Water, water, water... Where's the water?

  The past 12 months have seen its challenges as well as a few bright spots. The loss of longtime members of the community compounded with the aerial and ground invasion of industrialization made for a tough start. The usual drying out after a moderate to light monsoon, depending on which milepost along the road you live at, was normal, but the continuation of the dry weather through the winter "wet" season provided little consolation to the changes to the valley. The lack of precipitation meant there was no first greening of the valley nor desert wildflowers in the spring to offer respite before the June furnace. We held our breath as the national forecasters hinted at a wetter than normal monsoon season, but soon found ourselves turning blue and gasping in the heat as the beginning and middle of the season passed us by with no sign of the second first greening either. As August turned to September, storm remnants of Lorena brought a small amount of relief with isolated showers here and there. While it was welcomed, it was another disappointment based on the original hype. But it was the downplayed insertion of moisture from the south during the second week of September that finally kicked off a mini-monsoon for our valley that had the washes and the river running up through the equinox. 

To say that the storms that hit our little part of the valley were a relief, is an understatement. Some saw their total rainfall reach up to moderate levels for the season, but most were just happy to see the ground wet. And then there were the sprouts only a few days later. Where there was "dead" bare ground, little greenies started popping up. Even if the desert doesn't fully awaken from its coma, it felt like a big weight was lifted off many shoulders in the valley.

At the "official" end of monsoon season and the “official” end of summer, thunderstorms continued to form over the sky islands and move out into the valley, dropping a bit of moisture here and there. Little did we know what would hit the last week of September… a tale for next time. Hopefully, the rains came in time and were enough that the rangeland will produce food for those that will need it over the winter. 

More substantial rains than we received locally charged the San Pedro River with a few strong flows, including a fairly large one at the end of Summer. It's always nice to know that somewhere there is real rain.

The lack of rain for the majority of the calendar year made for a very quiet summer in terms of wildlife. The desert knows how to sleep through tough times. There were a number of missing summer characters in the wildlife story of the summer, but some did make an appearance, especially towards the end. Fall migration, which happens mostly during the summer, was pretty active, but went by fairly quickly. Those that put out food and water definitely saw greater numbers of migrants. 

Now we are just beginning to hear the winter residents and a few unusual visitors like scrub jays. We will see what winter brings and if the rains will provide food for the seed and mistletoe berry eaters. The creosote bushes have turned from shriveled olive green to a bright vibrant green and have pushed out yellow flowers. Even the native morningglory are putting up blooms. All a testament to what the desert can endure, at least for a short amount of time.