The 2020 water year (which started Oct. 1, 2019) began like a desiccated whimper in the San Juan Mountains of … More
Tag: Drought
San Juan Snowpack ’19: The race to the top
Okay, okay, okay. A week ago, I pointed out that this year’s snowfall, while big, still did not measure up … More
San Juan Snowpack 2019: Big, but not the biggest (yet)
Let there be no doubt: It has been a snowy winter in the San Juan Mountains in southwestern Colorado, along … More
Last Ditch Standing: A tale of water inequality in the West
My parents have a small garlic farm in Western Colorado in the valley of the North Fork of the Gunnison … More
This isn’t just another dry year, it’s climate change coming home to roost
Back in June, as the 416 Fire raged outside of Durango, Colorado, I wrote an essay about how the conflagration … More
River of Lost Souls Excerpt: 1911 Flood
Southwest Colorado is wracked by drought, and the Animas River, along with being sullied by ash and mud from debris … More
Farmington flatline: The lower Animas River is dry
UPDATE 7/9/2018: The US Geological Survey determined that their gauge was faulty, and that the river did not actually run … More
The 416 Fire and memories of 2002 — and 1879
UPDATE on 6/8/2018: As of the end of day 6/7, the 416 Fire had reached 5,100 acres and as of … More
Homeland, Dryland
For his entire adult life, my grandfather, Herb Billings, was a farmer in the Animas Valley north of Durango, Colorado. … More
San Juan Snowpack, March 1 update
In January, I posted here about the dire snowpack situation in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. At the … More