There are two common ways to die in the desert. Dehydration and drowning.
Craig Childs
Normally, the only way to drown in my part of the desert is to ingest sand. Our sand is actually so fine that it has some attributes of a liquid. But every once in a while another opportunity presents itself.
Hillary 400 miles away
This was the view Friday morning when Sam and I took our walk. Amazing that a structure is so big that you can actually see it that far away. At that point I knew that Hurricane Hillary was a real thing.
It rained all day Saturday, a sort of precursor to the actual event. It was a soft, gentle, windless rain.
So early Sunday morning Sam and I went to the biggest wash in the area to see if there was water running.
Fortuna Wash
This is a really large and well established wash that cuts through my corner of the world. As you can see, there was no water running after 16 hours of rain the previous day.
Water Track
Right in the center of this photo you can see evidence that a tiny amount of water did run. This wash drains an enormous area and I would have actually expected more.
Near Liquid Water
After more than a mile we actually found muddy remains from the day before.
Looking at Hillary
Sunday (today) is scheduled to be our main event. As I write this the 30-40 mph wind has started and heavy rain is forecast in the next couple hours. Just about the time Hillary wades ashore. Where exactly that happens will have a huge impact on me. More to the east/south means more rain in Yuma.
This photo is looking right back at the storm, you can see and feel the potential anger.
Storm Bands and Mountains
You can see the 'bands' of storm clouds here as well as the mountains that will drain all of the rain that falls toward this wash.
It appears somebody is going to get completely inundated today. Will it be Yuma? Probably not. Way more chance for San Diego, LA and Las Vegas. But it would be nice to see a little water in the wash. It's been a while...
Sam's Research
Sam is convinced that digging after a squirrel is a lot harder when the ground is saturated. He's really quite smart that way.
If the worst happens and the wash fills, I'll post more. When it happens it's incredibly violent and exciting. Right this minute the sun is shining brightly-which is often how people get fooled into bad decisions and the previously mentioned drowning.
