When an atmospheric river,
dumps torrential rain,
spawning dozens of high mountain waterfalls,
that crash down right by the door of your condo rental,
creating flash floods?
What to do?
Get wet,
and take photos too!
It is an amazing experience because it happens so incredibly quickly. It starts with serious torrential downpours that are fast in onset, next you hear roaring, go outside, and see dozens of waterfalls falling from the 8000+ peaks of The Santa Rosa Mountain Range, to the sea level and below, and since your vacation condo sits at the foot of these mountains, the show is quite spectacular! The photos can’t do it justice in the midst of the storm. Lakes and rivers have formed where dust and lizards were sunning yesterday! Now I personally see why you do not want to be in a narrow desert canyon in a flash flood situation. It’s way too fast and way too intense.
Cheers to you from the flooding desert~
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HI Cindy, so glad you took those photos, what magnificent scenery! Thanks for sharing.
Leslie
Hi Leslie. It was such an incredible thing to witness. I am glad I was able to experience it. Hope all is well with you my friend and glad you stopped by ꨄ︎
Torrential floods in the desert? Absolutely incredible!
It really, really was! ꨄ︎
Beautiful. I love the desert. But it does have dangers. Flash floods can wreak havoc in a very short time.
It is amazing how fast it all went down! ꨄ︎
Be careful out there, Cindy!
Thanks Pam. We are being ꨄ︎
Fantastic photos! Flash floods are scary, hope you are keeping safe.
Thanks you Sheryl. We are staying safe and they are scary ꨄ︎
Wow what a moment, have waterfalls in the desert…. great pictures, that is a great way to pass the time during the rain! 🙂
My brother asked me, “What are you going to do in the desert in the rain?” God answered!!! ꨄ︎
As long as there weren’t any mudslides or falling pieces of mountain! How long does this type of rain normally last?
I have seen these high dry falls in desert mountains all my life, evidence of periodic waterfulls. What I have never seen before was all of them coming to intense life so rapidly, where waterfalls were seeminly falling everywhere creating rushing floods and pooling lakes. Water literally everywhere. It has been raining periodically for two days, nothing remarkable, when all of a sudden this incredibly intense rain started to fall, the falls seemed to come in about an hour, roaring down the sheer mountain face. It lasted maybe two hours. Fast, so fast to be so intense ꨄ︎
Thank you for the additional information. Two hours is a long time for such intense rain!
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Gorgeous, as always, Cindy
So appreciated. Thank you & cheers ꨄ︎
Thank goodness you took photos of this fast moving torrential event. Gorgeous! Hopefully things have dried out.
The waterfalls were the most amazing. They sprung up instantly, were raging from the highest peaks, and there were so many of them! Awesomeness ꨄ︎
Wow! Definitely awesomeness.
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Quite stunning photos, as always, Cindy. That was a close call. Stay safe.
Today is our third day of rain in West Los Angeles. Thankfully, it has been light rain, causing no damage in my neighborhood.
Hi Rosaliene. All my life I have heard of Desert Flash Floods and I have seen some minor ones, but nothing like this! So intense & so fast. All of a sudden water was everywhere. Stay safe & dry ꨄ︎
<3
Fascinating!
Great pics, and stay safe, Cindy! ❦❦
Thank you Resa. It was quite an intense storm and experience. My twin grandsons will never forget it ꨄ︎
Very cool! ꨄ︎ꨄ︎
So beautiful and exciting.
Yes! It was intense and thrilling ꨄ︎
Wow 💞 what an amazing experience ! Thanks for sharing Cindy 💐🙏🏻💖
Thank you for appreciating Val. It was quite an experience ꨄ︎
What magnificent scenery, Cindy.
I’ve seen lots of flash floods on YouTube and I certainly wouldn’t want to be staying in your Condo either.
The weather gods can be very angry and fast indeed.
The speed and intensity was incredible to witness! Cheers to you Vicki ꨄ︎
Amazing photos and what an incredible experience – thanks for sharing and glad you were safe from the deluge!
Thanks much! It was truly amazing. Waterfalls almost instantly all across the mountainsㅤꨄ︎
Mother Nature, like life itself, can certainly turn on a dime. That’s an amazing experience to be sure, Cindy.
