Rain, Rain go away, but PLEASE!! come back another day!

We moved to Dorrigo less than 5 years ago, amid talk of climate change, hotter and drier weather, and   we saw how frequently this place came up as the highest rainfall in the state. “That’s the place to be!”

A year later, we had floods (not on top of our mountain!) in March and May, and then three months of almost total drought between July and October. That sent us off on a big water storage binge! Anywhere we could put a tank, we did, and often with more than one source of water. Gutters went up around every building, and water saving methods were introduced when we never thought that would be a consideration (we hadn’t been there very long, of course).

The year after that was almost textbook Dorrigo weather – just enough rain, but not too much. And 2011 was not too bad either. We still didn’t need those tanks we had installed! January 2012, the rain came down in buckets and tanker loads! Then from July to November, four months of practically no rain! Now those tanks looked very useful.

From October to January this year was so hot! We had certainly not experienced days of 36 degrees Celsius on our mountain – not many had occurred, let alone week after week. We began to be thankful for the air conditioning we had installed at Ralda’s Cottage. And our guests were so thankful for our lovely big pool.

At the end of January, the rains came – just in time for the Australia Day long weekend! And you know, it’s hardly stopped since. I was disappointed that more guests didn’t book for February, but with all the rain we’ve had, the trees down, the incredible winds and the totally sodden trails, I’m so glad you’ve stayed away.

I can tell you, however, that every year we’ve been here, there is not a lot of rain between April and October – it’s the perfect time to visit Dorrigo and spend a few days to go walking in the surrounding national parks. Our baby animals usually turn up in June and July as well.

The sun is back!  So come and visit us.