Thursday, March 4th, 2010 by Greg, Information SpecialistcloseAuthor: Greg, Information SpecialistName: Greg Reis Title: Information Specialist About: Since his Committee internship in 1995, Greg has been involved with Mono Basin stream restoration and with maintaining the Committee's computers, Websites, and Research Library, and researching and compiling information for our programs. He is also an EMT on the Lee Vining Volunteer Fire Department. His B.S. degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in Forestry and Natural Resources with a concentration in Environmental Management and a Senior Project in Hydrology reflects his interest in natural resources management, administration, planning, environmental analysis, and restoration. He is a member of the California Association of Environmental Professionals and the Watershed Management Council.See All Posts by Greg (52) Contact Greg
Mono Lake
On April 1st, 2009 (the beginning of this Runoff Year), Mono Lake was at an elevation of 6382.5 feet. It dropped about a foot by the end of the calendar year, and in January and February it rose half a foot, for a net loss of 0.6 feet since last April 1st. The half-foot rise in January and February is the largest 2-month wintertime rise since a 0.6 foot rise in January and February 2006. Mono Lake usually rises 0.1 foot in March–if it does that this month, we should be looking at an April 1st level of about 6382.0 feet. Click here for more on Mono Lake’s levels.
Lee Vining Precipitation
Here in Lee Vining, from October through February we’ve received 11.72 inches of precipitation, which is 108% (more…)
Friday, January 22nd, 2010 by Bartshé, Education DirectorcloseAuthor: Bartshé, Education DirectorName: Bartshé Miller Title: Education Director About: Bartshé directs the Committee's Outdoor Experiences Program, Canoe Program, and Interpretive Programs, and manages the Mono Basin Field Station. He has been an Eastern Sierra resident since 1993.See All Posts by Bartshé (10) Contact Bartshé
We are all getting bulked up on the white stuff. Yesterday I spent six hours shoveling between my roof and the berm left by the snow plow. It’s a pleasure to see this much snow, and it’s the first time in a while that this much has fallen around Mono Lake. We measured 33.2″ from Monday to Friday this week at our weather station here in Lee Vining. Thursday’s storm (1-21-2010) set all-time low barometric pressure records for the San Joaquin Valley, to Reno, to Las Vegas. I don’t know if there’s an official barometer for Lee Vining, but the pressure dropped to just above 983 millibars/29.04 inches on one local weather station, the the lowest I’ve ever seen it.
A view to the north from the south-bound lanes of Highway 395, through the middle of Lee Vining.
Wednesday, January 20th, 2010 by Greg, Information SpecialistcloseAuthor: Greg, Information SpecialistName: Greg Reis Title: Information Specialist About: Since his Committee internship in 1995, Greg has been involved with Mono Basin stream restoration and with maintaining the Committee's computers, Websites, and Research Library, and researching and compiling information for our programs. He is also an EMT on the Lee Vining Volunteer Fire Department. His B.S. degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in Forestry and Natural Resources with a concentration in Environmental Management and a Senior Project in Hydrology reflects his interest in natural resources management, administration, planning, environmental analysis, and restoration. He is a member of the California Association of Environmental Professionals and the Watershed Management Council.See All Posts by Greg (52) Contact Greg
Greg Reis stands knee-deep in fresh snow near the Mono Lake Committee's weather station. Photo by Elin Ljung.
After a one-day break in the storms—a day of just a few flurries and a night of wind-drifting snow—the snowfall has returned and it means business!
It started accumulating before 9:00 am this morning, and by 1:00 pm we had 3 inches of new snow and by 2:00 pm we had 4 more inches!!! These are amazing hourly rates and we need to keep a close eye on our weather instruments to make sure they aren’t overwhelmed. Our internet rain gauge is measuring water content up to 0.15 inches per hour. There is a delay because a heater has to melt the snow, and we have to break through any snow bridges that form over the heated gauge.
