California Drought
February 6th, 2009 by Mono Lake Committee Staff
I’ve been enjoying the warm, dry weather here in the Mono Basin, however, the outlook for water resources across the state seems much less than a joy to ponder. The morning radio show Forum on KQED out of San Francisco had an interesting discussion about California water–focusing on the prospects of a third year of drought. Guests included Jeff Mount, Paul Kelley, Peter Gleick, and Wendy Martin. A link to the archived show is here: High and Dry: The California Drought.
I went for a long bike ride out to the far southeastern corner of the Mono Basin a few days ago. A beautiful afternoon of quiet pedaling along Highway 120–with long views of the Sierra crest, the Mono Craters, Cowtrack Mountain and the Bodie Hills… all with Mono Lake’s blue waters filling the low ground in the basin. There was very little snow about, but the Jeffrey Pine forest that fades off the northeast slopes of the Mono Craters is a very peaceful landscape to explore this time of year! I had fun watching a mixed assemblage of Pinyon Jays and Clark’s Nutcrackers–all of whom seemed quite excited to see me come and go. I also watched a pair of Hairy Woodpeckers work their way through the open snags of the Crater Fire region that burned back in 2001. I was hoping for a look at the Black-backed Woodpecker that often inhabits recently-burned forest communities–but no luck.
Taking advantage of the spring-like conditions here has been rewarding, but it’s finally snowing throughout the Sierra Nevada region today, with the forecast calling for snow through the weekend!
