Soggy Winter Afternoon at Garland Park

I ventured to Garland Park this afternoon to see how the area was faring during the rainy spell. I found the park refreshed and renewed! The air was fresh and moist; everything was lush and green.

The Carmel River was scooting along at a nice pace, putting the riparian vegetation in the water. Though flowing strongly, the river was only at a stage of about 4.3 feet when the pic was taken...flood stage nearby is 9 feet. The river peaked on January 20 at slightly above 6.6 feet, so no flooding occurred except for the bushes and trees adjacent to the stream getting their feet wet.

This waterfall in Garland has not flowed much in the past three years due to our prolonged dry spell. But it was cascading nicely today. It's about 50 feet high. It's great to see so much water in the park...usually it's pretty dry except for a trickle in the Carmel River.

A good rain shower further soaked the park while I was hiking. I took refuge under a gnarly oak tree and emerged to savor my reward for venturing out in damp weather...a rainbow.

Towering cumulus to the west indicate that we may not be done with the showers today. Indeed this proved to be the case.

Today was very cool by local standards...temp was in the upper 40s most of the day. It was just cold enough to crown Toro Peak with a dusting of snow. Toro's summit is just over 3500 feet in elevation.