All posts,  The Bush,  Weather

From raindrop to river …

You know, we’ve had more than our share of rain here lately. This is not a news flash.  I feel like I have talked about little else over the past month!

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Today, I thought I’d share part of our inspection tour, as we try to assess what needs doing most, and when we can start.

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Following the water from rain drop to river, if you wish…

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Gumboots on? Ready?

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This was taken yesterday afternoon – as waters were rising once again.  This is a gully that normally sits silent.  The water was fairly roaring through the two big concrete pipes which run under the road.

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This was the other side of the road, as the fence hung gamely on despite enormous water pressure… sitting about three metres above it’s normal level in the bottom of the gully.

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This was the view of our Little Bridge. Or rather, lack of view.  Running around two metres above bridge height…

This was taken this morning, as the creek subsided (although not yet below bridge level) and was much calmer.

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If something looks a little odd about this photo, it could be because Cal (our jackaroo on right) is normally about seven inches shorter than my husband (left).  I believe Mother Nature (in the form of a lot of silt deposited on the bridge) was giving him a lift.

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Here you can clearly see the enthusiasm on their faces as they contemplate the multitude of fences ripped asunder by this creek… and other gullies…and the river.

Neither had completely lost their sense of humour though, as we see here in Mr Incredible’s mock ‘Well Cal, nice knowin’ ya, we’ll see ya later’ pose here.

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Cal’s Dad, however, came up with the winning caption (and imaginary conversation) between the two …

Mr Incredible: Towns that way.

Cal: Come back with beer – I’m not 18 yet.

Mr Incredible: You will be by the time it stops @#$%&* raining!

(Cracked us all up here!)

This afternoon, we went for a drive to see what was happening with all our runoff, after it had wiped out our fencing again.

And here is what we found…

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A very large dam wall, with enormous amounts of floodwaters surging over it.

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I think the measure was around two-and-a-half metres (14 feet) over the spillway…

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I know it was deafening and the spray shot around 15 metres in the air as it hit the bottom.  It will join the Burnett River further downstream and head out past Mundubbera and Gayndah towards Bundaberg after that. (Sorry guys, know you are all over our runoff by now!).

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I have to say, the power of water is a truly astonishing/beautiful/frightening/devastating thing.

Don’t you think?

What’s the weather been doing to you lately?

12 Comments

  • Nancy in Iowa

    All I can say is, “Wow!” It’s been pretty dry here in Iowa, with the snow dump of 3 weeks ago slowly melting away. There are huge islands of brown grass spotting the remaining white snow cover. But, wait! The forecast is for rain/snow showers for the next 3 days, so we might get more snow cover yet.

    Stay safe, BB!

    Nancy in Iowa

  • Gretchen in KS

    Hovering around the freezing mark here. Had ice then snow twice in the last two weeks, so the kids enjoyed three days out of school. One of those I spent at work, since I couldn’t leave, and nobody else in my department could make it in. (After 18 hours, I hoped the road crews had been at their work long enough (and they had been) but managed to fold my ankle in the parking lot, just three steps short of getting to my Jeep. Didn’t break it, but it’s still gimpy.)

    Then spent several hours yesterday trying to cut firewood, only to discover that the top inch of ground is thawed and wet enough to be perfect for getting vehicles to dig in try to get stuck. (And it’s very treacherous for people wearing a cam-walker boot.) Good thing for me, the kids scampered around without troubles, and I was able to stay in one spot (with the log splitter) and do my part with minimal walking.

    I really hope your water troubles ease up soon. Sending my fervent wish that you could get just the right amount of rain, at just the right times, for a long time into the future.

  • Anita Dent Photography

    An amazing compilation of photos, I felt that I was right there with you. I loved the captions. And it reminds me what a wonderful part of the world we live in.

  • KAddy

    I do not think there is a person in the southern half of the state that requires one more drop of water….sadly though the folks out west (Barcaldine/Longreach way) are in desperate need…wish we could send it up that way. PS I hope the barbed wire one makes it into the calendar short list!

  • Colin (HB)

    BB – this summer is one here in Australia, that won’t be forgotten for many years – hottest days, wettest days.
    All on tonights news – from the Climate experts. The latest news more coming – that’s the stuff from above.
    Today, after 1 week of clothes in a washing machine – well soaked I am sure – I woke for the “pee” business at 3.00am.
    When you get over 60 this I am told is normal, but bloody annoying. Mr “I” take note.
    No rain, opened curtains and saw a couple of stars. Grabbed towels and hurled into machine and turned the bloody thing on.
    Up at 5.30am, blue skies, turned back on the W/machine for final rinse.
    By 6.00am, black clouds, and some drizzle, then 6.30am blue again.
    Anyhow somehow by “DIVINE” intervention, I think, all is dry. I think I did a rendition of the “banshee” dry weather dance.
    Your “Cals dad” with his comment might be right, Cal may not be 18, but if he sticks around with this weather, by the time Mr “I” gets his supplies, Cal might be about 25 years or more. All legal by then!
    Weird weather, but at least you have plenty of winter grass for the cattle.
    Why can’t this rain fall where it is needed??????????????

  • quincy's keeper

    Well that doesn’t look like fun at all.
    We have several fence lines that cross normally dry gullies. But when winter/spring hits they fill up quickly with rushing water that destroys the fence as you well know. We installed what is called a water gap. We string a heavy duty cable from trees or stout posts across the gully, then place light weight galvanized panels from the cable and finally use a come along to tighten. With the cable tight the panels “hang” to form a fence line. When water rushes the panels “float” along the top of the water and swing to let large debris float through without tearing up the fence too much. If the cattle get too pushy on the fence in dry weather you can secure the panels together to make it stronger. It really works for us. I hope you have an easy cleanup.

  • Jeffrey Owens

    This is lovely as long as there is no flash flood. -_- Rain is beautiful, but I am afraid of the flood.God, who knows the world is going where? The weather nowadays has become so unpredictable.

  • maghra

    what a wonderful picture collections you have!!
    simply amazing i must say. i looked like the real picture. isn’t it? it will be one of the finest entertainment for those who like pictures like me. so thanks a lot for sharing.

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