Quiet 4th, Monsoons on the way

This may have been the quietest 4th of July with respect to fireworks that I have ever witnessed in my 22 years in New Mexico.  No one was shooting off fireworks anywhere where I could see them or my dogs could hear them.  This is a testament to the dryness here in Gila country right now.  Even the town of Silver City elected not to put on its usual fireworks display. 

Here in Grant county we have been at stage II fire restrictions since the Quail Ridge fire at the beginning of March and that is still the case today; but, there is some good news.  The humidity levels have finally risen above the single digits and the welcome sight of afternoon thunderhead buildup is finally visible.  There still hasn't really been much in the way of rainfall, but we are getting spotty amounts here and there in the afternoons now, and the promise of the monsoon season doesn't seem so empty anymore.

Hiking with the dogs, I have encountered extremely dry conditions in the forest.  Packing along water is a must unless you are hiking along the Gila river itself, as that seems to be the only water around.  On trails not near water, the dogs need to be monitored for signs of heat stress, kept well watered, and if possible, hiking along shady trails after about 9:00 in the morning, as my dogs don't have the sense to stop themselves from overexertion in hot, sunny conditions. Another consideration for dogs on sunny trails is that the ground can get hot enough to cause them discomfort if there is no vegitation to walk on, which there mostly isn't right now.  I've been limiting our hikes to before 9 in the morning or after 5 in the afternoon and the dogs are still ready for a cooling dip in their pool by the time we get home.

The ground is so dry that it is the consistency of wheat flour right now.  The pin oaks seem to be mostly in hibernation mode, with only the larger trees having any leaves at all.  The daytime temperatures are currently in the  high 80s to low 90s and nighttime temps are dropping to the low 60s.  Chances of any rain are spotty for the next week or so, but forecasters are placing them at 30% each day this week rising to 60% by July 13th.