Exactly right. This raw power is amazing to observe. Thank you for knowing Bruce ꨄ︎
Beautiful 🤩
Grazie mille ꨄ︎
Stunning captures of the scenery and rainfall!
Merci beaucoup mon Ami ꨄ︎
Stunning photos. So glad you got to capture it. I can almost hear the sound of all that water…
The sound was amazing, like a muted roar. Happy you enjoyed & thank you ꨄ︎
Good idea and great shots!
Thank you Leya & great to hear from you ꨄ︎
Stunning images, Cindy. So glad you were able to observe from safe positions. I often thought about those flash floods in Colorado when driving past those very deep, very dry arroyos.
Yes, and all the alluvial fans, you can clearly see the power of the water carving the landscape, and the slot canyons too. I have never been comfortable in them unless the sun is shining brightly ꨄ︎
What a fabulous place…and what an experience…glad you’re safe.
So kind Rajani & so appreciated. Thank you ꨄ︎
Hi Cindy, what a way to experience the force of nature up close!
Yes. Thank you Rich. I have been visiting the desert all my life but this was a definite and memorable first for me ꨄ︎
I feel that I should get travel trips from you, Cindy 🙂
Where should I go in SoCal?
Well, thanks very much. I would be happy to try and help ꨄ︎
Scary, wasn’t it?
Yes, majestic and thrilling too ꨄ︎
Your blog feels like a cinematic storm —
an atmospheric river unleashing torrents,
mountain waterfalls roaring down to the desert’s edge.
Where yesterday was dust and lizards basking,
today lakes and rivers surge into being.
You capture the speed, the intensity, the wonder,
so vividly that the reader too gets drenched
and reaches for a camera in awe.
Absolutely awesome, fantastic, and superb!
You write so vividly and beautifully. Thank you for your incredibly thoughtful comment. Take good care ꨄ︎
Your words unfold like a labyrinth of meaning,
each turn revealing a hidden spark of thought.
The beauty and vitality weave a mind-boggling tapestry,
where readers lose themselves only to rediscover their essence.
Cindy, how did you gather so many followers?
Do share this secret with me as well.
Thanks
Thank you Harry.
🌧️🌄 A fascinating description of a rare desert phenomenon! It’s incredible how nature can transform within minutes — from dry dust to roaring waterfalls rushing down the mountains. 🌊⛰️ Your experience captures both the beauty and the intensity of atmospheric river events, while also highlighting how dangerous flash floods can be in narrow canyons. 📸⚠️ Truly an unforgettable moment in the desert!
Thank you so much for such an accurate and perceptive descriptor. This is exactly what it was like. Cheers to you & take good care ꨄ︎
I remember when my aunt lived in Arizona, decades ago, she told about how having one’s house next to a wash was very special. In the dry season people would entertain in their washes 🙂
But — those washes can turn dangerous very quickly! My friend in Tucson lives higher up, at no risk for floods, apparently.
I love looking at pictures of the desert and remembering many camping trips out there. Thank you for these <3
Yes. Washes are so interesting to see in the summer because you clearly see the force and intensity of the water that came before. I had never actually experienced flash flooding before. It was far more dramatic than I expected, especially because we were at the foot of vertical stone mountains that created all these incredible waterfalls. Deserts are mysterious and wonderful places. Glad you have experienced them & thanks for stopping by ꨄ︎
That’s beautiful, intense, and scary all at the same time. Just thought I would pop in and say hello. It’s been awhile. 🙂
Wonderful to hear from you! I left you a comment on your post a few hours ago. I was SO happy to see a post from you! Makes me very happy. Hope all is well with you dear friend and thank you so much for stopping by. Cheers & take good care ꨄ︎ꨄ︎
Thank you for your happiness! And thank you for your comment on my blog. I am happy you are still blogging and adding loveliness to the world.
It is so special to me to be talking to you. Again.
Thanks for sharing these!
Thank you more for the appreciation & cheers ꨄ︎
Wow, that’s a lot of water! Glad you’re okay!
Yes. It was incredible & thanks very much ꨄ︎
Hoping your vacation wasn’t ruined.
