Monday, November 09, 2009

If IDA Known Yesterday

I think it is safe to say that Hurricane IDA was a non-event here on the island. We got more weather from her in the days preceeding her arrival than we did on Sunday.

The eye passed by us at 65 miles out to sea. Since her hurricane strength winds were only extending out for 14 miles, we got none of that. TS winds were reaching out for 114 miles, but we got none of them either. Just a drizzle. The kind of rain that makes you put your windshield wipers on intermittent.

Anticipating big things to come yesterday afternoon, we headed out in the morning to do some exploring and take some pictures. Glad I did. So here is some of what we saw.

First we headed to the NaBalam/Avalon Cove beach. See that big rock off to the left. Just a few short weeks ago I was out there snorkeling. Gives me the shivers to look at it now.




The post in the middle of the water is usually sticking out of the sand. The surge was quite high in this area.




The bridge over to the Avalon. The same day I was at that rock, I snorkeled under this frightening thing. Even more frightening now! If you look closely, you can see that the water was exploding under the bridge and coming up through the boards.




And here is where it exited.




As a reminder, and before you move on, I wanted to remind you of what North Beach looked like last week before all this started.





The approach to North Beach on Sunday.





This is basically the same shot as the sunny one above.



This shot I took for my friend, CancunCanuck, over in Cancun. This is her favorite spot to swim when she comes over to the island. (see blog sidebar to visit her site)



We then drove to the other end of the island. This is the view from South Point. Which is also the most easterly point in Mexico.



Looking north towards my house.





You've heard me talk about Crocodile Rock before. It is my barometer of how high the water is getting. Only at high tide does the water normally even touch the tip of this rock.
Here it is as the surge is receding.




And the surge coming in. Earlier in the day it was actually much higher. I took these pictures especially for my friend, Kelly, so she could see what is happening to it. We share the same joy over watching this rock!


As this week goes on, I'll be posting some of the pictures I took before the Hurricane actually got here. Much more rain and interesting streets. So, as Juan Calypso would say, Stay Tuned!

12 comments:

Merida Mikey said...

It appears all is well with everyone, and everyone is well! Glad you all weathered the storm and it didn't weather you! Keep high and dry!

Ann said...

Thanks for sharing the photos, Wayne! So glad the island was spared! We got an email from our " goddaughter"( student that we sponsor) and she said they had moved into a shelter(they live in Guadalupana).

jeanie said...

I'm so glad everything is well on Isla. I slept like a rock last night. Cheers Wayne!

Sam and Bob said...

I am happy to hear and see that Ida didn't do any real damage. My husband and I have compadres that live in Cancun. We are padrinos. It's not always easy to communicate with them. Thanks for the update.

Calypso said...

Love those "non-events" - glad it worked out OK amigo.

Anonymous said...

Some great shots, Wayne! I hope the surge under the Avalon bridge dug it out a bit deeper than it was in July! It was the shallowist (new word?) I've seen since 2003.

Linda

Babs said...

Thank your lucky stars you DIDN't have a direct hit. Probably the only aftermath will be beach erosion.

Loved the clever title you came up with.......

KfromMichigan said...

Great photos .. I'm so glad all is well on Isla.

CancunCanuck said...

Thanks amigo, I'm ever so grateful for the pics! Those are some BIG waves. How are things looking today? We've got sun over here on the mainland, I'm guessing you're back to normal there too (hope so anyway!)

Arnie B said...

Anyone out surfing? Because that last picture looks promising.

Arizona Kelly said...

Thanks for the pics of Croc Rock! Did you wander down there to see if Ida left me any shells? You said you would if you got the gumption! I need a little reminder of the hurricane I was almost in :)

Thank God there was a break in the weather Friday when mom and I left. You know she had her panties all in a knot about that ferry ride.

Miss you already!

elletek said...

Great pictures, thanks for sharing!

WoW! Love the last picture with the huge wave.

Thankfully, no real damage from Ida! Hope all is well with everyone.