Sierra rivers rising as snow melts
By Jeff Delong, Reno Gazette-Journal
Late-season storms add to the mountain snowpack and regional water supplies but as temperatures rise this week, folks should notice some other changes.
Creeks and rivers will rise. Melting snow will translate to rushing water which will become a muddy brown.
Melting snow in higher elevations should have rivers peaking May 31. Photo/Kathryn Reed
“It should start ripping by this weekend, I would think,” said Dan Greenlee, a federal hydrologist and snow surveyor.
Monday’s storm, particularly strong for mid-May, dropped more than a foot of snow in parts of the Sierra. The Lake Tahoe Basin’s snowpack Wednesday was 132 percent of average for the date.