William O’Brien State Park, March 11, 2020.

Geese and swans raise a ruckus across the river, occasionally flying past, wings whirring, as they rouse from nighttime roosts and leave to forage in nearby fields.

The ice is mostly locked up, but ridges show where huge sheets have crashed together as it began to break up in recent days.

A broad channel has opened up next to the Minnesota shoreline, with small chunks of ice flowing downstream at about the same pace as a walker on the path.

It’s a different river every day.

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