Flood Damage

The water level of Wysox Creek was down enough that we were able to travel to Wysox for supplies this morning. Some of the clean-up along Route 187 had started but here are a few photos of what we saw.

Some of the flooded cars along Route 187 had been removed but this truck was located in a field just north of Myresburg.



This car was being removed from the flood water next to the Wysox Township Building along Route 187.



Shortly after the car was removed from the water these two people paddled by in a boat.



A boat paddles by the house near the Wysox Township building.




A little creek near Weaver's house, south of Gillette's Bridge, dumped rocks onto Route 187.



A view of Wysox Creek behind Weaver's Barn. Notice the stream bank which was washed out by the flooding. There used to be a road to the creek but now there is a 20 foot drop off.



Flood damage at the trailer court next to Route 187 south of Rome.



The small bridge at Elliott Road and North Rome Road is plugged full.







Flood trash at a bridge on North Rome Road.



Bridge damage on Battle Creek Road between Route 187 and Robinson Road.





Flood trash under the Route 187 bridge near Bob Wilmot's.




Damage at the old "sawmill" building along Route 187 north of Rome. Flooding from Wysox Creek pushed in the side of the building.







Wilmot's B&B next to Wysox Creek along Route 187.



The bridge on Route 187 just north of Orwell Hill Road was washed out.



Washout at the north end of the bridge.



View from the creek.



View of damage on the underside of the bridge. The north bridge abutment is broken in several places and the bridge deck is resting on a tree.

Local Flooding

After last week's rain from Hurricane Irene the ground was saturated and today's heavy rain caused flooding all around the Rome area. We recorded 6 inches of rain in our gauge by 6:00PM and it was still raining.

School students at the Northeast Bradford school were stranded due to the many road closures and people were evacuated from Seven Hill trailer court in Rome.

Gillette's Bridge
The water from Wysox Creek was over Route 467 at Gillette's Bridge. Many trucks were able to cross the water on the south side of the highway.







Not everybody made it through the water successfully. This car stalled during the crossing and was pulled out later in the day.



Route 467
Water crossing Route 467 between Gillette's Bridge and Joyce Road.



Joyce Road
Starting up Joyce Road it looked like a St. Patrick's day prank but the green water was from the "AquaShade" pond dye from Fravel's pond.




Wysox Creek at Bliss Road (Water Street)








Wysox Creek at Route 187
North of Rome, Wysox Creek was flooding Route 187.



Just behind the skidsteer in the center of the photo is the antenna for the
National Weather Service Automated Flood Warning System gauge for Wysox Creek but due to funding cuts by the Bush administration, this unit is off line or uncalibrated.








Bliss Road
The East end of Bliss (Abell) Road near Jim Burrows.



Jason and Mary Abell's.

Spiders

I had been clearing brush at the cabin property and had just started the truck to head home when I noticed some movement on my shirt sleeve and found this very large spider heading for my shoulder. The main (round) part of the body was over 5/8 inch across and at least 2 inches from one leg tip to another.



A close up view

Cute and Cuddly (No)

While spraying some apple trees behind our barn I noticed what looked like a very fat, hairy woodchuck in some weeds.



The "fat woodchuck" turned out to be a young porcupine.



After several minutes of attempting to pose the porcupine for a photograph I let it proceed from the field to the woods where it climbed the first small tree it found.



A photo of some quills in my boot after attempting to pose the porcupine for a photograph.

The Sting

Earlier this week I noticed a hornet's nest had been built in the corner of garage door. We were busy working on another project and didn't have time to remove the nest but I did point out the nest location to Mary, since this is where she stores her lawn mower.



The nest was built by bald-faced hornets (Dolichovespula maculata) which are known to aggressively attack with little provocation, a fact that Mary learned a few days later.

King of the Hill (Bale)

How many turkeys can fit on a hay bale?

At least 10.



I was watching about 2 dozen turkeys feeding in Jason's field as one of them jumped on top of a hay bale. This soon became a game of "King of the hill" as more turkeys jumped on the bale.

Curious Buck

For the past week or so I have been installing drainage pipe around the cabin as another phase of this year's cabin project. Several times while digging the ditches for the drain lines with my backhoe I would notice a small buck near the pond watching me. Unlike most deer, this buck didn't run away but stayed near the pond, bedded down and continued to watch me work.



After several days of us watching each other, I was able to walk within several feet of the buck as he hid in the tall grass around the pond.



The following photo was taken within 15 feet of the buck while he was hiding in his "nest".



Whenever I find the buck in his "nest", he will watch me take pictures then jump from his "nest", run for about 20 yards and then stop and watch me for a minute or two before heading to a clump of bushes. Within 20 to 30 minutes the buck will return to one of his "nests" near the pond.