River Notes Archive

River Notes for Monday, January 31, 2000

Important information about River Notes.

A fast moving, but relatively intense system added about about one inch water equivalent to the snow pack in the Kern River basin. Approximate 24 hr. precipitation totals: Kernville RAWS: 0.23, Johnsondale: 0.95, Beach Meadows: 1.0, Pascoes: 0.6, Wet Meadows 1.1, Upper Tyndall Creek: 1.2

Rain and snow should continue in the northern half of the state the next couple of days, with more precipitation expected in the Southern Sierra on Wednesday or Thursday. Keep those systems coming through!

As is often the case, the Mammoth Mountain area has recieved prodigous amounts of snow. This January the ski area has reported 175 inches of snow. This figure is supported by the snow sensor at Mammoth Pass (9500 ft.) which has recorded an incredible 15.72 inches water equivalent for the month of January, with some more to be added today. Using a typical snow density of 10%, that translates to about 157 inches of snow. Awesome!

When you have a chance, check out the new features in our New Boat Barn and Used Boat Barn. Now, when you select a Type of Boat, such as "Touring Kayaks," only the models that are actually in the Barn are listed in the "Select Model" list box. Also, in the New Boat Barn, there is now an "On Sale" checkbox. If you click on this box, only boats that are on sale, will be listed.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir data. Click on "Current" to get the latest info.

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS page.

River Notes for Wednesday, January 26, 2000

Important information about River Notes.

Hey, the Upper peaked at about 850 cfs yesterday! The water temp wasn't too bad since there was a lot of lower elevation run-off. This morning the Upper is at about 560 cfs.

Well, say good-bye to the wet pattern that has been with us the last couple of weeks. The moist southwesterly flow started to setup about January 13, and was established by January 14. It persisted until January 19 when it looked like the sub-tropical connection might be cut off. But, twelve hours later the connection was re-established. The moist flow continued through January 24th, and resulted in moderate to heavy precipitation in Central California. This morning the sub-tropical jet is well to the south and the connection to the sub-tropical moisture is history.

What did this persistent wet pattern do for California water conditions? The DWR Summary of Snow Water Equivalents for January 11th reported a Statewide Percentage of Normal of only 22%. Today's report shows a value of 65%. In Northern California the percentage of normal increased from 35% to 77%; in Central California from 20% to 62%; and in the South the SWE increased from 12% to 56%.

When you have a chance, check out the new features in our New Boat Barn and Used Boat Barn. Now, when you select a Type of Boat, such as "Touring Kayaks," only the models that are actually in the Barn are listed in the "Select Model" list box. Also, in the New Boat Barn, there is now an "On Sale" checkbox. If you click on this box, only boats that are on sale, will be listed.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir data. Click on "Current" to get the latest info.

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS page.

River Notes for Sunday, January 23, 2000

Important information about River Notes.

Light rain or drizzle is being reported at several points in the Southern San Joaquin Valley, and the foothills of the Southern Sierra. Radar echoes suggest there is currently widespread light rain with light snow at higher elevations.

Short term computer models suggest the wet weather may last through Tuesday afternoon. The current HPC forecast is for about 1.0 to 1.5 inches of precipitation in the Southern Sierra. We'll see!

The RiverPhoto is of Kern boater Frank Wellbaum (6'3" 225 lbs) in his new Forplay. Here's another shot of Frank working out at Ewings in his new boat.

Wave Sport's newest boat, the Forplay is based upon the XXX. D designers Eric Jackson and David Knight have added a dose of new tech to create the most complete playboat ever! Narrowed slicey ends to initiate moves. Very slippery planing hull for easy cleans and one-stroke 540s on green waves. Unique sidewalls allow you to carve on a slight lean with ease. Placed 1st & 4th in the Men's and 3rd in Women's at the recently held World Rodeo Championships in New Zealand. Clearly another winner from Wave Sport. Specifications: Length: 8"1" Width: 25" Vol: 52 gal. Price is $995 with installed backband. Here are the ForPlays we currently have in stock.

There appears to be a Y2K bug in some earlier versions of Netscape, MS Internet Explorer and perhaps other browsers. These browsers may misinterpret the expiration date of a secure server certificate that expires in the year 2000 and produce an error message stating that the certificate has expired.

