Oh, the weather outside is frightful . . .

Another Christmas has passed . . . . . . a very quiet one for us; 

Charlie Brown Chestnut Tree

turkey cut in half for the barbecue, roasted chestnuts with caramelized onions, fresh made cranberry sauce and a dose of goodies, presents and movies.

Have been checking the calendar and notice 6 out of 9 agility practise sessions have been cancelled due to rain, in the month of December.

Most of the rain has fallen since the 15th - average rainfall being about 3.95 " and as of today, about 6.9 is the level recorded.  December 23rd was the most rainfall so far with two inches in 24 hours.

Temperatures are hovering around 11-14 C during the day (51-57 F) and lows of about 1-3 C (33-38F).

Tree Farms are extremely busy leading up the big day.  Noble Fir and Douglas Fir being the biggest sellers - 9 to 15 feet at $12.00-$15.00/foot.   Minimum price is $4.00/foot or $20.00.   Sierra Redwood being one of the most reasonably priced.





A few photos from the December 223rd storm (didn't let up for a solid twenty four hours).

The dots ARE rain drops!!!!

Just a mile up the road, I decided to take the dogs on a trail among the oak trees, thinking we might get a bit of shelter.  Of course, I had on my kayaking jacket and rain pants  . . . .  Luckily, Marc's little Olympus camera is waterproof (the case certainly isn't).

About 3 minutes into our trekk up the hill to the trees, the dogs looked like they just came out from a bath - NOT IMPRESSED.   Well, it was 'quiet' - no one around!

En route, the whole mile back to the RV Park, the seats got soaked with my soaked rain gear,  deep puddles had formed on the road and the dogs were scared while driving, from the water flying up over the roof.   Wipers were on full blast and gee, no traffic or cyclists!  LOL!   

This road is a famous connector for people to road ride a loop to San Jose (have seen upward of 50 male cyclists in one group - adorned in colorful spandex, cycling this route).   I've managed to maneuver the vehicle around and between the lines while on this is going on!

Back at the ranch . . .  

I get inside and after multi-towels, dry the dogs off.   Marc decides to go to Morgan Hill to pick up something from Nobb Hill (grocery) - about fifteen minutes away.

Well, he gets a detour due to road closure, ends up in a cul-de-sac the has no north/south entrances and is somewhere in limbo when the road is impassible due to so much water that he whips around to do a U-turn and a cop spots him, and attempts to pull him over.  BUT, due to so much water - the cop doesn't get out of the car and rolls the window down to talk to Marc.  ...  ends up giving him directions.   Marc continues on, trying to get to Watsonville Road, back to Uvas Pines RV to find the next detour.   After a complete and full detour out to Gilroy and back on the very road I just came back on, he makes it home.    Unfortunately, he had no cell phone or the GPS with him so it was about an hour and a half (normal trekk would be about half an hour).

Christmas Eve, drove to Walnut Creek (about an hour and a half NE) to play indoor pickleball.   About 10 people and great games.     

Took the toll bridge (from Richmond to San Francisco) as a side trip as the traffic was relatively quiet.  $4.00 on weekdays.

Santa Teresa Golf Course

In between storms and on some soggy ground, Santa Teresa Golf Course  is busy.   It is one of the only reasonably priced 18 hole courses in the Silicon Valley.   With a large Chinese population, locals have said if you play single, you can often get placed with people who do not speak a word of English.  

Somewhat like Glacier Greens (back in Comox) - deer find the golf course appealing & somewhat safe.

In just a few days . . .  Holds 3.2 trillion gallons of water and is now overflowing.

The Uvas Reseroir is over capacity (101% full) and overflowing.   Great news in the event of a drought but no running with the dogs as we can no longer access the far side as the entry is now under water.

About 50 feet of mud and debris line and shore and water is flowing over the spillway to Uvas Creek, then Gilroy and onto Monterey Bay.

Thousand Trails RV across the road from us, was flooded in 2011 and people were stranded for several hours across the bridge.  The Uvas Creek is being carefully monitored.

Above photo take on November 18th ---- today, the water is up to the tree level.   Hard to believe.

Well, we await the dry out days coming up.   Agility will happen again, practising the golf swing will happen, I will get to try out my new "Go Trail" Skecher trail running shoes,  and maybe even some cycling will happen, 

In the meantime .  .  .  ...   

...............................relaxation time around the Uvas Pines RV Park

Kylie has figured out how to climb in under the covers all on her own and 

Tazz knows how to relax and meditate!