Highway 395 closed just after 1:30 pm between Mammoth and Bridgeport—the plows just weren’t able to keep up—and our staff got home to Mono City (7 miles north of our office in Lee Vining) just in time. We are expecting high winds this afternoon and evening to bring blizzard conditions.
The highway will probably be closed overnight according to the Mono County Office of Emergency Services.
Monday, January 18th, 2010 by Arya, Communications DirectorcloseAuthor: Arya, Communications DirectorName: Arya Degenhardt Title: Communications Director About: Arya oversees the Committee's communications program, which includes the Mono Lake Newsletter. She loves her job because she gets to share the inspiring work of the Mono Lake Committee with members and visitors alike. When she's not in the office you might find her running with her dogs Dublin and Poco, volunteering with the Lee Vining Fire Department, listening to any music with a banjo in it, or willing the plants in her garden to grow. Her favorite things to do in the Mono Basin include ice skating on nearby lakes, skiing the Mono Craters, and getting to smell the sagebrush when it rains.See All Posts by Arya (28) Contact Arya
Lee Vining-ites woke from last night’s clear starry skies to slow encroaching snow this morning. The snow started coming down around 9:00 am, and now at 10:30, it’s definitely sticking and starting to accumulate. I went out and shot a couple of photos … we’ll see if this storm is worth doing before-and-after shots!
If you are traveling in the area please, please drive carefully. We’ve had two bad accidents close to town in the last week … and that was before the snow even started to fall. As I took these photos out in the street just now people were flying by way too fast—I try to remind myself that we carry our most precious cargo, the people we love and care about, in our cars.
10:30 am on Monday, January 18---Highway 395 looking north from the Mono Lake Committee.
Thursday, January 14th, 2010 by Greg, Information SpecialistcloseAuthor: Greg, Information SpecialistName: Greg Reis Title: Information Specialist About: Since his Committee internship in 1995, Greg has been involved with Mono Basin stream restoration and with maintaining the Committee's computers, Websites, and Research Library, and researching and compiling information for our programs. He is also an EMT on the Lee Vining Volunteer Fire Department. His B.S. degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in Forestry and Natural Resources with a concentration in Environmental Management and a Senior Project in Hydrology reflects his interest in natural resources management, administration, planning, environmental analysis, and restoration. He is a member of the California Association of Environmental Professionals and the Watershed Management Council.See All Posts by Greg (52) Contact Greg
“THIS EVENT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO APPROACH OR RIVAL THE JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1998 EL NINO EVENT IN CENTRAL CA AND THE JANUARY 1995 TIME FRAME FOR SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.”
“THE COMBINATION OF SNOW AND WIND IN THE SIERRA MAY CAUSE SIGNIFICANT TRAVEL DELAYS AND PERIODIC ROAD CLOSURES.”
The following email we just received from the USGS through our contacts with the Forest Service (original email appears to be from Chris Haile with CalFire). It has been reposted on several other blogs (more…)
Monday, December 14th, 2009 by Greg, Information SpecialistcloseAuthor: Greg, Information SpecialistName: Greg Reis Title: Information Specialist About: Since his Committee internship in 1995, Greg has been involved with Mono Basin stream restoration and with maintaining the Committee's computers, Websites, and Research Library, and researching and compiling information for our programs. He is also an EMT on the Lee Vining Volunteer Fire Department. His B.S. degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in Forestry and Natural Resources with a concentration in Environmental Management and a Senior Project in Hydrology reflects his interest in natural resources management, administration, planning, environmental analysis, and restoration. He is a member of the California Association of Environmental Professionals and the Watershed Management Council.See All Posts by Greg (52) Contact Greg
When the temperature drops close to zero, some interesting things happen to the flowing water in Mono Lake’s tributaries. I shot this video on December 8th at Rush Creek right after measuring the flow in a side channel. Ominous cracking noises in the silent below freezing air preceded this dramatic burst (more…)
