‘Arizona’: Just the name speaks of arid land, of dry dusty plains panting for a deluge of rain. The settlers who first came to the arid southwest understood water meant life and in this dry land water is scarce. As we move through the desert and high country, finding water leaking from a sun-blasted hillside is the last thing we could expect. Saturday I was out with a group learning more about our aquifers and visiting high country springs. Our summer monsoons have failed to bring rain to much of the high country this year so I hardly expected to find LO spring with a large pool of water, covered by lily pads. The reeds are reaching toward 10 feet high and lush knee-high grass speaks of abundant water in this narrow canyon.
Look for Arizona’s Water Faucets: Living Springs in an Arid Land to be published later this year.