Wearin' of the green

I know I'm a little late for a St. Patrick's reference, but you can't help but be overwhelmed by the greenness of everything around here lately. It's amazing what somewhat regular rainfall can do!

Not only was the Guadalupe at an almost perfect level last Saturday, thanks to rains earlier in the week, but the foliage of all kinds was almost blindingly green. I'll wager that scene of the Zoeller Lane bridge above hardly ever has such colorful framing greenery.

(And a few minutes after the photo above was taken we saw our Dear Leader, unable to join us on the river today, watching our little caravan pass under the bridge. Now, that's dedication!)

There's also more moss than I usually remember seeing on these cypress, isn't there?

I know moss isn't green, but it's still pretty photogenic

Of course, for me, the foliage of the trees, even when unseasonably colorful, is never the whole story of how wonderful these old friends are. Just look at the intricate weaving of this cypress' roots:

...could a sculptor have fashioned anything more whimsical and intriguing?!

And it's always interesting, if somewhat sobering, to see evidence of the recent high water, like this debris pile choking the outlet of a small creek...

...or here where the debris and a tree that's leaning precariously over the water courteously left just enough room for us to slide through...

Evidence of floods long past is also all around us on these paddles. Like these eroded limestone shelves; I know I've shown you countless photos of this kind of feature, but every time I see them I can't help snapping more shots.

And from a rather cataclysmic event, as opposed to a slower eroding, here's a block that must have disconnected from its mother cliff not too long ago, judging by the light, unweathered color of both the block and its former resting place. 

Geology [almost, fortunately!] in action

We had a little rain the last half of our trip, but nothing too heavy. Although all our clothes and gear was soaked and it's taken a while for it to dry out, given this very unusual wet weather pattern we've been experiencing. But we'll take it, if it leads to more fun, green, paddles like this one.