THOMSON -- The St. Louis River was roaring Saturday at Jay Cooke State Park, running near flood stage over rocky ledges and under the Swinging Bridge.
And with more rain in the forecast for tonight, possibly heavy at times, the show may go on for a few more days.
"It's very dramatic and exciting to see it," Jay Cooke park naturalist Kristine Hiller said. " 'Wild' is a word I hear from people, the way the water crashes from side to side -- that always grabs people's attention."
The St. Louis River was running at a shade below 10 feet at the river gauge in Scanlon on Saturday after peaking at about 10.25 feet the day before; 10.5 feet is flood stage. According to National Weather Service data, that's the highest water level seen on the river since April 2008.
That April 2008 high water was from snowmelt. Hiller said the last time the river rose this much from rain was almost 10 years ago, in June 2002.
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Holiday weekend visitors to Jay Cooke State Park braved the aptly named Swinging Bridge on Saturday to get an up-close look at the crashing, swirling water. Upstream, cars slowed while crossing the Highway 210 bridge between Thomson and Carlton so that drivers and passengers could see the raging rapids below the Thomson Dam.
