The Rain Continues

Olivia   February 20, 2017   27 Comments on The Rain Continues

I’ve spent the last few years complaining about the drought because droughts are terrible and have horrible consequences for the environment and economy and our ability to, you know, use water, but the actual experience of the drought was rather nice. We were able to get out and ride all winter and keep up with lessons and conditioning.

 

This winter, on the other hand, has been a series of epic rainfalls. I’m fortunate in that my barn hasn’t been flooded like Fig’s and I haven’t had to flee my house to avoid a potential dam collapse. But I am very concerned. There are lots of mudslides in the area near my barn, the pond at our park has flooded, and our arena has formed a spring/sinkhole.

There’s not normally a stream here

A few weeks ago a small depression in the arena showed up. The barn owners thought they’d just fill it in with some dirt and we’d be fine. Well, it turns out it’s a spring and it’s flooding the arena even when it’s not raining. There’s never been a spring there and no one knows where it’s coming from. The depression also appears to be growing so it might be a sinkhole. In order to get our trailer out, we need to drive through the arena so our trailer is trapped for the time being.

There should be a trail here, instead there’s a pond. This rain thing has gotten old. #trailride #ihatetherain #stopraining #blmmustang

A post shared by Olivia @ DIY Horse Ownership (@diyhorseownership) on

 

We can’t ride since everything is either mud or flooded or it’s pouring rain. And I’m sorry if I’m complaining a lot, but I’m already very, very over this and the rain is supposed to get worse this week.

On the positive side, Britt from House on a Hill sent me this amazing palomino mule Breyer. It’s perfect and has earned a place on my mantle with my other Nilla paraphernalia.

If you’re in California, stay safe this winter.

27 thoughts on “The Rain Continues

  1. emma

    as grateful as we should all be always for water (ya know, it’s whole “sustaining” powers and whatnot), it’s one hell of a powerful force. stay safe!

  2. Nicole Sharpe

    You are not whining at all. I AM COMPLETELY OVER THIS TOO.

    It would be different if we were prepared for weather like this, with drainage in place and covered arenas that didn’t let the wind and rain in from all goddamn sides. But we AREN’T. And the weather has been so utterly psychotic that half of the time when I do muster up the gumption to ride I CAN’T because there’s a sudden shift in the weather that makes it suddenly less of a good idea (with a groaning, creaking covered over my head and rain coming in sideways… yeah no thanks). Or I’ll take a morning off (like today) to get work done in predicted pouring rain and gale force winds and it’s quiet.

    I AM SO OVER IT.

      1. Nicole Sharpe

        We do, but there’s a roofing sheet that has a hole and the rain has been coming in sideways through our one open side in every storm, so a solid half of our arena is drenched at all times. But my horse isn’t stranded, so that’s something.

  3. Stacie Seidman

    Ugh. Weather. Weather is the WORST! We’re having the opposite- freakishly warm beautiful weather, but only after a foot of snow fell. So same kind of frustration here: no where to ride, but it’s GORGEOUS and I WANNA!
    Please stay safe, that sinkhole sounds concerning!

  4. Pingback: previously on “nicole rides a horse” | Zen and the Art of Baby Horse Management

  5. Kara

    I’m so with you! There is no where for the water to go! Everything is sopping wet and muddy. I haven’t ridden since Dec. The Oroville dam is scary and driving over every bridge in Sac, you can see just how full the rivers are. I keep hoping each storm will be the last than another one arrives. I’m really looking forward to a hot dry summer! While it’s a bummer I can’t ride, there are people truly suffering. For the homeless there is no where dry for them to go. We don’t have adequate shelters or services. At least my horses have a roof over their head! Good luck in your area!

  6. irishhorse

    I’ll join the club of being tired of this too. Just waiting it out. The trails that aren’t a sloppy mess are covered in fallen trees. My trailer is stuck too, giant holes and ruts in the road means I could trailer out, but probably not get back in! But I will say we were pretty prepared for this as our barn has been around quite a while and remembers previous bad winters, and am lucky it drains pretty well. I’m holding off being anxious becasue I don’t need to be conditioning seriously right now, though my horse is really crabby!

  7. Courtney

    Oh jeez…that’s really awful, I hope it dries out for you. Sink holes sound very, very scary.
    On the very small bright side, that patch of grass is brilliantly green.

  8. Rocking E Cowgirl

    I have been following all the rain on NPR and social media and it’s downright scary. Especially the sinkholes. Be careful!

    1. Olivia Post author

      It’s really scary here. There was a big to-do in a nearby town with a bunch of horses trapped in a flooded barn. The rain is really too much.

Comments are closed.