(Lander, WY)– Dave Lipson has been involved with weather for over 30 years and has been in Fremont County for the majority of it. He took his annual trip with the Forest Service up into the mountains to measure what the snow pack level is and find the snowpack’s snow water equivalent. This helps determine what water levels may rise to and this information is connected to the water levels in the Lander area and beyond. Dave gives us detailed information in the audio below on how they went about this experiment, the findings and what it all means.
I think everyone can agree that this winter was brutal but was it more or less than past years with snow pack and the snow water equivalent? You may be surprised with Dave’s findings. They make sure to go around the same time every year, the first week of May to make the data the most accurate for comparison. Dave joins Bill Lee and crews with the Forest Service to venture to a high elevation where they are looking for a flat surface that would provide the best most accurate measurement.
Dave explains how it all happens and the importance this information plays in water levels and flood issues for the area. Dave has a list how this years snow pack with the snow water equivalent compares to years past.
2023 51 inches with 18.32 inches of snow water equivalent
2022 32.5 inches of snow 10.79 inches of SWE
2020 17 inches no snow water equivalent but most likely less then 8 inches of SWE
2019 33.5 inch snow depth 12.08 inches of SWE
2018 16 inches of snow with 6.96 inches of SWE
2017 68 inches with 33 inches of SWE
2017… compared to this year had more snow pack almost a week later than this year a week earlier. With almost double the amount of Snow Water Equivalent!
