Christine,
We keep a flock of Buff Orphingtons here in Michigan with a fencing system much like the one in your link. We have a lot of cloudy and rainy days here as well. We use a similar solar charger to the one pictured. It works great to keep predators at bay. The first few weeks that we had it set up I was awakened multiple times to very uncomfortable sounds coming from the direction of the chicken yard. During the winter and early spring we keep the flock stationary over the garden plot and hook the fence to an energizer that is plugged in and not solar. I can tell you that the fence stops my German shepherd, silly dog wanted to come play with the chickens and stuck his nose on it 4 times. Then he decided the chickens were his and tried to mark his territory, now he wont come within 3 feet of the thing. From personal experience, bare feet wet hands and holding a mettle chicken water, this fence with the right energizer and proper maintenance can really pack a punch. As to maintenance, the path that the fence takes needs to be mowed regularly or the fence gets shorted out. We typically just scythe a new perimeter every time we move the girls to new pasture. As far as access I'm 5'10" so I just step over it. In rubber boots and jeans I usually don't get "bit" and if I do it isn't very hard.
Hope that that our experience helps,
Beth
