My boots are always caked in mud. They’ve been that way since I started doing fieldwork during my undergraduate degree in the Netherlands. As a budding geographer, I was desperate to be outside and learn by observing nature. I ended up joining a research project on fluvial geomorphology led by a professor at my university, Dr. Paul Hudson. It was not glamorous, mainly grunt work both in the field and in the lab, but I loved it.
Let’s rewind a bit – what exactly is fluvial geomorphology? It is the study of how a river’s hydrological processes impact the shape of its landforms, and vice versa. It delves into how rivers erode, transport, and deposit sediment, ultimately influencing the morphology of the channel and surrounding terrain. This field of study is crucial for various reasons, particularly for those who live near or rely on rivers for their livelihoods. This mainly entails understanding better the risks of erosion and flooding, where those risks are highest, and potentially implementing strategies to minimize those risks.
Furthermore, industries and infrastructure which depend on rivers, such as hydropower stations and irrigation systems, must account for the dynamic nature of fluvial systems. Changes in a river's geometry can affect the efficiency and operation of these facilities, highlighting the importance of ongoing monitoring and adaptation to maintain their functionality.
With Dr. Hudson, we studied the Roer River in Limburg, a southwestern province of the Netherlands. We’d leave from our campus in the Hague and go on daytrips to the field site. That’s a cool 5-hour road trip, assuming we hit minimal traffic. I lost track of the number of times we went on these trips over the course of 8 months. The professor, a handful of students and myself would meet before dawn and set off - stopping for a much-needed coffee along the way. We had a couple of hours to bag and label soil samples before heading home.
While in the car, we’d listen to rock n’ roll classics. Dr. Hudson would give us fun facts about every river we crossed along the way. We developed a somewhat effective technique for knocking mud off our boots before getting in the car. And I got into the habit of bringing snacks for everyone, usually sweet popcorn and apple slices.
The big takeaway from this is that snacks are crucial for good science. I sure appreciated having some popcorn waiting for me after wading through shoulder high stinging nettles on the riverbank. I was also grateful for the comfort of apple slices after going neck-deep in murky river water.
Going into the field taught me how difficult and how important it is to gather quality data about a river. Field work is hard work. It must be carried out year after year to get a good understanding of river dynamics. A school of thought among fluvial researchers is that a river needs to be monitored for a hundred years before you can truly understand how it works. This means at least 3 generations of fluvial geomorphologists need to coordinate their research on a single river – which no one has done so far. In that vein, no river is truly understood. When we change a river by adding a dam or bank stabilizers, we do not really know the consequences. It’s a ‘hope for the best, prepare for the worst’ approach which fluvial geomorphologists are trying to become better informed with field-based data.
I’ve since graduated and moved to the UK for a PhD in Glaciology. I mainly work at a desk but still get to go out to the field as a teaching assistant. We recently took students on a trip to River Bollin near Wilmslow, East Cheshire. We discussed the river’s processes, identified erosion zones and mapped out key landforms. We also got caught in a crazy storm: intermittent hail, snow, rain, sun and strong wind. Students struggled through ankle-deep mud as we walked alongside the river. Everyone was freezing cold and understandably cranky. One of those days where everything goes so hilariously wrong.
Still, I’m grateful for the storm because it muddied my boots and those mud-caked boots are, to me, a geographer’s badge of honour. I haven’t ever cleaned them since!
by Domino Jones
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