Remember this scene from early May as I described the two feet of rainfall received in the month of April? What happened to all of that water? We will miss out on our second of three cuttings of hay this year, ponds are getting shallow, and grass in the pastures is at a standstill. AND I have already fed a few bales of hay this month.
Thankfully, we did receive an inch of rain this week with a brief afternoon thunderstorm, that brought along blinding rain, heavy winds, and even a few downed trees that fell on county roads and fences (always more fence to fix). I was out brush hogging a pasture as I watched the dark clouds roll in from the NorthWest. At first it looked like all the others storms, and thought it would blow right by. But the winds soon picked up and I could see the lightning getting close. I pulled the tractor into a clearing so I could have a viewpoint and shut er down to enjoy the show. I just sat there and took it all in — sight, sound, smell, feel, but no taste (I do respect the cloud to ground lightning). It was awesome.
Even though the rain gauge show’s we’re within an inch of normal annual precipitation, it’s very dry. Most of that moisture came in April and most of that ran straight into the creeks, ponds, and rivers. Hopefully we’ll be receiving rain on a more normal basis soon, because pastures are running short and hay supplies are low across the region without much of a turnaround in sight.
When was the last time you were able to sit out and enjoy a thunderstorm like this?