Check out the large selection of boats in the Used Boat Barn. In addition to whitewater kayaks, you'll find touring kayaks, recreational kayaks, whitewater canoes, touring canoes, recreational canoes, whitewater sit-on-tops, and recreational sit-on-tops. More than 50 boats to choose from, including a Mr. Clean for $679.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir data. Click on "Current" to get the latest info.

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS page.

River Notes for Tuesday, January 18, 2000

Important information about River Notes.

There is moderate rain this morning in Central California with some heavier precipitation moving onshore. The heaviest precipitation is expected to occur north of the Kern Basin, but differences in the model forecasts. and the tough time models have had with the current pattern make this anything but certain.

Snow sensors in the Kern Basin are back on line. The snow level has been high! In the past 24 hours at Pascoes sensors show there has been 1.6 inches of precipitation, but only 0.6 inches has remained in the snowpack. If accurate, that's one inch of rainfall headed for the Kern River. At the moment the Upper Kern is at about 320 cfs and going up about 20 cfs an hour.

In the Southern Sierra, there should be diminishing precipitation on Wednesday and Thursday, with only variable clouds and a slight chance of a shower by Friday. The MRF computer model brings a low into Southern California late Saturday or Sunday. If the forecast verifies, and the system doesn't track too far south, it could produce significant rainfall.

The RiverPhoto is of Kern boater Frank Wellbaum (6'3" 225 lbs) in his new Forplay. Here's another shot of Frank working out at Ewings in his new boat.

Wave Sport's newest boat, the Forplay is based upon the XXX. D designers Eric Jackson and David Knight have added a dose of new tech to create the most complete playboat ever! Narrowed slicey ends to initiate moves. Very slippery planing hull for easy cleans and one-stroke 540s on green waves. Unique sidewalls allow you to carve on a slight lean with ease. Placed 1st & 4th in the Men's and 3rd in Women's at the recently held World Rodeo Championships in New Zealand. Clearly another winner from Wave Sport. Specifications: Length: 8"1" Width: 25" Vol: 52 gal. Price is $995 with installed backband. Here are the ForPlays we currently have in stock.

There appears to be a Y2K bug in some earlier versions of Netscape, MS Internet Explorer and perhaps other browsers. These browsers may misinterpret the expiration date of a secure server certificate that expires in the year 2000 and produce an error message stating that the certificate has expired.

Check out the large selection of boats in the Used Boat Barn. In addition to whitewater kayaks, you'll find touring kayaks, recreational kayaks, whitewater canoes, touring canoes, recreational canoes, whitewater sit-on-tops, and recreational sit-on-tops. More than 50 boats to choose from, including a Mr. Clean for $679.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir data. Click on "Current" to get the latest info.

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS page.

River Notes for Sunday, January 16, 2000

Important information about River Notes.

So what happened to all the precipitation forecast for yesterday? Here's a water vapor GIF animation of satellite images from the Naval Research Laboratory Satellite Meteorology web site. The period covered is from about 4:00 A.M. to 9:00 P.M Saturday.

Early yesterday things looked promising, with a great deal of moisture being pumped into the Central and Southern Sierra. Then a split in the moisture field developed with a much drier flow moving over the Sierra. Basically, the moisture went south, and the dynamics stayed north, and once again the Southern Sierra was caught in the middle.

That's not to say it didn't snow in the Southern Sierra. There was some. It's hard to tell how much because most of the snow sensors in the basin have been off-line since noon yesterday. Judging from 8:45 A.M. Intellicast Bakersfield Radar Summary it's snowing in the Kern River basin "as we speak." This is associated with a cold front and could result in about an inch water equivalent of snow at higher elevations. Residual showers are forecast on Monday. Then there is Tuesday.

According to the computer models, on Tuesday we're going to get a chance to run through this scenario again, and this time, see if we can do it right . A situation similar to this weekend's is forecast with lots of subtropical moisture and all the other stuff that normally produces rain. As one government forecaster characterized the situation, "This will no doubt produce some significant rainfall over the transverse ranges and over the Southern Sierra." We'll see!

The RiverPhoto is of Kern boater Frank Wellbaum (6'3" 225 lbs) in his new Forplay. Here's another shot of Frank working out at Ewings in his new boat.

