August 2, 2017

"Almost something that you can usually splash over without even getting your feet wet was chest-deep at least on me — I’m 6’3” — and flowing at an incredible rate."

"The velocity and the amount of gallons that are zooming by per second is pretty astounding."

Hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in the summer after a heavy snow winter (L.A. Times).

And there's still a lot of snow, which obscures the path, causing hikers to lose their way, and reflects, giving them a sunburn.

Despite all the snow and icy-cold water, it's "hot as hell."

24 comments:

CStanley said...

Anthony Scaramucci is too short to hike the Pacific Coast Trail in summer after a heavy snow winter.

Etienne said...
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David Smith said...

I guess young Meg never got through her Strunk and White in Journalism, er, Communications school. If she had, she'd know when to use "amount" and when to use "number"...

These are Heinlein's crazy years, we just live here.

Ralph L said...

I like snow that's spontaneous and impulsive.

The hiker needs to reflect about his garbled sentence.

Dust Bunny Queen said...
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Bad Lieutenant said...

The hiker needs to reflect about his garbled sentence.

How true. "The velocity and the amount of gallons that are zooming by per second is pretty astounding." Amount/quantity of *water*, or *number* of gallons, please.

Dust Bunny Queen said...
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Unknown said...

It's CFS. Cubic Feet per Second is how they measure stream flow; at least out West.

Of course, it's unlikely the hiker knows this.

--Vance

Dust Bunny Queen said...

The Pacific Crest Trail crosses the road a few miles south of us. We see the hikers quite frequently when they get OFF of the trial, get a ride into an area where they can resupply and treat themselves to a hamburger with milkshake at the local Frosty.

Thought I should repost the images of the river below us and the effects of the snow and rain run off.

Normal river in the Fall

Flooded River where it turned into the raging torrent that washed away the frogs :-( and drowned the ground squirrels :-D

The snow and rain was pretty incredible this year. All the farmers say it is going to be another one this year, based on stuff like their horses hair/fur and other animal signs. They may be right. They may be wrong. /shrug

Big Mike said...

And where is all this water going? Into reservoirs as a hedge against future droughts? Or off into the sea? I suspect I know the answer.

Not for nothing does Glenn Reynolds call today's politicians the worst political class ever.

mockturtle said...

Not a good year to do the PCT, that's for sure. I've only done segments of it and it is a beautiful hike but no way would I be trying to ford swift, chest-deep streams.

Jael (Gone Windwalking) said...

Former Navy diver and current friend moiling gold in the American River. I’m going to raft it. God bless Stan Ulam speciating that most zoology is non-elephant. Non-linear manufacturing. Catastrophic floods. For profit and for pleasure. What you will.


"And, if Providence ever drops in my lap another chance like that ... I may have radio malfunction again." ~ Brigadier General Frank Savage

Achilles said...

"All the farmers say it is going to be another one this year, based on stuff like their horses hair/fur and other animal signs. They may be right. They may be wrong. /shrug"

They have been far more accurate than all of those "scientists" tax payers have funded studying the global warming hoax.

Lance said...

They spend years lamenting the lack of water, now they bewail its abundance.

That's Californians for you.

FullMoon said...

Lance said...

They spend years lamenting the lack of water, now they bewail its abundance.

That's Californians for you.
8/2/17, 12:49 PM


Nope, that's liberal environmentalists and politicians for you.

SukieTawdry said...

It's hotter than hell out here. Sacramento just set a record for July temperatures. And the rivers they're a-rushin' and the water she's a-cold. Very dangerous. I've spent more time indoors this summer than any other in my lifetime. I'm accustomed to getting up at daybreak to take care of outside chores, but it's even too hot at daybreak this year. And yes, yes, yes, I'm very grateful it's a dry heat.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Hi Sukie

Fellow Californian here. I also have spent more time indoors this summer than ever. It is making me irritated because I love nothing more in the spring and summer than to spend some time on our deck in the afternoons enjoying the shade, watching the birds, staring at the scenery. It is just too EFFING hot. I am a prisoner in the house. Currently at 3:30 still over 104 in the shade!!! when normally this time of day it would be in the low 80's. It does cool down at night but last night only to 62. Horrible.

The cats are miserable, the birds are miserable, the pump in our well is costing us a bunch in electricity to keep things from dying. I am cranky. Thank GOD we have a really good evaporative cooling system for the house, but once it reaches 100 that doesn't work either.

My poor husband is working like a dog in the heat to replace well pumps that are failing right and left. He has no choice but to work through the heat of the day because people and their animals (cows, sheep, chickens, horses etc) don't have water. The animals will die. So he, and his helper, pull pumps, with his hydraulic boom truck, sometimes by hand. Many of the pumps are 300 feet or more the ground and replaces, re-plumbs, re-wires....rinse and repeat. Outsource and automate this....I dare you.

This is the longest heat wave I can ever remember. Dangerous is right. IF it doesn't let up, people are going to start snapping.

Can anyone tell I'm cranky!???!!!!

:-D

Earnest Prole said...

DBQ: Speaking as your sweaty California neighbor, there's the slight consolation that neither of us lives in Redding, which has to be the most northern hot spot in the world (all-time record of 118 and regularly 110). And tell your husband thanks!

Dust Bunny Queen said...

@ Earnest

Yes! Redding is not that far away but we are at least, thankfully, up in the mountains and to the east.

Those 118 and 110 temps are air temperatures too. The heat waves reflecting off of the asphalt and buildings...yikes.

I'm thanking him with single malt scotch, tri tip and a big fruit salad with one of the best watermelons I have had in decades.

One of our local Mexican farmers has a pipeline to the fruits vegetables and melons of the Sacto and San Joaquin valley farmers. The fruit that is too ripe to be sent to market which is JUST right as it was meant to be eaten. Heaven. He gets at a big discount, brings up here and there is standing room only at his flatbed truck. What you buy from him, you'd better eat really soon. It is RIPE not like that green unripe crap we see in the stores.

Good thing our Sheriffs have decided that we aren't worth policing anymore because otherwise they would hassle him for not having a permit or something. Interestingly, it seems that they have no time to deal with real crimes like theft, vandalism, and mayhem but have time to screw with some guy selling watermelons..

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Duh Of course there is standing room at his truck...no one is sitting! I meant a big line of people waiting.

Ron Snyder said...

If it was chest deep and flowing rapidly that person was not wading in it.

SukieTawdry said...

Yeah, DBQ, I'm cranky, too. Real cranky. I'm accustomed to hiking to favorite swimming holes and spending lots of time outdoors. Your poor husband--my hat's off to anybody who makes his living working outside in weather like this. My husband still does his daily run--I don't know how. I walk outside to water plants and immediately wilt (the plants ain't lookin' real good, either). And I'll probably faint when I open the next PG&E bill (which is coming soon). Curse this global warming! One area where we have been lucky--we've had some bad fires this season but it sure could be worse, much, much worse.

SukieTawdry said...

DBQ: The section of NoCA east of Redding and north to the state line is one of my favorite areas in the whole state. I love wandering up there. Have you been to Weed by any chance since the big fire a couple of years ago? Did downtown survive? There was some great Art Deco stuff there. We're probably in the same Congressional district--CA-01 is huge.

Michael McNeil said...

Me, I prefer the section of northern California which is west of Redding and north to the state line — the Klamath Mountains, in other words. (Everything east of that line is basically volcanic. Ash and lava cover the landscape. Not so in the case of the Klamaths, made of things like granite and marble.)