Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Utah.......and western USA snow

For you guys back east.......

You usually have no water issues

So when you see water/snow/issues for those of us living in the west

The past.........20 yrs..........

Who gives AF right ?

Well we do

Planning a summer trip to Utah ? Expect adverse conditions off the main traveled path..or even closed roads

Most snow in 40 years ! Brighton Utah for example....743" before this next storm

https://www.ksl.com/article/50606204/utahs-statewide-snowpack-breaks-record-set-40-years-ago

Will this help refill lake Powell?

so so........

Lake Powell recently measured 21% capacity

we'll see at the end of summer

Everyone wants a S L O W warm up

Just our Snotel station.......28" of water equivalent

No it will not. Utah is in the Great Basin and none of the water flows to anywhere except the Basin itself.:-(

None of the rivers there flow to the sea.

Look at the maps.........

All of eastern Utah drains into Powell via the Colorado & Green Rivers

It’s also been an incredible winter here in Arizona. The last two monsoon seasons were record breaking for northern Arizona, and then to follow up with this winter’s precipitation has been awesome.

Flagstaff is approaching top 3 all time snowfall amount. Currently sitting around 160” for the season.

It took over 15 years to fill it the first time.
One wet year won't do it

Personally I'm glad you guys got some much needed moisture. I'm sure the liberals are hating it, blaming it all on cow farts, gas stoves and a/c units.

Here comes round 15 or 16 or 17?
Supposed to hit Monday night or Tuesday morning.
Looks like this could be the last major round.

I have a buddy in Craig Co. He said worst winter in 30 years & hard on wildlife.

The eastern half of the state flows into the Colorado river so it will definitely help. One of biggest problems with Powell and Mead is all the western states have cut back on their water allocations, except California. That pos state hasn’t built a reservoir in 40 years. Meanwhile, their population has doubled. Like power and fuel; they steal resources from the surrounding states whist proclaiming how virtuous and green they are.

No, it won’t, but it’ll make a dent.

One thing about big water years, the runoff is proportionally larger. When we have a 60-80% year, the creeks and springs are low to dry, and the vast majority of the water goes into the ground or is used for irrigation before it ever gets to the big water. Once you start getting above 110%, everything over that, for the most part, gets flushed down stream. So one big year can be the equivalent of half a dozen meager years or more.

Glad you guys are getting it!

We've had a couple easy years in this particular area of the Great Lakes.

Glad you guys are getting it!

We've had a couple easy years in this particular area of the Great Lakes.

Yet you cite Brighton as the big snowfall location, which is in Big Cottonwood Canyon and does indeed flow into the great sodium chloride lake.

This heavy snow year was predicted a year ago as a result of the Tonga volcano putting so much water in the stratosphere. The question is whether the drought is ending otherwise. If not, the dry will be back next year.

We are in the 250ish% area in that SNOTEL graphic, just over the NV side of Tahoe. Snow on the ground is still pretty impressive, but it'll take years of this to replenish what has been taken out.

Above us, the snow water equivalent at Tony Grove lake is over 48" and Emigrant Summit is about 34". That's a bunch of water that will be coming down, and at 159% the Bear River range has the lowest (percentage of normal) snowpack in the state. Mayberry has been filling sand bags for some time now; I'll take pics if Main St becomes a river.

Great map Lurkin

Very good description of how & where eastern Utah snow pack drains

Many of the Snotel stations on the northern end of Manti Range holding 37" of water

Of course there are reservoirs filling first before the excess drains to Powell

Water in the west has always been an issue back to the pioneer days & always will be

Great Salt Lake ? Another story in itself

The Mormon church recently donated 5700 water shares (20K acre feet) to be used to help fill the GSL

https://water.utah.gov/snowpack/