Flooded again and longing for spring

Well, the River Frome has burst its back again - flood water everywhere in the valley and there seems no end to the rain. The warm hot spring last year now seems a long time ago. For those that have forgotten follow the link to the BBC website for a refresher on those balmy days. I cheered myself up a lot! I haven't posted any more photographs because at the moment the farm doesn't look as though much has changed over the last few weeks - a bit of sunshine and it will be a different story. The daffodils are peeking through on the drive though - I will take some photos when they are in bloom - the promise of spring.

River Lugg in Flood

There has been a lot of rain and this has caused the rivers to rise and the Lugg has filled its flood plain once more. I stopped to take some photographs in the December sunshine.

Floods everywhere

We have had flooding yet again - every road in the valley was cut off with floods at one point and the speed that the water came up was just frightening. I have never seen so many abandoned cars on the sides and in the middle of the road as there were the next day - many will never be driven again - not a time to venture far from home - Being on top of the hill the farm was not badly affected, but the ground is pretty waterlogged and the harvest is late - a couple of weeks of sunshine now will really help - fingers crossed!

St Swithin's Day

We always watch out for St. Swithin's Day, the 15th July, because tradition says that whatever the weather is like on St. Swithin's Day, it will continue so for the next forty days.
The rhyme goes:

'St Swithin’s Day, if it does rain
Full forty days, it will remain
St Swithin’s Day, if it be fair
For forty days, t'will rain no more.'

St. Swithin (or Swithun) was a Saxon Bishop of Winchester. Tradition says that he said that when he died he wanted to be buried out of doors. For nine years, his wishes were followed, but then the monks of Winchester decided to move his remains to a shrine inside the cathedral on 15 July 971. It is said that from the time his remains were moved until the time he was reburied outside there was torrential rain.

Sadly, it absolutely tipped down this St Swithin's day - so we could be in for some terrible weather and today as I write this blog we are virtually cut off on every road with floods - thank goodness we live on the hill!