The Rivanna Rambler

May 15, 2008

This show originally aired on May 15, 2008 on “The Rivanna Rambler,” a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net.

 

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The community water supply plan that is under question has been permitted, as it must be, by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality on February 11, 2008. That plan was approved unanimously by the City Council and Albemarle County Board of Supervisors in 2006.

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May 1, 2008

This show originally aired on May 11, 2006 and was aired again on May 1, 2008 on “The Rivanna Rambler,” a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net.

 

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A couple of years ago, I visited the bottomland owned by Jane and Stirling Williamson along a stretch of the South Fork of the Rivanna River, to learn about tree planting for river protection.

As we descend the hill and cross a thin stream, the floodplain opens up in front of us and we an assortment of trees planted four years ago: red maple, box elder, northern red and willow oak. We, too, are a motley crew: Hank Helman, has brought along his two young children who run alongside, weaving in and out of the plastic tubes that mark where trees were planted. Angus Murdoch, who for years has grown and planted trees around the entire watershed for the Rivanna Conservation Society. And me, curious to figure out the point of planting these trees.

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May 8, 2008

This show originally aired on March 7, 2007 and then again on May 8, 2008 on “The Rivanna Rambler,” a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net.

 

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It’s the time of the year when rivers run high and brown here in Albemarle County. Some well-placed rain events, brought water levels to seasonal highs. Sediment from surrounding floodplains and other sources colored the water various shades of brown, from slick and bubbling chocolate during the first flush, to a steely brown that mirrored the gray March skies. I find myself wondering, again, where does all that dirt come from?

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April 24, 2008

This show originally aired on September 7, 2007 and then again on April 24, 2008 on “The Rivanna Rambler,” a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net.

 

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Today is my third day of walking streams, not a bad way to spend a hot and humid summer morning – and I have finally mastered the footwear problem. The first two days, I wore my Chaco water sandals. No problem getting them wet, of course, but every step was an opportunity for pea-sized gravel to become wedged between the sole of my foot and the sandal, resulting in a pointedly painful step that reduced my progress to an awkward hobble until rectified – and just as soon as I had dislodged the offending rock, another would take its place. But now, I’ve discovered that an old pair of cheap canvas hiking boots not only keeps the gravel out but provides support and traction on the slippery rock outcroppings of Preddy Creek where today, I am working as a volunteer on a river morphology study with StreamWatch.

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April 10, 2008

 

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This show originally aired on April 10, 2008 on “The Rivanna Rambler,” a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net.

Photo of shadbush by Dudley Rochester.

This is one of those weeks that you can literally watch the hourly changes as spring bursts forth. It’s hard to know where to put your attention, amidst all the flowering trees – the dogwoods blooming on cue for the Festival, the audacious magenta flowering crabapple, redbud blossoms lining dark branches in perfect counterpoint, like tiny purple Christmas lights.

In this area, if spring seems to be moving too fast, you can always travel to a higher elevation and catch it again. If I were headed to the hills, the one tree I’d still be looking for is the serviceberry, whose white showy flowers have always been a reliable marker of spring, but pass so quickly that you may have only a few days before the wind snatches them from the bud and soft green leaves unfurl in their place.

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