image © Robert
Luis Chavez
My front yard in Cañada De Los Alamos near
the Santa Fe National forest. The "shallowest"
snow in this picture is 30 inches deep.
BLIZZARD OF 2006/2007
from previous page... Before I could enjoy the sights, my dog needed to go out, and I had to make a path to her yard. It took a full hour to dig a path to Lucy's yard and then clear some space for her to run and go potty in. There was no way my Subaru could get out of the driveway, four wheel drive or not. Even if I could get to the main road, there was nowhere to go anyway. I took a leisurely pace shoveling the long drivway, three days actually. Hours after I cleared a driving path to the main road, one of the neighbors plowed from the main road all the way to the forest road. Then, I and others with smaller 4x4s could finally drive out.
WINTER AND SPRING 2007 - THE FUTURE?
What's in the future for New Mexico following these historic storms? The continuing El Nino weather pattern in the Pacific ocean could continue to bring the same kind of storms that have rewritten the record books this winter. Flooding when the snow melts in warm weather is another concern, in the short term and in the spring peak run-off. So far us New Mexicans are giddy really, just to have so much moisture this year. The ski areas are flush with new snow and powder. Agriculture in the state will benefit from ample irrigation next growing season. Winter snowpack totals in most parts of New Mexico are already at or near the average for the whole year, and winter is barely weeks old. Water rationing, common in recent years in New Mexico, may be curtailed, at least for this summer. Robert Luis Chavez
image © Robert
Luis Chavez
Here, above, is a picture of the property owners house next door to me.
image © Robert
Luis Chavez
My dog Lucy peers through the wire for a portrait