I’ve lost track of how many weeks of rain we’ve had in the desert. If I were to guess, I’d say we’re on week four. It doesn’t rain every single day. But three to four days per week. This post has a few photos and videos of clouds and rain from my iphone.
I took photos last week of how green the desert is because of the rain HERE.
A rainy day earlier this week.
This week, not only did we get two inches of rain, Flagstaff had tornadoes and Prescott had two-inch balls of hail!
Once we were driving up to Flagstaff to celebrate our anniversary and we got caught in a hail storm. It was terrifying because we couldn’t see anything and golf-ball sized hail pounded on our car. I’ll be honest, I was terrified and completely lost it. My husband drove slowly behind a semi truck, following his lights. We were on a highway that off the right shoulder was a cliff. We stuck to the left lane against the mountain. When we got to Flagstaff we got out of the car to discover it was dented from chrome front bumper to rear bumper and every bit of surface in between
I saw these clouds on a morning walk. I got back safely inside the house before a large crack of thunder and a downpour!
At least the crocs are enjoying the rain! I have to say, I am too. It’s exciting weather with thunder lightning and downpours.
Another thing I like about rain in the desert is the aroma afterward of creosote. The word for the smell after a rain is called petrichor.
What kind of weather are you having now?
What are your weekend plans?
Looks like Missouri except for the cactus. We get tons of rain each year.
Rain is unusual for us. I grew up near Seattle so I was used to rain, too.
Wow, I wish Las Vegas had your rainy problem, Elizabeth! Your backyard is lovely and that pool!! It hasn’t rained here one drop in my area. I’ve seen all of that rain on the weather channel, the storms go northeast and northwest of Las Vegas. 😞
The prior owners loved working in the yard. That was their hobby. We’re lucky we found this place. I think our rain is over for awhile. Glad we had it. Maybe you’ll get some in the upcoming weeks.
I remember that pounding rain when we were in Sedona. The wash outs were fast and furious.
Love your outdoor space. Looks like a wonderful spot to relax and decompress. When it’s a little drier…
😉
The weather can be crazy here. The hail storm we were in was right by the exit to Sedona. It’s a fun backyard and we do have privacy also.
I guess we haven’t had near as much rain as you guys, but we did get a tiny amount yesterday.
I think driving in that kind of hailstorm would be very scary. Good thing your windshield didn’t shatter.
“Petrichor” is a new word for me. I had to look it up. It was coined by scientists who found that raindrops cause air bubbles in rocks and soil, which then rise and burst as aerosols, releasing accumulated oils. They named the scent “petrichor,” after Greek words for the golden blood of gods and goddesses, found within rocks and stone.
Thanks for the definition and more information on petrichor. Fascinating! Insurance took care of our car and it looked brand new after they got all the dents out and repainted it.
I was wondering if insurance would pay for the damage. That’s great that they did.
The insurance company brought insurance adjusters in from Oklahoma and Texas because they had hail experience. A lot of cars got damaged.
Hail that size seems pretty unusual for Arizona. But for Oklahoma, Texas, or anywhere else on the Great Plains, it’s pretty common, or so I’ve heard.
You’re correct. It’s unusual here so the insurance company brought in people who had dealt with it in TX and OK.
In had 4 hours of drizzle over the last 4 weeks – trade ya.
Ha! I do appreciate all the rain we’ve had. We haven’t had it since we moved here.
In October we have 1/4″ things are a little dry
I have a rain gauge in the backyard and this week we got 2 1/2 inches.
Your story reminded me of hurricane and rainy season in other states. Right now, our weather is perfect. My brother, moved to Virginia and was caught in a very heavy rainstorm unexpected when he was on his way to fish. I spoke to him on the phone and he sounded amazed. I was surprised also at his reaction as he lived on Long Island in a house on the ocean, he and his wife. I know they had some heavy storms. We are enjoying the weather today!
I don’t know how many years it’s been since tornadoes were in Arizona. Long before we moved here. Sorry your brother got caught in a storm, too. We have perfect weather today.
Thanks! It must have been quite strong, the winds and rain for him to take notice.
I’m sure!
The rain is such a delight, isn’t it? I absolutely love it. I’ll be heading up north to Oak Creek Canyon for the weekend, and hopefully don’t encounter any hail storms or tornados on the way.
It’s a beautiful day today. Perfect for a trip to Oak Creek Canyon. I do enjoy the rain.
