Further north, there have been some destructive hailstorms of late. We rarely get hail here but yesterday, as the storm clouds gathered beyond the ridge, the air seemed more dense and the sky heavier and ominous.
Storm clouds coming over the ridge.
Gum tree branches silhouetted against the storm's clouds.
As it cleared the ridge, the wind whipped up and heavy rain lashed down. Spectacular lightning split the sky and the booming thunder claps that followed had our poor old Sir Steve dog trying desperately to get in under a bed! Hail, small balls of ice the size of marbles (and not any bigger thankfully), began peppering our roof and covering our green lawn in a blanket of icy white. The racket as it hit our roof was deafening!
Hail and a mini-river in the backyard.
Marbles of hail.
While we stayed safely inside, this little fellow, a Pied Butcher Bird, sought shelter under our verandah. It sat on one of our deck chairs until the storm had passed by and it was safe to fly away again.
A Butcher Bird sits out the storm.
Our boy had a great time scooping up handfuls of hail once it was safe to venture outside again. It reminded me of the storm we had here when he was much smaller. Hail had covered the trampoline that we had back then and he couldn't wait to get out there and bounce it off!
Storms like this seem unusual at this time of year. To me, they are more synonymous with the sweltering heat and humidity of our subtropical Summer. I wonder what will be ahead, weather-wise, in the months to come.
What's the weather like where you live?
Meg
Oh WOW that’s a decent storm. It must have been very widespread as yesterday afternoon the clouds rolled in here to, I think it scooted around us in the end, because we only ended up with a little bit of lightning and thunder and rain, no wind or hail this time.
ReplyDeleteI think it was very widespread, Cheryl. The radar showed a massive rain band following behind the storm cells. We've had a lot of rain in our part of the world of late. The garden's loving it! Meg:)
DeleteMeg, I often wonder if solar panels get wrecked in hail storms when the hail is the size of tennis balls. Thankfully I was safe inside a shopping centre when the storm hit and wasn't aware that the wind was so strong here.
ReplyDeleteI am not sure about solar panels, Chel. Our panels are on the North-East facing side of our roof and most storms here come in from the West. Glad you were safe and inside when the storm hit up your way. MegXx
DeleteThe sky looked amazing in those photos, I’m glad there was somewhere for the poor little bird to find sanctuary from the storm. It’s not too bad here, unseasonably warm really xx
ReplyDeleteThese Butcher Birds are quite clever little things. Two of them had been flitting around near my husband all morning, waiting for any tasty morsels his gardening unearthed! They have a beautiful song too. I hope you are staying cool during your unseasonably warm weather. Meg:)
DeleteGlad to hear you didn't have any damage from the storm and hail. We had plenty of dark clouds, flashes of lightning and booming thunder with plenty of rain bucketing down. No hail this time thank goodness. xx Susan
ReplyDeleteSounds like you got lots of heavy rain too, Susan. We had quite the lightning show here and our dog was most unimpressed with all the thunder. Meg Xx
DeleteHi Meg, It's been gorgeous here in Southern California. I drove out to a honey farm today, and enjoyed the view of the mountains and numerous flowers that are still in bloom. They had a colorful garden. That hail is so beautiful. It's perfectly shaped. What a delightful bird, too. He knows where he is safe.
ReplyDeleteA trip to a honey farm sounds fascinating, Stephenie. Did you taste test some different honeys? Years ago, when we were travelling down in Tasmania, we visited a little village called Chudleigh where there is a honey shop. So many different flavoured honeys to try, products made from honey and the most lovely honey ice-cream too. Meg:)
DeleteMeg, I'm glad that there were no damages.
ReplyDeleteI've never experienced a hail storm. We had a couple of cool days and it's back to high temperatures and humidity again. Today it was around 85°F (around 29°C) so it's slightly better.
It was very noisy with the hail hitting the roof but no damage here. Some areas did have branches and things like that come down. It sounds like you are having a warm start to your Autumn with some warm days over there. Meg:)
DeleteNature can be so beautiful when she's angry. I love your close-up hail photo. Poor dog, have you heard of those harnesses you can put on them to calm them in storms and fireworks? I haven't tried it with our dog yet, but I've heard you can achieve a similar result with bandages.
