Raining Upstream

               "The psychiatrist wants to know why I go out and hike around 
                in the forests and watch the birds and collect butterflies. I'll show 
                you my collection some day."
     
               "Good." 
     
               "They want to know what I do with my time. I tell them that sometimes 
               I just sit and think. But I won't tell them what. I've got them running. 
               And sometimes, I tell them, I like to put my head back, like this, and let 
               the rain fall in my mouth. It tastes just like wine. Have you ever tried it?"

               — Ray Bradbury,  Fahrenheit 451

Duck took shelter on this "island."

The rain was to the west. We could hear the thunder. Every now and then we saw lightning flash across the dark clouds. We saw the result of earlier rain as the creek was flowing fast and full and muddy. It had dropped a little, leaving a line of driftwood and trash at its former height. It would rise after the morning rains, but we would be gone.
 

Looking downstream from the bridge yesterday (notice the island).

This is the same view (slightly different angle) showing the flow, no island, and the high water-mark on the beach.

Looking upstream from the footbridge yesterday.

This view shows how full and muddy the creek was today.

"This creek rises fast and drops fast, unless there is a continuous rain," shared VM She's lived here much of her life. We've both known that creek to flood the park and, sometimes, surrounding homes and businesses. So we paid attention as we walked along the bank, searching for our bird friends and surprised at the numbers of people out early.

We assumed they were getting their walk or run in early. The storms were headed our way.* We greeted old and new and saw 3 Great Blue Herons, 3 Yellow-crowned Night-herons, the Snowy Egret, a Northern Cardinal, the humming bird (I'm beginning to think it has a nest nearby), and two Green Herons. The ducks mostly avoided the fast flow of the creek.

This Green Heron perched on some limbs that had drifted downstream.

"Frog, frog, frog," I cried. I will forever be 12 years old when it comes to frogs, toads, lizards, turtles...there are a few other things, but these 4 are probably my favorites.**  Anyway, VM held Z's leash while I caught and attempted to photograph the tiny Gulf Coast Toad. [I am old and slow. I needed more sleep and coffee. I haven't looked at the photos yet, but already know the critter escaped before I got anything decent.***]

See its dirty little belly?

In spite of my "ham handed" handling of the toad, one can see it is a Gulf Coast Toad.

We were drenched in sweat (it was unbelievably humid) by the end of the walk and almost skipped going to the footbridge, but we changed our minds. What's a creek-rising without witnesses?

Ginger's breathing was hard from the beginning of the walk - maybe the humidity. She rode all the way back.

Lots of critters were on the move. I think this caterpillar is from a sphinx moth of one kind or another.

They have been working on Mt. Zion Methodist Church for most of the year. They are supposed to have a fish fry tomorrow. Here a worker "winds up" the orange protective fencing.

NOTES:

*That they didn't reach us was no surprise. All summer we've watched the radar as storms broke-up before getting this far or divided up - half going north and half going south of our town. That we are left high and dry again (except for that creek). We are in a drought. It may not matter anymore.

**I used to catch anoles daily, harassed the Gulf Coast Toads under the house and in the neighbors' yards, and created colorful turtles with Play-Doh. I should have grown up to be a Herpetologist (I suppose the frog dissection in freshmen biology put an end to that. There was no way I would make a living like that.). I pretty much love everything except ticks. I'm terrible at identification, but am helped along by all kinds of aids for nature nerds - most notably iNaturalist. I will say my skills are improving (I identified every bird from "Moments of Nature" on CBS's Sunday Morning program the other day surprising myself and DH as well -- almost as much as when I identified an exotic camouflage pattern some years ago. I guessed. Don't tell him).

***I know what it is and iNaturalist confirms - Gulf Coast Toad. I've got the coffee pot set and ready to go.