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(From the June/July Zephyr) Drought, Up Close and Personal…by Toni McConnel

An excerpt:

I moved to Dead Cat, Arizona, in the spring of 1995.  Dead Cat occupies about one square mile of land completely enclosed by the Coconino National Forest at an altitude of 7000 feet.  I didn’t know it at the time, but in 1994 this area had almost 40 inches of rain, dramatically higher than any year since 1950 – the average annual rainfall for this area is about 21 inches. The year I arrived rainfall was again unusually high, almost 30 inches.  As a result, my first spring and summer here the forest was having an exuberant wildflower bloom, and trees of every kind were green and glowing.  Having immigrated from the red rock desert of Southeastern Utah, I was enthralled by the tumescent blooms of forest plants and trees. I enjoyed being so close to the sky, thunderstorms scarily close to the ground and creating extravagant sunsets.  I assumed this was typical and would continue year after year. Ha.

Click the image to read more of Toni’s story:

Ponderosa tumescencehttp://www.canyoncountryzephyr.com/2014/06/02/drought-up-close-and-personal-by-toni-mcconnel/

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