50mm of rain in the last 24 hours must surely be a post Fish record for arid Hutton. But compared to the central borders with their 75mm plus we seem to have escaped lightly. The Floods website told of a severe flood warning on the upper Tweed so I hastened down to Paxton House to see if it was bad further East down river. For once the warning notice: 'This path is thought only suitable for agile ducks' seemed to make sense. The Tweed was a near a raging torrent as it can get and the river was full of debris heading East and bound for Spittal Beach. No sign of garden benches this time. Some one from Hutton salvaged one a few years back but no luck this time. The usual paths along the river bank were under a lot of water and only about 50 yards was passable. Back home there was a surprise visit from Cocky who had not been seen for some weeks and whom I feared had perished in 'the Season' at the hands or rather automatic shotguns-with-telescopic sights and heat seeking shot firing so beloved to southern stock brokers looking for thrills in the mists of the wild Merse. As you can see he is in his seasonal drab camouflage and is looking fairly miserable. Where Ollie and the chicks are we have no idea. As I departed the Tweed I was accosted by a gentleman of well advanced years who assured me that this was the highest flood level since 01 or perhaps 02-or indeed comparing almost with '48-his memory was n't what it used to be so it could have been the great snows of 47 when whole gardens floated by never mind them benches, mind you with global warming.. I left him to it.

  ¶ 12:24 AM