CALM WATERS, AND COOLER DAYS AHEAD
People take to Lake Oroville for summer fun
OROVILLE >> Gleaming water, bright sun and a gentle breeze.
Groups of family and friends traveling from as far as Sacramento made their way to Lake Oroville's spillway boat launch Monday to take advantage of high water levels and a summer day less punishing than what the weekend brought.
Smlies were beaming across the faces of dozens of visitors' faces as they climbed in and out of boats, fished on the shoreline and paddle boarded around the recreation area.
Kab Lee and her family had found a shady table to set up camp at. Fishing rods leaned upright against the picnic table and a large inflatable raft carried kids from the shore out onto the water.
“It's not too hot right now. It's perfect for swimming,” Lee said. “It's so much nicer to have the lake this full again. We haven't seen it like this for so long and it's so nice to see it.”
Thanks to winter storms and consistent snow meltoff, the lake reached capacity earlier in the year and has maintained its level just below the 900-foot level that is considered to be full.
The California Department of Water Resources announced Friday that the lake, at roughly 898 feet in elevation, is 131% of the historical average. Those driving by the dam will likely notice water cascading lightly down the spillway, which DWR said was normal for how full the reservoir is.
Under the shade of a tree, a light buzz from an electric pump filled a pad
"It's so much nicer to have the lake this full again. We haven't seen it like this for so long and it's so nice to see it." — Kab Lee
dleboard. Adie Cunningham and her dog Bentley were getting ready to take to the water and paddle around the recreation area.
“I'm so grateful that the lake is full and that people are able to get out and enjoy themselves,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham and Bentley made their way to the shore and paddled off.
Toward the shore facing the dam, away from boats and swimmers, a group of four from Sacramento was getting a drone ready for flight.
Janie Ledbetter said she was visiting Lake Oroville for the first time.
“The weather up here today is a lot better than yesterday, that's for sure,” Ledbetter said. “Because we're from down there in Stinkville (Sacramento). Down there where all that smog is. So this is much more enjoyable.”
The weather ahead
After the blazing hot weekend, Butte County residents might be happy to hear that the heat is expected to decrease of the course of the coming week and into the weekend. The forecasted high for Independence Day is 99.
Chelsea Peters, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Sacramento office, said the daytime highs are forecasted to go down to around 93 degrees by Friday.
“We will continue to trend down gradually in the next few days,” Peters said. “Chico has a high of 93 degrees by Friday so a lot better than those triple digits.”
One factor that led to the recent weekend having a major heat risk warning was the high nighttime temperatures in the high 70s.
Peters said those are expected to drop with the lowest potentially hitting 60 on Saturday morning.
“Temperatures are expected to start rising again next week,” Peters warned.