I think it was 2013 or 2014 and Castle Lake didn't freeze over at 6000 feet elevation for the first time in my lifetime. Droughts are not unusual in California by the way. 3 to 5 year droughts are pretty normal. It's sort of like if you had 3 to 5 years of normal weather you were sure to have 3 to 5 years of droughts. This was true from the 1950s on when I was a child in Tujunga and Glendale between 1956 to 1969 also. It was also true in the 1970s and 1980s wherever I lived in California from San Diego to Mt. Shasta to the SF Bay area during these times.
But, when Castle lake didn't get ice 3 to 6 feet thick that I was sure I could ski across safely without falling through it's made me not really trust ice on Castle Lake Across from Mt. Shasta ever since.
The year I'm talking about I could also hike to Heart Lake above Castle Lake even in February too. This was unheard of too because always before this you need either cross country skis or snow shoes to do this as well. I remember how strange it felt to be without a major ski jacket in February with the lake not frozen. Also, I didn't have more on than jeans and a wool shirt which is pretty unheard of for any previous February I had ever been there too.
So, ever since February of 2013 or 2014 I and my friends really knew we were in for it after a few years like this.
So, the fact that we are now in the worst drought west of the Rockies in 1200 years is no surprise to me.
What surprises me is Trump saying things like: "Rake up your leaves under your trees." Does he really know how many millions of trees there are in California still? And that raking up leaves or pine needles could actually dry out and kill many of these trees because the leaves and pine needles hold whatever water the trees need to survive in a drought?
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