and down the falls.  Quite a feat of engineering.