A late snow melt, low temperatures and steady rain throughout June caused the Columbia River to swell, closing walking trails and reducing the size of the beach at Gyro Park.
But now that summer has officially arrived, bringing with it hot weather and endless rays of sun, residents have noticed water levels in the Columbia River slowly drop over the past few weeks.
And more of that can be expected in the coming weeks, as the river returns to its normal water levels.
According to Luanne Chew, forecast hydrologist with the B.C. River Forecast Centre, only a small amount of snow pack remains at some automated monitoring sites, a major factor behind the high levels before.
“For the most part it looks like the risk of flooding due to snow melt has passed for the season,” she said.
While there is always the chance that a high amount of precipitation could raise water levels again, the local forecast for the next few weeks wouldn’t suggest that.
The warm temperatures Trail has experienced over the last few days has not triggered any response in water levels of the river either, Chew added, which basically confirmed her thoughts that the river would soon return to normal.