High Water

This morning's high tide brought the highest water I've seen in my two years living on Ocracoke. Here's what I mean.

We have a small "canal" behind our house which is connected to the marshes that spread between our neighborhood and the sound. The water level in the canal rises and falls with the tide. (This system of canals was built by the CCC during the 1930's; I'm told the driving principal was mosquito control, but that's another story.)

This morning when I awoke, I looked out to see the canal water spread out across the yards and roads around out house. Fortunately the water level was not high enough to get into automobile engines!

Hyde County is under a coastal flood advisory until tonight. The high tides are being pushed much higher today by the storm out in the Atlantic (even though we are only experiencing light winds here on Ocracoke.) The rainwater puddles I mentioned in our roads are now "gone" as the low stretches are fully covered with brown brackish water. I imagine there is salt water in Highway 12 in the Village, but I'm not driving through it to find out! I'll watch for the water to recede as the tide falls through the morning.

Yesterday, as we were creeping along in our car through one of those "puddles" covering Loop Road, we encountered about a dozen beautiful ibises who had been attracted by this new wetland area. Most were white, but some were smaller and brown and they all had the typical down-turned bill of the ibis. An unusual traffic hazard!

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is a transcript of a letter written in 1949 by a visitor to the island. You can read the letter (which provides a glimpse into Ocracoke life sixty years ago) here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news102509.htm.