I remember going to the Magic Castle in Los Angeles to watch the magicians perform. Wow, what a treat. But that’s magic created by humans. Ann-Christine’s challenge this week is to find magic in special people, places, things, nature, adventures, childhood memories, etc.  

Mother Nature’s magic is a little different. Well, not a little. She creates weather patterns that we enjoy, giving us sunshine, rain, fog, etc. Sometimes there’s too much rain or not enough. That’s the magic of the Salmon Fall Bridge. It disappears under the Amercian River when there’s a lot of rain and reappears during a drought.

Now a State Historic Landmark, Salmon Falls is a former settlement and gold mining town in on the South Fork of the American River It was flooded by the construction, in the 1950s, of Folsom Lake. Waterfalls were nearby and that’s how the town got its name.

Salmon Falls is usually under water throughout much of the year. However, at low-water levels old foundations, roads, and the old Salmon Falls Bridge are easily accessible. That is when we hiked down to it.

In the following pictures, you can see the bridge in the distance, some of the town’s ruins, one of my photo buddies navigating the stream, and teepees that some kids had fun making.

We’re getting close now. The stone bridge is truly a beautiful structure. I liked the shadows and the reflections in the water.

We’ve crossed the bridge and walked downstream a bit where there is more water. Back upstream visitors had fun piling rocks to form cairns. Will they last through the next flood situation?

They are predicting some heavy rains for this area this winter. I’m wondering what magic Mother Nature has in store for us!

Thank you, Ann-Christine, for reminding us that there is still magic to behold. Please link to her original post when you create your magical experience and use the Lens-Artist tag. I enjoyed seeing your unique responses to Amy’s challenge last week. Tina will be presenting next week’s challenge so look for her blog post.

35 thoughts on “Lens Artists Challenge #279: Magical”

  3. Amazing that the bridge and ruins could be underwater now, but I guess that’s what happens in many areas of the world with modern dams and fluctuations in weather patterns.

    After watching many YouTubes on the excessive snowfalls in Europe, the UK and the US, I’m wondering what changes to the landscapes (i.e. perhaps floods) will occur when the snow melts.

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    1. Thanks Vicki! California relies on snow packs for water during the year. Fortunately our smart engineers have designed a method of capturing the water in reservoirs, sending it where it needs to go. Sometimes the lakes get too full and the water is released into rivers and sent to the ocean. Only once do I remember flooding when torrents of rain came down for a long period of time. But that is handled also without property damage for most of us.

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  11. Isn’t it wonderful when we know we are in the space of something great, or magical as you showcase here, Anne. I love that you have photos friends that you share ideas and laughter with. I absolutely loved how you walked us into the stone bridge. I think those are the most intricate cairns I have ever seen. A magical moment in time with friends is always grand. Keep getting well. Thank goodness for memories you can share with us.

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  15. A beautiful bridge – and water’s fluctuation is indeed magical. The cairns are intricately made and if magic remains through winter – they will stand. Or, they will always be rebuilt – that’s the way we are!

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  19. What an interesting place. If you do get rains, go back to show before and after – that would be so interesting. The river feels serene at the moment, and its flat presence on the flat landscape is quite lovely. The cairns and teepees are definitely a bit of fun. Did you build anything? Me, I would make a cairn . . .

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  20. Unfortunately, I was too busy photographing the scene, so I didn’t even think of making a cairn. I’ll have to find out whether we could get down there when the river is high. But that’s a great idea.

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  21. It’s always so interesting to see how bloggers interpret the challenge with their post and photographs. Pretty. I love cairns. When we visit New England’s shorelines we always find many made with the rounded stones that the ocean leaves on the beaches.

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