Wave Sport's newest boat, the Forplay is based upon the XXX. D designers Eric Jackson and David Knight have added a dose of new tech to create the most complete playboat ever! Narrowed slicey ends to initiate moves. Very slippery planing hull for easy cleans and one-stroke 540s on green waves. Unique sidewalls allow you to carve on a slight lean with ease. Placed 1st & 4th in the Men's and 3rd in Women's at the recently held World Rodeo Championships in New Zealand. Clearly another winner from Wave Sport. Specifications: Length: 8"1" Width: 25" Vol: 52 gal. Price is $995 with installed backband. Here are the ForPlays we currently have in stock.

There appears to be a Y2K bug in some earlier versions of Netscape, MS Internet Explorer and perhaps other browsers. These browsers may misinterpret the expiration date of a secure server certificate that expires in the year 2000 and produce an error message stating that the certificate has expired.

Check out the large selection of boats in the Used Boat Barn. In addition to whitewater kayaks, you'll find touring kayaks, recreational kayaks, whitewater canoes, touring canoes, recreational canoes, whitewater sit-on-tops, and recreational sit-on-tops. More than 50 boats to choose from, including a Mr. Clean for $679.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir data. Click on "Current" to get the latest info.

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS page.

River Notes for Friday, January 14, 2000

Important information about River Notes.

Clean out your gutters, and dust off your kayak... It looks like it's gonna rain!

Models continue to forecast that a deep, moist, southwesterly flow will develop over Central California in response to a deepening offshore trough and the convergence of the polar and subtropical jet streams. This is expected to pump subtropical moisture into Central California and eventually Southern California.

The latest computer models are wetter than yesterday and suggest an earlier onset of precipitation in the Southern Sierra. They also forecast better dynamics than yesterday with stronger divergence aloft over the Southern Sierra. These factors and the nearly ideal alignment of the flow relative to the Sierra could result in substantial precipitation in the Kern River basin.

The updated HPC forecasts issued at about 11:00 A.M. show precipitation developing over the Southern Sierra this evening, and continuing through Saturday night. The current QPF forecast for the Southern Sierra is approximately 1.5 inches through Saturday afternoon, and then another 2.0 inches from Saturday afternoon to Sunday afternoon. The AVN computer model is somewhat slower in bringing precipitation into the area than the ETA, so it might be sometime tomorrow before precipitation begins. Check the current QPF forecasts from HPC to see how the forecast changes.

Given the subtropical nature of the pattern, snow levels should start out relatively high. If the HPC forecast verifies, the Upper Kern could see a significant increase in flow. This general pattern is forecast to continue well into next week and additional rainfall is a possibility. We'll see!

Today's RiverPhoto is of Kern boater Frank Wellbaum (6'3" 225 lbs) in his new Forplay. Here's another shot of Frank working out at Ewings in his new boat.

Wave Sport's newest boat, the Forplay is based upon the XXX. D designers Eric Jackson and David Knight have added a dose of new tech to create the most complete playboat ever! Narrowed slicey ends to initiate moves. Very slippery planing hull for easy cleans and one-stroke 540s on green waves. Unique sidewalls allow you to carve on a slight lean with ease. Placed 1st & 4th in the Men's and 3rd in Women's at the recently held World Rodeo Championships in New Zealand. Clearly another winner from Wave Sport. Specifications: Length: 8"1" Width: 25" Vol: 52 gal. Price is $995 with installed backband. Here are the ForPlays we currently have in stock.

There appears to be a Y2K bug in some earlier versions of Netscape, MS Internet Explorer and perhaps other browsers. These browsers may misinterpret the expiration date of a secure server certificate that expires in the year 2000 and produce an error message stating that the certificate has expired.

Check out the large selection of boats in the Used Boat Barn. In addition to whitewater kayaks, you'll find touring kayaks, recreational kayaks, whitewater canoes, touring canoes, recreational canoes, whitewater sit-on-tops, and recreational sit-on-tops. More than 50 boats to choose from, including a Mr. Clean for $679.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir data. Click on "Current" to get the latest info.

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS page.

River Notes for Thursday, January 13, 2000

Important information about River Notes.

