Gorged By A Nerd

Or perhaps I should A Nerd Is By A Gorge. So I wrote a week ago that I was about to post my nerdiest post to date. This post should outdo that one, as well as Emily's most recent post, which is also drenched in geekiness.

I just learned that in all of the 2300+ miles of the Mississippi, it has only carved out one gorge. And that gorge is less than half a mile from our house. That sounds kind of cool, but when you think that the gorge extends for several miles, you realize probably 10,000 people can make the same claim.

And there is only one naturally occurring waterfall along the Big River. And that would be St. Anthony Falls, in downtown Minneapolis. Of course it's not a coincidence that a major city based on the milling industry would be centered on these falls. I am reaclling this next factoid from memory, so I may be wrong, but the St. Anthony Falls keep moving back, towards the north. The falls are visibly in a different location than 100 years ago.

And why is "waterall" singular but "the falls" plural when they both refer to the same thing?


Image from greatgreenriver.org

I also learned that it takes 90 days for a raindrop that falls in Lake Itasca (the river's source) to make its way to the Gulf of Mexico.

I am off to shine my pocket protector.