ReplyDeleteI haven't heard of those harnesses, Anne. We just usually hold him close and reassure him. Funnily, he's fine with fireworks. Meg:)
DeleteWow they were big hails, I always think of the wildlife in storms and hope they have found somewhere to shelter, lovely to see the butcher bird, I love seeing different birds.The weather here was really quite hot here yesterday, but next weekend the cold is setting in.
ReplyDeleteWe get some beautiful birds here, Marlene. It's always a joy to have them in the garden. Make the most of those warmer days before the cold sets in. Meg🙂
DeleteGood to know nothing was damaged!
ReplyDeleteThe weather here is all over the place. Cold and stormy, and then quite warm and oh so windy. The hay fever is bad this a year already and harvest is nearly upon us.
xx
Both my son and I get hayfever too, Emma, and I have noticed it has been a bit worse this year. There's a lot in bloom! Meg🙂
DeleteOur weather here along the south coast of England is all over the place. Today, like yesterday we have bright sunshine and it's still much warmer than it should be. Hence our flowers are still in full bloom, the garden normally looks like this in early September. We are enjoying these bonus sunny days, as we should be having damp dark days. Autumn has started as a strange season this year, but so did spring and summer.
ReplyDeleteI think weather patterns are changing all over the world, Marlene. When I was chatting to my neighbour this afternoon, we were saying how unusual it is to get hail here. Enjoy those bonus sunny days! Meg🌼
DeleteThat's some big lumps of ice! I am not surprised the bird took shelter, poor thing. The weather here is chilly but clear (for once)
ReplyDeleteWe will often get birds coming to sit in our verandah. These Butcher Birds are quite cheeky ... if we are eating outside they try to get a look in on lunch! Meg 🙂
DeleteWhat a gorgeous bird!!!
ReplyDeleteHailstorms frighten me. So much potential for damage. I'm glad you made it through safely! It's cold where I am already, and we even had surprise snow on Saturday afternoon. I couldn't believe it when I looked out the window and it was practically snowing sideways because of the wind. We had been out at my town's downtown trick or treat event just a little earlier, and I was SO thankful to be snug and cozy in my house at that moment!
We never get snow here, Stephanie. It's too warm for that! You've reminded me that I have to organise Halloween treats for when the neughourhoood children go trick or treating. I've been trying to think of treats that are plastic free. Meg🍂
DeleteWe got the storm clouds over here but no hail. It's funny because I didn't think we got storms at this time of the year however the weather bureau said October is always the month for these types of storms. Not something that I always thought of.
ReplyDeleteStorms aren't something I associate with October either, Kathy. I really think of them as Summer storms. Meg🙂
DeleteWow...that is some hail! I worry about cars being out in it. And....the chance that there could be a tornado nearby! Andrea
ReplyDeleteNo tornadoes where I live, Andrea, but the region can get some destructive storms. Further north, the Summer months can bring cyclones to the coast.
DeleteMeg 💦
Verandah's are just the best - for people and for animal visitors. Brush turkey's even use our outdoors table, for shelter in the rain. Clever birds, know how to find shelter. Glad the storm passed without much damage to your place. We had a severe storm hit our region, recently too. Not much damage caused, but we lost power for over an hour. The kids decided to toast some marsh-mellows on the candles we'd lit, lol.
ReplyDeleteWe have the occasional brush turkey come into our yard but haven't had one up on the verandah ... yet! Meg:D
DeleteYour storm photos are amazing Meg & that is huge sized hail there! We are in spring at the moment but its very dry already & we are getting forecast a long hot dry summer. Not the best for a gardener! So pleased the little bird sought refuge on your porch.
ReplyDeleteWe have had another storm come through tonight, Julie, though no hail this time. Hot dry Summers are definitely not good for gardeners or their plants! I'm not sure what kind of weather our Summer will bring. Meg:)
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