The rain in Spain: Cascada in Cabrera

When it rains in Spain it pours.  And, the cascada runs. We had one in Antas. but this one is 100 m from home. Nice. 

This is after a few days, with about 300 mm in total.

You know you're living in the mountains after lots of rain:

The road to Turre

Abenjoar:

Two wheelbarrows in two days!

Canales: Dutch people do waterworks

When it rains here it pours, as you obviously will have read in the past, *here*. Yes you have.

The Dyke

Much of the trouble is due to a barranco that should drain away rainwater from the hills, via a terraced campo behind us. Gaps in the walls surrounding those campos drain the water to the next terrace. However, the upper campo has a collapsed wall, so quite a lot of water drains onto the road there, eventually ending up at our entrance. 

We asked the nephew of the owner to close the gap, as he’s into the business of moving earth with digging machines. He said "it's my uncle’s land!". We knew that, and he’s living in Barcelona (really).

We asked him to move some earth against the gap if he had a machine here. He said yes, but nothing happened, even when his diggers were here and I asked again. 

Also, officially, asked the ayuntamiento to do something about it. No reply. Nada. 

Okay, be that way. So, we put up a dyke:

3 Drains

Next step: we made 3 drains across the road, draining water away to the side. Many roads here have concrete channels across the road with a metal grid, to get rid of water:

Drain 1 of 3

We made drain nr. 1 at the entrance of the property, draining away into the canal we had dug:

Spot the nice reflectors? In Spain the right side has orange reflectors, white on the left. NL has red reflectors right.

Drain 2 of 3

In the middle of our bypass canal number two:

Drain 3 of 3

And finally canal nr. 3:

Channel and overflow

And, finally, deepen the existing draining channel in our land to the overflow opening in our lowest wall:

The rains may come!

hm, careful what you wish for now.

Rain. Again. Back to the drawing board.

We're back where we started. Another heavy rain, again a waterfall in our back yard, again the road washed away, and the Endesa electric cable visible. But the deltawerk at the back has held! No water through our back gate! Oh, and the steps to the upper orchard are washed free from soil too. Which enables me to put the second one really horizontal, this time.

(Vain) attempt to direct the water off the road.

Another vain attempt.

And the result a few hours later.

But this one held! No water entered our back gate.

At least I can now put the second step horizontal.

Rain December 16

Nice, but this means: rain!

And lo.

Oei oei.

We take measures. We're Dutch you know.

And here is what caused the car to be wet, water splattering on that wall. But a cunningly placed piece of board...!

You see,

it's not always

Not always dry here.

Waterfall running. Does not happen often. One day a year?

Age old buildings are damaged.