YCFCD Precip Data

How much rain?  Isn't that always the question?  Or the statement? Who knows how many times you've heard people say, "Well, we got an inch of rain at our place."  Or perhaps you've been the one to brag, "Why, we had a six inch Arizona rain at our house!" (NOTE: A Six Inch Arizona rain denotes one drop every six inches.)

Yes, the amount of rainfall (or snow) is always a topic of conversation, both in person and online.  So, just how do you find out factual rainfall figures?  Well, in the case of Sedona and The Verde Valley, you're in luck...Major Luck.  The Yavapai County Flood Control District has spent  a lot of money installing a state-of-the-art rain/snow/flow monitoring system.  We're arguably one of the best-equipped areas to monitor our own precipitation and streamflow.  Thank You Very Much, YCFCD!

Below we will discuss the system and go through an example of how to use it.

http://weather.ycflood.com/

Above is the gateway page for the YCFCD monitoring system. You can either look at precip amounts in a table or an interactive map. The map can be tricky for some small screen devices so we always use the table.  We click on "Precipitation by Watershed" and, generally, The Verde comes up to view first.

On the morning of November 20, 2019, we skimmed the data and noticed what weather wonks call the "terrain favored" sites had received the most precipitation so far.  We also noted Buzzard Ridge was one the top "producers," so to speak, with a storm total of 1.14 inches so far.  So we decided to use Buzzard Ridge as an example here.  You can see how the data appears in the graphic above.  Precipitation amounts are laid out by time period.  The time intervals are at the top of the page.

Naturally, most folks wold be curious as to Buzzard Ridge's location.  Luckily, YCFCD fully documents each and every one of their data sites.  In this case, you can use either the long-lat provided (35°00'52.0"N 111°48'38.0"W) or use the FCC website to convert it to decimals:35.014444 -111.810556

 http://weather.ycflood.com/

Google Maps will generally bring up a very accurate location of any of the YCFCD data sites.  In this case, Buzzard Ridge is located in the far upper West Fork drainage.  It would be accessible by vehicle from The Woody Mountain Road.

http://weather.ycflood.com/

Above is a closer view of the Buzzard Ridge data site.  Finally, if you really want to take a close look at the Buzzard Ridge monitoring apparatus, just click one of the many photos YCFCD provides.

YCFCD also monitors stream flow and does an exceptionally good job with Oak Creek above and below Sedona.  We will cover that aspect of their operation in a separate post.