They tell us it is not always like this

There is a weather station 10 km south-east of us, here are its rainfall records for November over the last five years:

2010

2011

2012

2013

and 2014

… an average of 75.38 mm

Here is November ending today

Very close to double the average of the last five years and 64% above the wettest year in that time.  (As I write the total for this month has risen to 145.2 mm and there is still an hour to go!)

One of the many benefits of being responsible for animals is that we don’t choose whether to go outside or not each day, we have a duty of care

We keep reassuring ourselves that mud might be a problem for us

but Spot and Bert don’t see it as an issue

as long as they have nice dry houses with plenty of straw (or breakfast as Spot sees it)

Meanwhile everything glistens

 

 

 

Clodagh arrives

I am not sure what to think of the latest ruse to give these winds names.  We had Abigail, then we had Barney and now we have Clodagh.  I see we can now anticipate winds to come

I don’t think I see these winds as individuals, more as one register on the complex range of outdoor experiences.

So today was very windy, not cold enough to chill the fingers, and the rain came in squalls rather than torrents.

Spot had eaten, or otherwise destroyed, all her straw bedding

And while Bert had been more conservative of his

he was still being a little stoic.

We gave them each a new straw bale.  Bert used his to make a barricade

but also brought his feed bucket down to ensure bed and breakfast.

Spot thought the straw was breakfast

although she will always be ready for any extras

Meanwhile Codagh bent the trees

and the neighbouring sheep either jealously eyed up the house

our huddled beneath our hedge

Those with a lower profile were less ruffled

Pethan eraill yn y tyddyn heddiw:

 

November’s dying days

A moment of calm at Gribin Isaf today

We take in a wood load against future chills

As the ducks hold a protective cordon

We wonder if the peeping snowdrops will survive their patrols

Down in the pig pens Spot is enjoying her last few weeks before she needs to start making piglets

 

Bert can’t wait

 

Pethan eraill yn y tyddyn heddiw:

 

Warm moon, warm pigs

After the dip into frost a few days ago November seems to have resumed its mild(ish) wet(ter) course.

As the full moon rises over Gribin Isaf tonight

the outside temperature is over eight degrees and the forecast for the foreseeable future mainly looks like this

It surely will get colder and we are discovering that pigs get through a lot of straw.  We give them a nice new bale and they spend a long time fashioning it into a draught proof, body hugging bed – then they eat it… or push it outside, leaving bare boards and a pathetic look.

So a further delivery today

The ducks have appointed themselves gate-keepers whose job is to inspect all goods inwards.

Having completed the hen run walls work continues to net the top to deter opportunistic daytime foxes and maybe hungry pheasants

Shelia keeps a watchful eye on proceedings

 

Property Market

Another misty soggy November morning

and the ducks come up to inspect the chickens’ new home

a couple of pheasants come by to view the empty property vacated by Floppy and Co

The sheep next door wear with pride their tupping mark, a sign of next spring’s new life.

This year still ekes out its life:

in some cases, a little surprising

 

Pethan eraill yn y tyddyn heddiw:

 

Today we have been mainly looking into the distance

As the snow lingers on the mountain tops, new patterns of light and dark are revealed

Sometimes the random spotlight of sunlight picks out previously unseen detail

Back on the plot the chickens are getting to know their new run

Floppy and his wives, Jenny and Claire, keep close together

in the face of Shelia and Fanny with their entourage

Floppy may be envious of Fanny’s plumage

But he relies on Claire to spot odd bits of food left on his wattle

and to clean them up for him

 

 

Fresh whiteness

We all awake to a sprinkle of fresh whiteness

For some that is a cause for slight consternation

For Floppy and his harem of two

and for Shelia and Fanny and their entourage

the consternation was more that they were confined to barracks as the cold clear day was an opportunity to build a new hen run and bring all three cockerels together in one happy community.

Floppy and his women kept close together

and Shelia did a dance of disdain

Tomorrow we will see how they will all live together.

Pethan eraill yn y tyddyn heddiw:

Ah, this is what Winter should be like

As the snow settles on Gribin Isaf tonight

We are not sure whether to mourn the loss of double-digit temperatures (and non-stop gales and torrential rain) or embrace the crisp coldness that is to come…

When the weather is arriving from the North we can see it from afar

although sometimes it veers off and goes down the valley.

The pre-dusk feeding frenzy is building up

as we become aware that leaves on branches are now a thing of the past

As the chickens’ quarters deteriorate to the level of the pigs’ we prepare a winter run

While for one young hen thinks it is still Spring as she lays her first egg

Pethan eraill yn y tyddyn heddiw:

 

Changing weather, Changing climate

These days we are all primed to recognise climate changes when we are probably just seeing the normal ups and downs of what can happen during our normal seasons.  We can see the true harbingers of the future in  global changes while here at Gribin Isaf we know that so far this month of November has been very wet, very windy and very mild – is this unusual or has it happened before?

The sky continues to provide a succession of displays

But the real business of this season is happening below our feet, as things drop down to meld with the mixture below

Amongst all the livestock the ducks seem most impervious to changes

The Guineas have moved sheds

and seem to feel at home

Pethan eraill yn y tyddyn heddiw:

Half Time Break

For the first half of November it has rained solidly and the forecast seems to indicate the same for the second half.  But today it did not rain (much). In fact at times the sun shone

Lighting up ducks that previously appeared black

Not only did it rain but it also galed.  Trees are now bare

and on the ground are leaves that should not be there

The wind stripped the hanging bark from the eucalyptus leaving fresh skin below

The unexpected sun drew our eye to hidden detail

PS for Phil.  I (accidentally) discovered how to  get that netting really taut on the new hen run panels