I put my kayak in on the Fort Mill side of the Catawba River yesterday and tried to reach the dam for about fifteen minutes but let myself give up to rest my arms and drift back into the abnormally high water that had formed a temporary lake on the same side of the river.  I got lost in light and in pointing my camera at creatures for an hour.

I tried for the face of the dam again and made my way close to shore to escape the current until I reached the zone at the base that pulls left, right and oddly toward the dam.

The water is fifty feet deep.  The dam is higher.  The sound of falling water is that of a visit to half a dozen waterfalls at once.

I got close enough to touch the wall and just sat there in water that throbbed up and down like the backside of a big wave.  Afraid.  Entranced.  Satisfied.  At peace in the shadow of the Lake Wylie dam on a sunny February day.