Water is running through Summerhaven\u2019s creek, days after rain fell in the area.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, it\u2019s been a while since we\u2019ve seen anything like that,\u201d said Grey Carpenter, a Summerhaven resident.<\/p>\n
The monsoon brought Mount Lemmon around 20 inchess of rain.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe mountain\u2019s kind of like a sponge; it absorbs the water really well, and that amount of water will last us for a good while,\u201d Carpenter said.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/EVA6TQRTCRDFZGPPQWGAZKZEUY.jpg\")
A wet August and September got Summerhaven out of Stage III water restrictions, and a heavy rainstorm early this week added to the water supply.(13 News)<\/p>\n
Carpenter called the rain a relief following years of restrictions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were kind of on and off for the past couple of years. We were in restrictions last year, then we went out \u2013 not totally. We went into voluntary, which is like Stage II, then we went back into Stage III again,\u201d Carpenter said.<\/p>\n
Carpenter lives on the mountain, owns the general store and serves on the Mount Lemmon Water District board. He said he has had to greatly restrict the water he uses, from doing dishes and laundry to showering.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt kind of gets old after a while. It\u2019s nice to be out of that, you know, and to be kind of relaxed a little bit about it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/U66SVPQOHBCMPFGUAVPX2SITMY.jpg\")
A wet August and September got Summerhaven out of Stage III water restrictions, and a heavy rainstorm early this week added to the water supply.(13 News)Not enough to last through winter<\/p>\n
While seeing the water has been a relief, Carpenter said it is still not enough to last through the winter.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf it doesn\u2019t snow, if we have another dry winter, we\u2019ll be right back in the same boat next year, guaranteed,\u201d Carpenter said.<\/p>\n
Summerhaven relies on back-to-back precipitation, and snow is more important for the mountain to receive than rain.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat rain largely runs off the surface. The rocks there only have fractures that a little bit seeps in,\u201d said Victor Baker, a hydrology professor at the University of Arizona.<\/p>\n
Baker said snow, on the other hand, means a slower saturation of water into the ground with less runoff.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/H2BDJNWY5VAMHEJ4PYZAFIH7QQ.jpg\")
A wet August and September got Summerhaven out of Stage III water restrictions, and a heavy rainstorm early this week added to the water supply.(13 News)<\/p>\n