YAB (yet another bridge)

This is the abandoned railroad bridge from yesterday, taken from the bank of the St. Joseph River.
Still a lot of bridges left -- I may need to come back to this topic!

Downriver

Looking down the St. Joseph River from the old railroad bridge. I continue to be amazed by the rivers here, the way you can be in the city but feel like you are a hundred years and a thousand miles away from modern life. Just get out on the river!

Bridge to downtown

This is the M86/Main Street bridge over the St. Joseph River. With its beautiful arches it looks like an old bridge, but actually it is (almost) brand new, replacing the 1903 concrete bridge that had interesting detailing that resembled masonry. I think there was something else historical about the old bridge, but I don't recall what it was.

The two signs visible on the bridge to the right are part of the water trail system in St. Joseph County, meant to be seen by travelers on the water. One sign (SJ18) is for the Stillman House (photo taken from the Stillman House grounds) and the other (SJ19) for the close by Jesuit Mission site on the north bank of the St. Joseph; the mission was established in the late 1600s. For more on the water trail system: http://bit.ly/ql9v2I

Labor Day, Sept. 5, there will be a Bridge Walk in Three Rivers, sponsored by the Women's Club. Register (free) starting at 9am in Scidmore Park, get a "passport" and have it stamped for each bridge you cross! See the website: http://trbridges.wordpress.com
There is a Facebook events page for the bridge walk but you have to sign in to FB to look at it. http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=173659086038753

The Lighthouse

The first was a theme day so today I am starting the year with Three Rivers' lighthouse, which has been preventing kayak and canoe pileups on the river since... er, no, it really is just ornamental. (It does actually have a light, though.) Placed at the spot where the Rocky River joins the broad St. Joseph River, the lighthouse recalls the days before the railroads when commerce flowed along the rivers. The lighthouse is also the city's de facto symbol, used on city vehicles and by local merchants in their advertising.

On January 1, lots of soft, puffy snow. Today, lots of sunshine, 15 degrees F, -9 degrees C.

That's just about how it looked

In today's monochromatic gloom and drizzle, a weak sun slides its reflection across the St. Joseph River. It almost looks like the moon - especially in black & white. Looking toward the Three Rivers power dam from Riverside Cemetery.

See more of the world in monochrome at The Monochrome Weekly, presented by Aileni.

Some rain, then the sun came out

The "watery wednesday" theme is pretty much a natural for a place surrounded by - and named after - water. A kayaker was paddling around in circles near the put-in on the St. Joseph. "Just chasing the geese," he said.

Lots more watery sloshing links here: Watery Wednesday and some really nice water on 2sweetnsaxy's Watery Wednesday blog.

Ring-billed Gulls

A large flock of Ring-billed Gulls (Larus delawarensis) flies above the St. Joseph River near downtown Three Rivers. The gulls follow major waterways, like the St. Joseph, up from Lake Michigan, and are often seen on area lakes as well. When I first moved here I found that very strange, but many sea-going birds are found along the St. Joseph River.

St. Joseph River

Looking south down the St. Joseph River from the park in Three Rivers. The sign on the tree is a watertrail marker. The rivers here are having historic spots along the river marked with sponsorship from local businesses, most of the markers are only visible to the canoes and kayaks and other recreational boaters on the river. This one says -

CONSERVATION PARK
Until about 1836 Native Americans camped on the opposite bank, near the Cassoway and Gibson Trading Post.
SJ
20

Site sponsor is the American Electric Power Company.
The St. Joseph County Watertrail website: http://www.wmich.edu/glcms/watertrails/rctrails_stjoe.htm

Three Rivers' Farmers' Market

A soggy day, hot and humid, with more buyers than sellers at the Farmer's Market! Taken from across the St. Joseph River. One Amish buggy, two ducks, and lots of cars. Oh and some nice peppers, tomatoes (finally ripe!), and muskmelons.