After nearly an inch of rain on Oct. 23 and 24, Strawberry Creek was flowing very strongly. Photo by Peter Szabadi
After nearly an inch of rain on Oct. 23 and 24, Strawberry Creek was flowing very strongly. Photo by Peter Szabadi

The Hill received more rain early last week and some this Sunday. The total rainfall recorded at the U.S. Forest Service’s Keenwild Guard Station was slightly more than three-quarters of an inch. In Pine Cove, nearly an inch of rain was recorded.

At Keenwild, the total rainfall since July 1 has been almost 2.9 inches whereas Pine Cove has recorded 3.74 inches of rain.

On the Hill, the long-term historic average rainfall from July 1 through Oct. 31 has been 3.4 inches. While Keenwild’s recorded total is below that average, Pine Cove, in the fifth year of the drought, has received about 10 percent more than the historic average.

This early in the rain year, it is too soon to predict the expected yearly rainfall. In 2015, by early October, both Keenwild and Pine Cove had received more than 5.25 inches of rain. By the end of June, the annual totals were 21.25 inches in Keenwild and 25.16 inches in Pine Cove. The yearly average of Hill rain has been 25.67 inches.

The last year Keenwild exceeded the average annual rain was 2011, when 29.4 inches fell. That also is the only year in the past decade that rainfall exceeded the historic average. In the past 10 years, the average annual rainfall has been 19.8 inches at Keenwild.