As the afternoon wore on, it became noticeably darker and lights illuminated the building. Dark clouds rolled in over head. Cooler air rushed in through the door, providing welcome relief from the heat of the last few weeks. A few minutes later and the pitter patter of raindrops fell on the roof overhead. Rain!
In reality, we have a seven weeks of summer left, though usually Labor Day weekend marks the end of the summer season. But it’s been so hot and dry the last few weeks, it feels like summer has been going on, and on, and on. In all my years of living in the mountains, six years in the Sierra, and six years here in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I’ve never experienced such a hot, dry summer. And it’s not all in my head.
The average precipitation for July is around 2.5 inches, and in the last five years, we’ve been averaging almost twice that for our traditional Colorado monsoon season. But heading into today, the last day of July, we had barely reached an inch, and truth be known, the bulk of that was due to one rainy day a couple of weeks ago. No wonder, twigs are snapping, and everything feels dry and crunchy as I walk through the woods behind our home.
The monsoon season we so desperately needed to quell the wildfire danger never came this summer. During other summers up here at 8200 feet, we rarely exceed 80 degrees for the high temperature. And most afternoons cool off from the thunderstorms that roll in. But not this July. Without the benefit of cooler air or air conditioning, there has been many an afternoon that I’ve come home to roasting temperatures inside our house of 85 degrees. No wonder the dogs were panting, looking desperately for a shaded spot to take refuge in. The only saving grace for Simon and Shawnee was a stroll to North Boulder Creek to submerge themselves in the cold and rushing water.
And even with the welcome rain this afternoon of a tenth of an inch, we finished the month at less than 50% of normal precipitation. Here’s hoping this is a start of another trend — a very wet August.
Terribly dry and people are still having illegal campfires despite FIRE BAN signs all over the place. A wildland fire started last night @ Gordon Gulch 🙁 Fortunately most of us up here are being vigilant!