Mountain West boating

[Williamsone46]

When is everyone's first trip?

We're trying to head to Powell over spring break. But winter seems to be lingering on. Might be to cold.

 

[Bottom Bracket]

Havasu is at a 95% water level.

 

[brdweb]

Havasu is at a 95% water level.

I need to get out there this year (3rd year of having a boat in AZ)

 

[rockinthesuburbs]

When is everyone's first trip?

We're trying to head to Powell over spring break. But winter seems to be lingering on. Might be to cold.

Definitely a lingering winter - but one of the top 10 wettest winters we've ever had. I'm hoping to do a Powell trip towards the end of summer early fall depending on water levels. Hoping some of this excess makes it down that way at least! If not, at least the local reservoirs will be in a better spot this year over last year hopefully!

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

Mead was up 10’ recently which is remarkable for this time of year.

Hopefully Powell, and the others come up significantly this year. If there is a lot of run off into the green river drainage this year then more water will have to be let out of Flamming Gorge and will flow into the water up stream of Powell. The biggest impact will be how warm the spring is, warmer spring equals greater run off, cool spring and more of the water soaks in along the way. We need several winters like this one to get the water levels up to snuff!

Here is the USBR link to Powell.

Lake Powell Water Database

Lake Powell Water Database

lakepowell.water-data.com

As you can see, one problem is that more water is being let out of Powell than is coming in…

 

[brdweb]

As you can see, one problem is that more water is being let out of Powell than is coming in…

Which continues to boggle my mind. Almost all of AZ is completely out of drought. A lot of California is down to mild or moderate, etc... The snowpack in UT and CO obviously won't completely re-fill Powell and Mead but a few years of this should point things in the right direction. It's really too bad that although CA has a lot of reservoirs, they're still going to just lose a lot of their snowpack runoff to the ocean.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

CA hasn’t built a new reservoir in 50 years. Criminally negligent. There is one new in “the final planning stages” had that one been completed this years run off would have gone a long way towards filling it. As an fyi, Folsom reservoir filled in one season when the authorities said it would take 5-10 years.

 

[Ronnie]

CA hasn’t built a new reservoir in 50 years. Criminally negligent. There is one new in “the final planning stages” had that one been completed this years run off would have gone a long way towards filling it. As an fyi, Folsom reservoir filled in one season when the authorities said it would take 5-10 years.

I recall that it takes two consecutive non drought years before CA formally acknowledges that a drought is over. If true CA won’t declare the current drought over unless we have an average or above average rains next year as well, even if the reservoirs are full or overflowing this year. I knew it was bad last year and the year before when some of the smaller lakes and reservoirs were closed to boating and sometimes swimming, just not enough water in them to do so.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

I recall that it takes two consecutive non drought years before CA formally acknowledges that a drought is over. If true CA won’t declare the current drought over unless we have an average or above average rains next year as well, even if the reservoirs are full or overflowing this year. I knew it was bad last year and the year before when some of the smaller lakes and reservoirs were closed to boating and sometimes swimming, just not enough water in them to do so.

Not sure if you are familiar with Sly Park reservoir up by Pollok Pines, but in the mid seventies it was a place my cousin and I frequented and that turned into a mud hole and folks in Placerville had to let their laws die off meanwhile folks in Sac and SF were washing down their driveways.. I remember my cousin losing his stuff on a guy washing down his driveway in Sac when this was going on… man I sure miss that guy.

I could prattle on for hours for the failures of leadership in CA… its just criminal. So many opportunities to actually fix the problem and nothing has been done. CA had the opportunity to build De sal plants along the coast, make a radical expansion of using reclaimed water for all urban irrigation, and building tens of nuclear generating plants so that electricity was abundant, clean, and inexpensive.

 

[Ronnie]

Not sure if you are familiar with Sly Park reservoir up by Pollok Pines, but in the mid seventies it was a place my cousin and I frequented and that turned into a mud hole and folks in Placerville had to let their laws die off meanwhile folks in Sac and SF were washing down their driveways.. I remember my cousin losing his stuff on a guy washing down his driveway in Sac when this was going on… man I sure miss that guy.

I could prattle on for hours for the failures of leadership in CA… its just criminal. So many opportunities to actually fix the problem and nothing has been done. CA had the opportunity to build De sal plants along the coast, make a radical expansion of using reclaimed water for all urban irrigation, and building tens of nuclear generating plants so that electricity was abundant, clean, and inexpensive.

I understand and share your frustration. Earlier this week I walked my dog past a neighbors house and his sprinklers were on, while it was raining. His sprinklers are set to operate seven days a week, rain or shine, drought and coat be damned apparently. On a larger stage only about half of the golf courses I’ve visited in ca since the pandemic began reduced watering their courses (under the slogan “brown is the new green” due to the drought). Again, apparently drought and costs are not issues for the offenders.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

I spent a lot of my youth in P ville, so many fond memories ! Grandma and grandpa owned two western auto stores up there one in P ville the other in Jackson or Sutter Creek.

