May 12, 2008--State rivers running wild (Denver Post)
If there is a single certainty to the erratic endeavor of predicting flow levels of Colorado whitewater, it is that nothing is for certain. Ever. There are too many variables. Since Colorado draws the majority of its river water from snowmelt, there is the matter of not only how much snow falls, but where and when. Temperature plays an equal role, with warmer winters diminishing snowpack almost as quickly as it falls, slower thaws delivering a subtle crescendo of smaller flows for longer spans of time. How rapid and consistent the spring warming occurs tends to determine when the rivers will peak. Then there's the whole matter of storage, temporary plugs in the system known as reservoirs. So given the configuration of said variables as we enter Colorado's river running season at the midway point in May, the certain uncertainty theory appears to have proved itself in the most cyclically devious of manners.
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