Friday, December 4th, 2009 by Greg, Information SpecialistcloseAuthor: Greg, Information SpecialistName: Greg Reis Title: Information Specialist About: Since his Committee internship in 1995, Greg has been involved with Mono Basin stream restoration and with maintaining the Committee's computers, Websites, and Research Library, and researching and compiling information for our programs. He is also an EMT on the Lee Vining Volunteer Fire Department. His B.S. degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in Forestry and Natural Resources with a concentration in Environmental Management and a Senior Project in Hydrology reflects his interest in natural resources management, administration, planning, environmental analysis, and restoration. He is a member of the California Association of Environmental Professionals and the Watershed Management Council.See All Posts by Greg (52) Contact Greg
The quiet winter season has settled on the Mono Basin, with the Scenic Area Visitor Center closed, Nicely’s Restaurant closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and Tioga Pass closed for the season. The Mono Lake Committee Information Center and Bookstore remains open 9-5 daily (except certain holidays). With no snow around Mono Lake, the access to visitor sites is good and hiking is still great, although (more…)
Friday, November 13th, 2009 by Greg, Information SpecialistcloseAuthor: Greg, Information SpecialistName: Greg Reis Title: Information Specialist About: Since his Committee internship in 1995, Greg has been involved with Mono Basin stream restoration and with maintaining the Committee's computers, Websites, and Research Library, and researching and compiling information for our programs. He is also an EMT on the Lee Vining Volunteer Fire Department. His B.S. degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in Forestry and Natural Resources with a concentration in Environmental Management and a Senior Project in Hydrology reflects his interest in natural resources management, administration, planning, environmental analysis, and restoration. He is a member of the California Association of Environmental Professionals and the Watershed Management Council.See All Posts by Greg (52) Contact Greg
On November 12th, 2009, at approximately 5:30 pm, the roar of hail on metal roofs resounded throughout the town of Lee Vining. It hailed really hard for about an hour, followed by a transition from 1/4 inch hail to smaller and smaller hail until it turned to snow by 8:00 pm. The snow continued until around 9pm. The next morning we measured about (more…)
Sunday, November 8th, 2009 by Greg, Information SpecialistcloseAuthor: Greg, Information SpecialistName: Greg Reis Title: Information Specialist About: Since his Committee internship in 1995, Greg has been involved with Mono Basin stream restoration and with maintaining the Committee's computers, Websites, and Research Library, and researching and compiling information for our programs. He is also an EMT on the Lee Vining Volunteer Fire Department. His B.S. degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in Forestry and Natural Resources with a concentration in Environmental Management and a Senior Project in Hydrology reflects his interest in natural resources management, administration, planning, environmental analysis, and restoration. He is a member of the California Association of Environmental Professionals and the Watershed Management Council.See All Posts by Greg (52) Contact Greg
WEATHER
Typical early October weather is to have highs near 70 and lows near freezing, however this unseasonably warm weather prevailed during the first week in November. The average November high is in the low 50s and the average low is in the upper 20s, and starting this weekend the weather is back to normal. Clear, sunny days are expected to continue (more…)
Thursday, October 15th, 2009 by Greg, Information SpecialistcloseAuthor: Greg, Information SpecialistName: Greg Reis Title: Information Specialist About: Since his Committee internship in 1995, Greg has been involved with Mono Basin stream restoration and with maintaining the Committee's computers, Websites, and Research Library, and researching and compiling information for our programs. He is also an EMT on the Lee Vining Volunteer Fire Department. His B.S. degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in Forestry and Natural Resources with a concentration in Environmental Management and a Senior Project in Hydrology reflects his interest in natural resources management, administration, planning, environmental analysis, and restoration. He is a member of the California Association of Environmental Professionals and the Watershed Management Council.See All Posts by Greg (52) Contact Greg
Tioga Pass (Hwy 120) reopens today, Thursday October 15, 2009, at noon. It was closed since Monday due to snow. Sonora Pass (Hwy 108) remains closed, as well as the road to Bodie (Hwy 270). On the Tioga Pass Webcam there appears to be less than a foot of snow at the 9,945′ pass.
