Masons Falls, Victoria, Australia

(Click image to enlarge)

The previous day saw a rare tornado and flooding in western Melbourne, along with destructive winds and torrential thunderstorms throughout all the rest of Victoria and beyond. It rained more on that day than it had on any other day during the previous eighteen months. There was little choice but to spend the day indoors, which is something I have a great aversion to.

The next day I awoke to a late spring morning with mid winter temperatures, more rain, strong winds, and a dark grey sky. At a little past 9 a.m. I was contemplating another day indoors when I remembered visiting Masons Falls during a rainy period sixteen months earlier. It surprised me to find very little water flowing, and I wondered if the previous day's storms would make a difference. The 1.5 hour drive up there to hike in foul weather was better than anything I'd be doing at home, so I decided to find out.

To make the drive more worthwhile, before leaving home I found a second waterfall in the area called Wombelano Falls. With its trailhead on a bad dirt road that should not be driven in wet weather, it promised to be a good day after all! Given my late start, those two locations would fill the rest of the day nicely.

As seen in this photograph, the flow over Masons Falls wasn't exactly a torrent. It was, however, roughly four times the flow I saw there previously. I suspect the flow is not what one would expect because, even with the recent rains, most of Victoria is still in a drought. Other places that I visit frequently have seasonal streams that have been bone dry for more than a year. The big rains did not change that. With the huge rain deficit it was hard to find a puddle 24 hours later.