Stuck in Mud

Today was the 8th Annual EcoKids.  Today it also rained.  A lot.  In the last 24 hours it dumped 1.77 inches on Grass Valley, of which 0.64 was received in the last 6 hours.  Yep, that would be the same six hours during which we set up the Burton Homestead, opened, and subsequently were utterly rained out.  

This wasn't just a little rain.  How do I know?  Well, first off is this nifty website produced by the National Weather Service that I posted on Facebook during the last storm.  Be sure to play with the different time scenarios during and after a storm.  So very cool.  So yes, over half an inch during the time frame in question.

Secondly, there was water sheeting off of the ground, which then lead to the further observation that our meadow aka parking lot for the event was rapidly turning very soggy.

Why do people assume that just because they  have 4WD that this won't happen to them?  People were very nice but a bit dismissive of my AWD Scion.  I could feel how slick the ground was, thought I was going to make it, but no.  Completely stuck, almost to the bumper line on the passenger side.  So people in 4WD and big pick ups tried to make it out and got equally stuck.  Luckily my Geico insurance coverage included tow service.  Within 15 minutes I had a tow truck and got pulled out of the mud.

The tow truck driver made short work on installing the tow bolts on the front of my bumper.  I never knew that's what those big eye bolt looking things with my spare tire stuff were for.

We made it home ok after that, where DH had started a fire in the wood stove and had a lovely pot of our locally sourced chicken (see previous post) whipped into a lovely chicken veg rice soup.