We were woken by gale-force winds this morning. Strong rain lashed the house while wind whipped the trees, howling and roaring as if to compete with the resounding roar of the ocean. The whole landscape vibrated as each surge of the sea threw itself mercilessly at the shore. The ancient rocks under our house trembled with their peers at the water’s edge, the breathless roaring and pounding of the sea had set them singing of the tempest. I was not thinking of photography at the time, but rather preparing for loss of power, as it seemed certain a tree would bring the lines down somewhere between us and power station. Even though we have big solar panels making our own power, we sell it to the grid, and buy power back from them. Miraculously the power stayed on. Later there was a lull, so we donned appropriate clothing and headed for the beach.
We did not realise then but we had branches down on some big gums. The path to the beach was littered with smaller twigs and branches. The lagoon was open to the sea, tea-tree coloured water carving its way through the beach sand, rushing to meet the waves, staining the whole of bay with black silt! I was fascinated by the brown waves for a while … not something we see every day.
High tide and a huge swell had inundated the beach overnight. Seaweed was tossed up onto the grass, and waves had been pulling at sand usually held down by beach grasses. A merry troupe of galahs found the freshly salted grass seeds appealing, ignoring us as we wandered past. Many creatures had been washed ashore in the swell … including a Weedy Seadragon … hundreds of bluebottles … various jellyfish … and seaweeds swathed in foam whipped up by the wild waves.
Happily we were able to walk along most of the beach and home again, crossing the raging lagoon, all without rain. It began again when we got back, but the wildness had gone. We were lucky with little damage, and by the time I went to town the fallen trees that blocked the road had been cut up and removed. Thank you to whoever cleared the way!
That does sound like a very violent storm, Christine. You got some great pics of the aftermath.; love the rainbow foam and the little sea dragon. So glad your power lines held up. 🙂
thanks AD, it was quite a morning! the storms were much worse further north and south, but we are on flood watch for our two closest rivers …. sad to see the Sea Dragon washed up …. violent seas I guess 😦
It was wild alright…
nature is awesome, love to see the wildness every so often 🙂
Storms can be very scary but you caught some great photos of the aftermath
thank you! we were lucky to have a little break in the weather to get out with the camera 🙂
Beautiful forces of nature! Glad you were ok with no power outage. I love the little sea dragon, I’ve never seen one before.
the news this morning is all about the local damage … and good rains for the farmers … swings and roundabouts!
I love the last shot; what drama. So are you like us where at first hint of a power outage we put the kettle on so I am not left tea-less!
exactly Deb … we rush around preparing since it can go out for hours and then we cannot even shower!
I have a funny story. We have stopped buying ice cream at the cabin because every time we bought ice cream the power would go out and it would all melt in the freezer. Last time it happened the power was out for over 24 hours; that is when we imposed the ice cream ban.
very funny! it is never that bad here 🙂
Glad you didn’t have to deal with power outage. These are beautiful photos, love the sea dragon 🙂
thank you Amy, we were astonished to see it too … I hope it is not an endangered one …
You are doing such a good job of weaning me off life in Warsaw. The Eurobodalla coast is looking better and better in your wonderful photos. I love the drama of storms, and the different beach that appears afterwards. You really do never walk along the same beach twice.
But you haven’t offered me a substitute for my Polish twins!
Hi Meg … there never will a substitute … they are unique! … but the beaches are always fresh and ready to be enjoyed over here … a gift you will be able to offer the twins when they come to visit you 🙂 This end of our beach had been looking very mucky and tired for a while, marvellous to see it all renewed again!
Wow! Sounds like quite an adventure. I’m glad everything is okay. And seadragons? I had no idea such a creature exists!
try googling them Robin … they are exquisite!
I love a stormy day at the beach! And to stumble on a sea dragon? Oh my!!! I have to learn more about those.
some people keep them in aquaria!
The birds, especially, are beautiful! 🙂
A newly storm washed beach holds much of interest, sadly like the sea dragon but pearls for some, like the galahs. Walking along the beach after a storm you can feel the energy that lingers behind. The rainbow foam and brown wave patterns are quite works of art by Mother nature, and captured by you.
So glad you enjoyed the muddy waves and the rainbow foam .. I will show the foam again one day!
Looks like some tough seas…amazing beach finds.
such a special time, the hours after the storm … infact even today some strange purple jelly fish have come ashore!
That’s quite a storm! I love the galahs, se dragon and rainbows. I only see one piece of plastic in the debris? that’s good if so!
Hi Gilly! There was very little rubbish, almost everything washed up was natural … I picked up a few bits of plastic the next day … the beach is really clean now!
what a storm…sad about the sea dragon but great you could get a photo
exactly what I thought Jo … we have seen one once before … good to know they are out there 🙂
il furore della natura quando scatena gli elementi sgomenta, ma il ritorno alla calma dopo la tempesta ci fa gustare di più quello che abbiamo…le foto sono strepitose, quelle delle alghe mi sembrava di poterle toccare, e quelle delle onde ne ascoltavo il rumore
the fury of nature when you unleash the elements dismayed, but a return to calm after the Storm makes us enjoy more what we have … the photos are stunning, the algae I seemed to touch them, and those who listened to the waves sound
see you soon
Ventis
thank you Ven 😀
Oh, I so love the rolling, foamy sea, the sounds, the sights, the smells, (I love these from a safe spot on the land!)
me too!
WOW!! Great shots, scary storm, poor sea dragon~
thanks Cindy … sad about the sea dragon, but we very rarely see one, I guess it was the strength of the storm …