Spring Run Off

I can not recall ever having a spring run off like the one this year.  Yards have been flooding, driveways have been dug open to allow water to pass through, little ravines are being created across normally flat fields, and farmers are wondering if their fields will ever be dry enough to seed.  We have not experienced much of the above.  However, we did have a little water running across our drive towards our well.  Our well water is pumped into 2 cisterns in our basement.  We use it for everything...even drinking.  Our well is fairly shallow and has more than enough water for our use, but does not come in rapidly...hence the cisterns.  We pump water every day or so to fill our cisterns.  Normally our tanks are about half full.  Last week I forgot to turn the pump off and filled both tanks to the top!  I was thankful the pump hadn't quit working...normally it would have been sucking air and quit working.  All was good until we realized our water was BLACK!  Ground water had seeped into our well, creating dirty and unsafe drinking water.  Martin pumped both cisterns dry and cleaned them...what a mess!  I did not have water for 2 days!  Talk about almost losing it!!!  I know I should have cleaned the cisterns while Martin was at work, but I am claustrophobic and could not convince myself to climb through the small hole into the stuffy tanks.  I shudder at the thought!

Each tank had a layer of dirt, with this one being the cleanest.  We are now hauling water...all 300 gallons at a time(insert sarcasm!).  Our purification system is clean once again and all is well! :)