Weekend showers provided Durango with about an inch of rain heading into the final stretch of the monsoon season.
A consistent barrage of storms occurred on-and-off throughout the weekend in north La Plata County near Purgatory Resort, with some places receiving up to 1½ inches.
It’s been a positive summer for rainfall in Southwest Colorado. Precipitation at the Durango-La Plata County Airport is at an inch above normal, National Weather Service Meteorologist Megan Sanders said on Sunday.
Areas near Ignacio received between 1 and 1.2 inches since Friday.
“We've been having some monsoon moisture across the region the last several days, and we haven't had any anything to kick out that moisture,” Sanders said.
Drought conditions in Southwest Colorado are looking up after almost two years of considerably decent moisture.
Montezuma County received up to 0.6 inches during the weekend storms, while Pagosa Springs saw around 1½ inches.
Montezuma County sits in abnormally dry conditions, meaning hay production decreases and rangelands are dry. Only the northwest side of La Plata County is in abnormally dry conditions while Archuleta County is considered drought-free for the moment, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Driven by late-June showers and rainfall from recent weeks, Durango is about 2 inches above normal for yearly precipitation at the airport.
While the weather may dry up nearing the end of this week, Sanders does not expect last weekend’s blast of rainfall to be the last remnants of moisture.
“There's not any strong indication we're going to get a big overage of high pressure blocking us off from that moisture at this time,” Sanders said.
The Animas River is also benefiting from a boost in showers.
According to SnoFlo, Animas River streamflow discharge was observed Sunday morning at 524 cubic feet per second, a 75% increase from Saturday, and a gauge height of 2.85 feet.
But those numbers tapered off during the early week, with a streamflow discharge of 496 cfs and a gauge height of 2.81 feet Tuesday.
tbrown@durangoherald.com
