Friday, May 09, 2008

Muddy River ...

There were big weather doings in the area last night. We had thunder, lightning, torrential rain and some hail. But the biggest deal was that we were under a tornado warning for several hours. My husband is away, so the dogs and I spent the night in what used to be my mom's apartment on the the bottom floor of our home. The dogs shivered when the thunder boomed and looked to me for safety. If they knew I couldn't change anything or protect them from that horrible noise, they'd probably leave home.

We woke to a gray, cool morning and 4 1/2 " of rain in the rain gauge. The dock is swamped. I haven't seen it as an island in a number of years now because of the drought. But it's beginning to feel like we may be on our way into some "normal" weather patterns for a change ... whatever "normal" might be. When I first moved to Virginia in 1979, torandoes were a rarity. Just a week or so ago there were devastating twisters in the southeastern corner of the state.

You can see in this photo the "stuff" that comes down the river when we have a heavy rain. There is garbage of all kinds, dead tree limbs, stumps and what remains of last year's leaves. The silt is visable in several tones with the currents bringing in just a bit at first, then later the full monte of good old, Virginia red clay. That is beginning to be a problem for this reservoir as it is silting in at a pretty good clip. I've noticed big differences in the the shore line since we moved here 8 years ago. There is big controversy over what to do to keep the area in water for the next 50 years. Once I understand a bit better what exactly is going on, I'll be writing some about it. Water is a big issue every where and it's getting bigger by the day, around here.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad your parched ground is getting the relief it needs.

There really are a lot of issues with the water supply the world over. I know that chemical pollution from farming is a big issue in my area of the country.

Anonymous said...

Either too much, or not enough, eh. Yes, water and the lack of it, and especially potable water is becoming a serious issue.