Hi-vis vests stand out against the grey skies and yellow grass on one of the smaller roads of Eugowra, where Ken Guymer and Simon Gellert have continued the steady work of fence repairs.
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A year on from a flood which damaged an estimated 90 per cent of structures across the town, there is plenty of work still to be done.
"The water was up to here," Mr Guymer said, as he gestured to his chin. "Rather deep."
A volunteer with Blaze Aid, a charity that helps rural communities rebuild after natural disasters, Guymer has travelled from Forbes to Eugowra each day for six months to repair fences, clear debris and restore pastures. On the property by Mandagery Creek, work has been slow but steady.
"We pulled the debris off the fence, cut the wire, and rolled it up. In some places we've been putting new pickets in but most are still usable," he said.
Mr Gellert leaned on one picket, bent out of shape from the force of flood waters and explained this was his first day volunteering.
A community chaplain, Gellert came to Eugowra after the flood, taking time off from pastoring a Baptist church in Yeoval, north of Molong.
"When you carry the name 'chaplain,' some of the younger people have a bit of a gut reaction to it, they don't know what to think about people in the church," he said. "But it's being here for people if they need it, with men's sheds and this sort of thing ... there is an investment that needs to be made to have those conversations."
Reflecting on the long road to recovery for towns affected by the 2022 floods, Gellert said the disaster is one challenge of many for those in the region.
"It's one of the straws that breaks people's backs. Floods are bad, but it's a combination of that and poor health, or family, or someone's died. All those things make life tough," he said.
In Eugowra, residents marked the first anniversary of the flood with a reflection ceremony at Apex Park, held on Tuesday.
