Towpath Blowout.

Earlier this year--late August I think it was--Mother Nature unleashed quite a furious rainstorm for a couple days straight. Creeks and streams overflowed, flash flood warnings were issued, roofs leaked, basements flooded. And as you can see in the photo below, favorite fishing spots were washed away. The towpath near Anglers Inn off MacArthur Blvd had what was described as a catastrophic failure or blowout.

The last time this occurred it took two years to refurbish the path and canal. That's a painful prospect for the many hikers, bikers and the fishermen and women who regularly visit. Let's hope for a speedier reconstruction this time around.

A couple days after the storms I made my way down a steep embankment opposite the path and made a few images. Using Photoshop (poorly!) I stitched together several of these shots to make a sort of panoramic rendering. In the middle of the photo you can see the tops of the trees that were once above the towpath. They are now settled in the sinkhole that drained all the water from the canal and sent it back to the river.

(Click on the image to see a larger version.)