Hi Eunice! Awesome to hear from you. And thanks my friend, the storm was actually an incredible experience. I have never experienced torrential rain in the desert. It is very intense. Hope all is well with you and thanks so much for stopping by ꨄ︎
All is good here. Retired on Tuesday and will re-think working come April 🙂 I have had so many floods here I am all set with torrential rain <3
Love to you Eunice. Your watercolor is hanging on my wall. Be well.
xo Which one do you have again, lol I have been so blessed.
Blessed with talent my friend.
Thank you Cindy.
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This is so excellent. Really enjoyed the photos of the exhilarating rain and floods, and your descriptions, Cindy.
Honored. Very kind. I am so happy you enjoyed ꨄ︎
Wow! You don’t think of deserts flooding!
So true. I have seen the later evidence of desert flash floods all my life. This is the first time I was there to actually see it ꨄ︎
Holy cow! Great action photos, Cindy!
Well thank you very much ꨄ︎
👌🏻📷👍🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻💐
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Wow! Your words brought the storm alive—I could almost hear the roaring waterfalls and feel the rain.
What an incredible experience, and you captured it with such vivid detail that it feels like I was right there.
Nature’s drama at its finest—spectacular and humbling! 🙏
I’d be honored if you could also visit my blog sometime and share your thoughts there.
Your perspective would mean a lot to me.
Ohmygoodness that looks frightening and fabulous! So glad you were there to capture those epic photos.
Thankful for your kind appreciation. Be well ꨄ︎
So beautiful and majestic!!! Glad you are safe.
So much love to you and your family ꨄ︎
Uih, Isn’t it dangerous to be there at this time?
Hello Cindy, the last comment is from me, unfortunately anonymous 🤔
Best regards, Annette
Yes. I am sorry on behalf of WP ꨄ︎
Nothing to be sorry for 😉
ꨄ︎ꨄ︎
Yes. I checked before I left. The place I was staying had a flood risk factor of 1, on a scale of 1-10, for the desert, because the builders have prepared for when the mountains cry. Still, I noticed the condos at the very back were losing ground rapidly, and soon would have nothing to rest on ꨄ︎
Thank you. Not a place you’d want to live forever, right?
Visit yes. Live forever, no. Cheers to you my friend ꨄ︎
Fascinating Cindy, but also scary. We’re glad you could get some great pictures of it😻Double Pawkisses for a Happy Day🐾😽💞
ps we still don’t get updates, but we stop by anyway 😉
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Incredible photos!
Honored. Thank you Dawn. Take good care ꨄ︎
Breathtakingly beautiful! ❤️ thank you for sharing.
Thank you more for such a very kind comment & cheers to you ꨄ︎
Cindy,
Happy Thanksgiving Day!
May it be peaceful and enjoyable!
Visa versa 2UX2 dear Alexander. Take good care my friend & thank you ꨄ︎
Happy Thanksgiving, Cindy!!
Happy Thanksgiving Amy ꨄ︎ꨄ︎
Well, silly me, my first reaction was to say “I dunno, drink peyote and pray.” But, the beauty of the post & concern for all involved sort of killed the comedy. Beautiful photos & good points. I bet the lizard beauties know when to high-tale it out of there!
Cracking up….. So Carlos Castaneda Dawn!!! Love it! And yep, I think you’re right. Those lizard brains went to high ground long before I showed up. Stay safe & well my friend ꨄ︎
I’m so glad that you and everyone else is okay. And what pictures you got!! Wow!! I hope you had a great thanksgivng, and are still enjoying friends and family!!
Hi Katie. Yes Thanksgiving was wonderful thank you. Wonderful to hear from you. Hope all is well with you my friend ꨄ︎
All is well my friend! 🙂 Thank you for asking! 🙂 God’s blessing on you and yours, especially during this season. 🙂
Blessings flying back to you.
Wow!
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WOW!! Must be amazing in real life, but for those of us who can’t be there, we are thrilled to see these awesome photos!!
❤️carmen
Lovely to hear from you Carmen. Thanks much & Merry Christmas ꨄ︎
The way you capture the suddenness of nature’s power makes me feel like I’m standing right there watching those waterfalls appear out of nowhere. Truly a breathtaking experience… and a reminder of how awe-inspiring (and humbling) the desert can be. Cheers to you for embracing it so fully!🙏🏻💛
Your thoughtful comment makes me happy I posted. Sincere thank you & cheers too! ꨄ︎
👍🏻💛🙏🏻