There was only a trace amount of rain in all of October, a single day in November (11/3/2024, 0.47"), zero days of precipitation in December, and just 0.15" so far in January (1/8/2025).

It is the driest winter I can remember, and even a brief January storm felt like something to celebrate, to witness. The Ruiz Trail in Saguaro National Park, at the northwest corner of the Rincon Valley, offers some rather good views and I was lucky enough to be there at the right time to create a few images to celebrate the storm and the winter light. I hope this won't be the only storm this month; I would love nothing more than to return to a boringly normal schedule of winter storms.