After the storm: The Potomac reacts at Great Falls Park

Dan and Trish Biggio from Springfield have never seen the Potomac so unwieldly during their visits to the park. (WTOP/Kathy Stewart)
Barricades near the park's visitor center are still up almost a week after Sandy roared through the D.C. area. (WTOP/Kathy Stewart)
The Potomac River rushed around rocks and shot into the air as it roared downstream at a higher level than usual. (WTOP/Kathy Stewart)
The Potomac River rushed around rocks and shot into the air as it roared downstream at a higher level than usual. (WTOP/Kathy Stewart)
Dan and Trish Biggio from Springfield have never seen the Potomac so unwieldly during their visits to the park. (WTOP/Kathy Stewart)
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Kathy Stewart, wtop.com

WASHINGTON – Superstorm Sandy weather has disappeared on the East Coast, along with all the flood warnings.

But are things back to normal yet along the Potomac?

Carolyn Godfrey and her daughter Sophia, 8, from Silver Spring, returned to Great Falls Park on Saturday to check on the Potomac.

“We are actually comparing river levels from last Saturday, when we came before the hurricane,” Carolyn says.

They found the river to be crazier and more chaotic, she says.

“It’s twice as high,” Carolyn says. “It’s much more violent and active.”

Joe Burns, supervisory park ranger at Great Falls Park, says folks are intrigued.

“People have been coming out, even while Sandy was still blowing through,” he says.

Although all the trails have reopened, he says there are still a number of trees down.

Trish Biggio and her husband, Dan, from Springfield, were engaged in the park four years ago. But at the time, the Potomac River looked very different.

“It was significantly lower,” Trish says. “I’ve never seen it roaring like this.”

The couple has visited the park several times, but the water during this trip was anything but usual.

“We’ve never seen it anywhere close to this high and this fast,” Dan says.

Burns says the river is still a little above normal and has a word of warning: “Please stay out of the water.”

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(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

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