On 17 March, the Flathead was flowing at 6,600 cfs at Columbia Falls. Not much water is added between that gauge and the river at the old steel bridge park east of Kalispell, the rate of flow at Columbia Falls is quite close to the rate of flow at the steel bridge. On that day, a large sandbar was exposed on the western side of the river, and I took advantage of the good weather to plant my tripod near the water to shoot panoramic views of the bridge from a location that’s not always dry. Ten days later, the flow at Columbia Falls was up to almost 20,000 cfs and the sandbar was under water, as seen in the photograph below.

— James Conner