Some relief from the dry weather could be just around the corner. Computer models are forecasting a deep, moist, southwesterly flow to develop over Central California in response to a deepening offshore trough that is entraining subtropical moisture. Although the dynamics associated with this pattern are weak, the alignment of the flow is such that southwest facing mountain slopes may receive considerably more precipitation than valley locations.

The latest short range computer models show precipitation moving into the area later on Saturday. Current QPF forecasts from HPC show about 0.5" of precipitation falling in the Southern Sierra from Saturday afternoon to Sunday afternoon. The medium range MRF computer model suggests this general pattern could last well into next week, but given the dry weather so far this year I think I'll just cross my fingers and wait and see!

Today's RiverPhoto is of Kern boater Frank Wellbaum (6'3" 225 lbs) in his new Forplay. Here's another shot of Frank working out at Ewings in his new boat.

Wave Sport's newest boat, the Forplay is based upon the XXX. D designers Eric Jackson and David Knight have added a dose of new tech to create the most complete playboat ever! Narrowed slicey ends to initiate moves. Very slippery planing hull for easy cleans and one-stroke 540s on green waves. Unique sidewalls allow you to carve on a slight lean with ease. Placed 1st & 4th in the Men's and 3rd in Women's at the recently held World Rodeo Championships in New Zealand. Clearly another winner from Wave Sport. Specifications: Length: 8"1" Width: 25" Vol: 52 gal. Price is $995 with installed backband. Here are the ForPlays we currently have in stock.

There appears to be a Y2K bug in some earlier versions of Netscape, MS Internet Explorer and perhaps other browsers. These browsers may misinterpret the expiration date of a secure server certificate that expires in the year 2000 and produce an error message stating that the certificate has expired.

Check out the large selection of boats in the Used Boat Barn. In addition to whitewater kayaks, you'll find touring kayaks, recreational kayaks, whitewater canoes, touring canoes, recreational canoes, whitewater sit-on-tops, and recreational sit-on-tops. More than 50 boats to choose from, including a Mr. Clean for $679.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir data. Click on "Current" to get the latest info.

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS page.

River Notes for Friday, January 7, 2000

Important information about River Notes.

So, how dry has it been? The Western Regional Climate Center's Precipitation Percent of Normal for Water Year pretty much tells the tale. Darn dry! As of today, the estimated statewide snow water equivalent is 21% of normal.

Today's RiverPhoto graphic is a chart of the snowpack at Pascoes (a snow sensor in the Kern River basin) for the period 1970 to 1998. The chart shows the average December snow water equivalent (SWE), an April 1 centered SWE, and the maximum SWE for each season.

As you can see from the chart, the snowpack pattern is quite variable. During the period, the December snowpack varied from zero to over 15 inches, and the maximum seasonal snowpack from a low of 10 inches SWE to a high of nearly 70 inches SWE. While it is difficult to be optimistic of having a normal snowpack this year, there have been La Niña influenced seasons at Pascoes with below average December snowfall, but average or above average seasonal snowpacks. Note the snowpack for Dec. 79 (WY 1980) and Dec. 95 (WY 1996).

The computer models are advertising another change to a wetter weather pattern. This time it looks like it will probably happen. The MRF 12 hour accumulated precipitation forecasts for Monday through Thursday (from the CDC) looks very wet in Northern and Central California, less so in south. This is clearly evident in the 10-Day Precipitation Outlook for the Conterminous U.S. from COLA/IGES.

The precipitation in Central California would result from the deepening of an upper level trough off the coast. The position and depth of this trough is far from certain at this point, so significant rain/snow in the Southern Sierra near the end of the week or next weekend is a possibility. We'll see!

There appears to be a Y2K bug in some earlier versions of Netscape, MS Internet Explorer and perhaps other browsers. These browsers may misinterpret the expiration date of a secure server certificate that expires in the year 2000 and produce an error message stating that the certificate has expired.

Check out the large selection of boats in the Used Boat Barn. In addition to whitewater kayaks, you'll find touring kayaks, recreational kayaks, whitewater canoes, touring canoes, recreational canoes, whitewater sit-on-tops, and recreational sit-on-tops. More than 50 boats to choose from, including a Mr. Clean for $679.

Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir data. Click on "Current" to get the latest info.

More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS page.

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