Miranda Floods and Fog

Very early last Friday morning I drove up to Miranda again.

Despite three days of torrential rain I was still unprepared for the extent of the flooding. And the thick fog was an unwelcome surprise which slowed me down considerably. But as dawn began to softly lighten the countryside, I stopped the car and got out and stood awhile. These two photos were taken from the same spot about 90 degrees and 30 seconds apart. The fog was slowly drifting to and fro and the quiet peace settled over me as it always does up on the Firth of the Thames.

The cows were less than impressed at their submerged grazing and stood around on the higher parts of their paddocks looking resigned. A tethered goat moaned about the wet.

But the wading birds were delighted at the vast sources of worms and bugs that were available for the taking, and, hooray! they didn't even have to wait for low tides. Flocks of Godwit and SIPO (South Island Pied Oystercatchers) chattered away on the edges of the temporary lakes behind the Miranda Shorebird Centre, and a lovely White Heron stalked systematically up and down the flooded drains enjoying a feast too.

The fog came and went all day, softening odd edges, removing hills and backdrops and making a strange, shifting, unfamiliar landscape.

By Sunday all the flooding had dried up and the sun came out, and all was back to normal.

Now it's hard to imagine 'Widgery Lake' in front of the Centre completely dried up, as it was in the drought this summer.

(Click on the images to enjoy them better.)