High creeks and rivers in the Sacramento Valley

During the last 4 days, the Sacramento Valley has received over 5" of much-needed rain, the nearby foothills have received around 15" of rain, and the mountains have received 6 to 12 FEET of snow. All is well and good, to break California out of a 5-year drought, but there are some negative effects, as what happens to all the extra water?

Tuesday morning, January 10, 2017, I decided to take a drive around Roseville to observe, and photo, some of the swollen local creeks.

Photo: Walerga Road, in rural Placer County crosses Dry Creek, which isn't exactly living up to it's name, as the water is just a couple feet below the bridge. Normally, even during the winter, the water is at least 15 feet below the bridge. In the 16+ years I've lived in Roseville, I've seen the creek flood the bridge once. I'm not the only person who likes this crazy stuff, as a fellow high-water enthusiast records the spectacle on video.

Photo: Dry Creek Park, and the bike path are now "Dry Creek Lake," thanks to the efforts of Dry Creek.

Photo: Dry Creek, looking downstream, photographed from the Walerga Road bridge.

Photo: Near the north end of Orchard View Drive in West Roseville, I checked out where Branch Creek, to the left, and Pleasant Grove Creek merge. Normally, this time of year, both creeks run at a trickle, and during the summer and fall, they completely dry up. Not so today, as they're a raging torrent of swift flowing, muddy water, at least 10 feet deep. I would not care to take a swim in this!

Photo: Branch Creek, as it flows through Blue Oaks Park. A week ago, this creek was barely flowing, today it's a raging torrent. The water from the right, which is nearly as large as the creek, is run-off coming from nearby homes. This tributary was completely dry five days ago.

The next set of photos are from Monday, January 9, 2017, as I took a trip to West Sacramento to observe the Sacramento River in action, before engineers opened the Sacramento weir, which diverts some of the river water to the Yolo Bypass.

Photo: Classic view of the Tower Bridge, which links West Sacramento and Sacramento, across the Sacramento River. Back in the day, old U.S. Highway 40 ran across this bridge, which is now Capitol Avenue in downtown Sacramento.

Photo: This Canada goose seems to enjoy the high water, as he stares serenely into the water, and unconcerned with my photography. Now worries, as I was at least a hundred feet away, and I made good use of my 20-times zoom lens.

Photo: West Sacramento fire department is patrolling the Sacramento River, on the lookout for anybody who needs to be rescued from the fast-flowing river. For those who aren't familiar with California, the Sacramento River is the largest river in the state, and it serves as the boundary between Yolo and Sacramento counties.

Photo: The City of West Sacramento enjoys a very fine Riverwalk, which is similar to a malecon along the ocean in many Mexican cities, but since West Sacramento is on the Sacramento river, the walk is near the river. One of the many access points, which is usually many feet above the river is now under the waters of the Sacramento River.

Photo: Classic view of the Tower Bridge, the swollen Sacramento River, and a small portion of the Sacramento skyline in the distance.

Let's not hear any talk of drought during 2017!!!