The river’s higher than we’ve seen before. Northeast of town reportedly got over 8 inches of rain yesterday! That’s half the annual average in one day. Holy moley. Glad we live in high ground.
Eight inches! That’s crazy. We might have gotten half of that over the past four weeks.
I’ve been watching the news coverage of Pagosa Springs. WOW! While I know you personally are above things I was hoping Durango proper was doing okay when I saw they had a flood watch issued as well.
I’ve never heard of Pagosa Springs before. So I looked it up and saw the news of their flooding. Wow. Durango has a flood watch too!
The river is over 11,000 cfs (spring runoff is usually 5-8k max). The valley north of town is flooded. Most I’ve seen in my 41 years here.
Those are amazing numbers. I hope everyone is safe. When I was growing up in Washington state we had a once in a hundred year flood in 1975. We lived outside of Snohomish on Lord Hill, thankfully on high ground. The entire valley flooded between our hill and town. 3,500 head of cattle drowned plus a Lippizan ranch. So sad! It was a pain to be isolated or to drive around the flood, but nothing to what the people raising cattle or horses experienced.
That sounds horrible! There have been devastating floods around Colorado at various times. In this one, Durango hasn’t been the hardest hit. Pagosa Springs east of here got it worse. The major mountain passes north and east of here are closed indefinitely due to damages. That means rerouting deliveries and raising prices, particularly for food.
Closed indefinitely does not sound good! I hope things don’t get worse in CO. What a scary time with floods.
No rain yet on the front range. It’s all down SW near Eilene but I think that changes for use starting tonight or tomorrow. We have the heat and strong winds blowing down the Palmer Divide right now which signals something is coming and our temps are dropping off by 20-30 degrees overnight.
That’s exactly what happened here. We had strong winds and a drop of 20 to 30 degrees. Then thunder, lightning and rain.
We have a stormy wkend and next week coming. We need rain but not the flooding they are getting in the south and over where all our wildfires burned through.
Yikes. It’s a disaster to have flooding after wildfires! Very dangerous. You’re fortunate not to have that.
Holy smokes – that’s some rain! We have been having lovely weather in the PNW – but I suspect our rain is coming! Hope you have a great weekend, Elizabeth!
The rain comes down hard! We have a beautiful sunny day today, but more rain tomorrow. You have a great weekend too. We’re going to a one-year old’s birthday party tomorrow. The mom was on our kids’ swim team in Palm Springs and lives out here now. There should be several friends from my parenting days who are driving out from So Cal.
That first photo is stunning! And I agree with others…the videos, the rain? Wow, wow, wow! It’s sunny and in the low 70’s here today…we’ve had a stretch of gorgeous weather! 💝😊💝
I’m so glad you like the first photo. You’re lucky to have beautiful weather. We have a perfect day today but more rain tomorrow.
You’re right — grateful for these warm days….we’ve had a great stretch of weather! Hope you have a good weekend…rain or not! 💝xo!
I’m excited to go to one of my kids’ swimmer friend’s first bday party for her son. I was on the swim team’s board with her mom in Palm Springs. It will be fun to see friends from our kids’ teams who are traveling here for the party. The young mom swam at ASU and stayed here.
Ohhhh! Sounds like fun! Enjoy! ❤️😘❤️
I get to see these old friends for special occasions like the wedding and baby shower! 💕
So good to stay connected across the years! Love it! ❤️
It is a joy! 💕💕
❤️😉❤️
👍🏼
Yay, on enjoying the rain. 😊 But I can understand why you were scared about the hail! That would be scary! Glad you guys were OK, though sorry about your car!
What was really strange is our anniversary is in July. A hail storm was totally unexpected.
Yes, that would be strange having hail in July!! My parents anniversary is July 11th 🙂
It was weird to us, but friends who have lived here longer said it’s not uncommon driving up to the mountains. Ours is the 14th.
Interesting!
Ahh, just a few days after my parents. Though the year is a lot different. LOL!
I hope so 😅
The hail storm on your anniversary trip sounds horrifying!! I’m glad you made it safely.
Rain is good—in moderation. Right?
We’ve had a rainy day here in SWFL, but I think it’s bringing cooler weather? I don’t usually know because I don’t pay attention to the upcoming weather, unless i have an event to host. HA. I’m terrible!!
That was the scariest car trip in my life. Also it took forever to get the car fixed because it was COVID with supply chain issues. It was a Genesis from Korea and it took months to get the chrome in.