Plenty of Rain for Southern Idaho but Drought Clings to Land

Maybe we haven’t seen the impact of the snowpack in the mountains. The U.S. Drought Monitor has issued an update for Idaho. From where I write, south of the Snake River, it remains very dry. This follows some recent rain storms. Some of which were heavy. But isn’t a high desert always on the verge of severe drought? That’s why the early settlers decided to dig irrigation canals. With wooden tools!

I’ve been told the water rolls off the land south of the river, like water-repellent shoes. North of the river it sinks through the soil and helps replenish the aquifer.

We should be worried about the map. I was told this week the reservoirs, which a few months ago were painfully low, are filling up because the mountains are covered in snow, however. Our recent wet period may be coming to an end. A story in the Washington Post says there could be a break coming in a few days. Possibly only a short pause. So where we go from here is anybody’s guess.

California has received far more of the atmospheric river than we have. Despite the death and destruction it has caused, the Post reports the area in drought has been cut almost in half. The spring runoff from the mountains also ensures a moist growing season.

In Idaho, last winter started fiercely and then petered out. By early summer the cheat grass would dissolve in your fingers. We just need a good snowfall in February in the high country, and the spring and summer of 2023 will sure look a lot better than last year.