More from the frozen, flooded wetlands

Yesterday's visit to the far end of ul Trombity was brief; today, equipped with wellies, I set off from ul. Kórnicka to gauge the extent of the flooding (the Polish word podtopienie rather than the word powódź or potop which is more a mythical flood).

Above: the streak of clear water between the foreground and the trees is a drainage ditch; this carried melt water from the fields nearer the railway line. It has overflowed and the water has spilled out over the football pitch (see previous post).

Below: It looks like a photo of a frozen river taken from the bank; actually, this is ul. Dumki, now totally impassable to any kind of traffic. The ice here is too thin to walk on, the water beneath is knee-deep.


Not in nine winters living on ul. Trombity have I seen so much water on our wetlands. Right: The sun glinting off a vast expanse of snow-covered ice. The ground below is waterlogged; drainage ditches around Jeziorki channel still more meltwater from around the neighbourhood. It will take months of dry weather for water to retreat to its normal levels. In summer, water is not usually visible from this point, across the flooded ul. Dumki.

Below: Being unable to make my way further down Dumki, I try to skirt around the flooding - to no avail. The water reaches right up to a fenced-off field adjoining ul. Baletowa. I have no alternative but to cross the ice (here thick enough to support my weight; the water below is just over ankle-deep).

Below: the reedbeds. Somewhere below the ice, frogs and bullfrogs are hibernating. Within a few short weeks, nature's great miracle will kick off once again, tadpoles will spawn, the swans and black-headed gulls with return.