Category Archives: weather

Hurricane Idalia and aftermath 2023-09-02

A few scenes from during and after Hurricane Idalia.

We had many deadfalls, but no property or personal damage. So we were much luckier than many others.

[Deadfalls, power lines, cooking, rainfall]
Deadfalls, power lines, cooking, rainfall

This still just looks like heavy rain, but the video shows the wind was blowing. Idalia’s eye went a few miles east of us, but those were probably still 60 mph winds from the north. Continue reading →

Trees, lightning, hurricane, chainsaw 2022-11-10

Some weeks ago, lightning struck a bunch of trees and killed them.

During Hurricane Nicole, two of them fell across the front driveway.

A little chainsaw work cleared the driveway.

[Lightning, Hurricane, Chainsaw]
Lightning, Hurricane, Chainsaw

Before

These two pictures are from November 5, 2022. Notice how the dead trees are in a line. Continue reading →

Maypops, rain gauges 2022-08-27

Now that it’s raining, there are many native, tasty, showy maypops. Also known as passion flower, Passiflora incarnata.

[Maypops, rain gauges]
Maypops, rain gauges

Unfortunately, there is also nasty invasive exotic Japanese climbing fern, Lygodium japonicum. Continue reading →

Starlink dish 2021-12-27

Update 2022-01-12: Starlink Router inside 2022-01-10.

Turns out Starlink doesn’t work too well during thunderstorms. Other than that, so far so good.

[Longleaf, solar panels, roof mount]
Longleaf, solar panels, roof mount

Also looks good against longleaf pine. Continue reading →

Bee tree down, bees still up 2021-07-14

Fortunately, when the bee tree snapped off, it broke above the bee hive. So our pollinating native bees are still humming in and out of there. Their exit used to be on the other side of the tree, but they’re using this new entrance now.

[Bee hive in bee tree stob]
Bee hive in bee tree stob

I guess they will relocate, but at least they did not get suddenly evicted.

The bee tree was far from the largest of the fourteen big trees down we’ve counted so far. Two more were less than a hundred feet away towards the cypress swamp. Continue reading →

Six inches of rain in two days, swamp full 2021-07-05

A month of no rain ended mid-June, capped by 3.5 inches July 4th and another 3 inches July 5th, according to the bucket-and-yardstick rain gauge. Our cypress swamp, which had only puddles, is now full and overflowing.

[3.5 + 6 inches of rain, cypress swamp]
3.5 + 6 inches of rain, cypress swamp

That chair was above the cypress swamp high water mark for this year. Now it’s in the water.

I’m renaming the front driveway Twin Creeks. Most of its flow goes into the swamp. Continue reading →