I hope for all of you there that the lakes are full to overflowing this year!

 

[Rumbo]

I’m in CA right now for spring break. Thought it would be a good idea for some reason . Can’t wait to leave!!!! 10 cents for every bag in every store, homeless encampments at every turn, panhandlers at every store entrance. This place is a mess!!!

CA gets the biggest share of water from the Colorado. They dump ⅓ of that into the salton sea to keep that barren wasteland from drying up for the 187 or so residents there. If that volume of water was left in the reservoirs it would be enough to refill Powell and need in less than a decade. But no, they keep dumping it out into the desert to absorb and evaporate. They don’t use that water. This state is so upside down and backwards it boggles the mind. And so many people who’ve destroyed this once beautiful state with their idiotic vote can’t stand living there anymore so they flee to Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Idaho, etc. and keep voting the same damned way!

 

[AZMark]

Which continues to boggle my mind. Almost all of AZ is completely out of drought. A lot of California is down to mild or moderate, etc... The snowpack in UT and CO obviously won't completely re-fill Powell and Mead but a few years of this should point things in the right direction. It's really too bad that although CA has a lot of reservoirs, they're still going to just lose a lot of their snowpack runoff to the ocean.

It’s not a normal year though. We can’t just expect a few more years of this. We’re never going to be like the eastern US.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

I’m in CA right now for spring break. Thought it would be a good idea for some reason . Can’t wait to leave!!!! 10 cents for every bag in every store, homeless encampments at every turn, panhandlers at every store entrance. This place is a mess!!!

CA gets the biggest share of water from the Colorado. They dump ⅓ of that into the salton sea to keep that barren wasteland from drying up for the 187 or so residents there. If that volume of water was left in the reservoirs it would be enough to refill Powell and need in less than a decade. But no, they keep dumping it out into the desert to absorb and evaporate. They don’t use that water. This state is so upside down and backwards it boggles the mind. And so many people who’ve destroyed this once beautiful state with their idiotic vote can’t stand living there anymore so they flee to Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Idaho, etc. and keep voting the same damned way!

Your statement about the Salton Sea is only partially true. CA does not dump water into the Salto Sea directly, the water is first used to grow a myriad of crops, at least that is what my research shows. If you have other information to the contrary please post the links, I wouldn’t want to go on being miss informed.

I agree with the other aspects of your post but those aspects are more likely to be encountered in the cities. There are lots of areas where CA’s beauty is awe inspiring, you just have to go where the masses are not.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

Looking good!

Another solution the state needs to make happen right away is some massive pipe lines that will hydraulically interconnect the reservoirs that will enable the full reservoirs to transfer water to other reservoirs, so instead of just spilling the water out to sea like what is currently going on with Cachuma, that water can be shipped around to fill other reservoirs. That should be done ahead of any spilling of water to the sea except in cases of safety.

 

[brdweb]

It’s not a normal year though. We can’t just expect a few more years of this. We’re never going to be like the eastern US.

We don't need to be like the Eastern US. We very well may fall back into drought conditions but the truth is that thanks to the last 2 years of above-average rainfall, most of the entire state of Arizona is now completely our of drought. So if 2 years ago was the end of a 20 year drought we may go right back into another one or have some more 'normal' years.

I don't have the link handy but an ASU study a few years back showed that the entire SW region would have enough water even with current conditions for the next 100-150 years with population growth projections included simply by getting rid of a few crops in AZ (alfalfa, cotton, etc..) and CA (Almonds, etc...). Seems simple enough if our politicians would have the wherewithal to actually have a solution that doesn't just put those farmers and businesses on the streets.

 

[rockinthesuburbs]

We don't need to be like the Eastern US. We very well may fall back into drought conditions but the truth is that thanks to the last 2 years of above-average rainfall, most of the entire state of Arizona is now completely our of drought. So if 2 years ago was the end of a 20 year drought we may go right back into another one or have some more 'normal' years.

I don't have the link handy but an ASU study a few years back showed that the entire SW region would have enough water even with current conditions for the next 100-150 years with population growth projections included simply by getting rid of a few crops in AZ (alfalfa, cotton, etc..) and CA (Almonds, etc...). Seems simple enough if our politicians would have the wherewithal to actually have a solution that doesn't just put those farmers and businesses on the streets.

Alfalfa is a big one in Utah. One article I read pointed out that it takes over 450,000 gallons of water to produce 1 ton of alfalfa. I don't have any data to back it up but frequently hear the argument that the farmers export a majority of the alfalfa grown whereas the counter-argument is that it's used for livestock.

Your last point is spot-on - There needs to be a solution for better water conservation, especially in our desert states, but someone needs to drive that effort and that just doesn't seem to be happening.