I've read your question(s) several times now and still can't quite make out what you're getting at. You seem to have already answered for yourself. Transverse ranges? Are you referring to the Tehachapis? California is a state defined geographically by its two significant longitudinal mountain ranges, the Coastal and the Sierra Nevada.

There are significant meteorological and climatological effects (i.e, uplift and rain shadow) caused by this geographical arrangement, as weather systems follow the global westerly pattern in the northern hemisphere. Our "wet" years come from (1) winter storms originating in the Gulf of Alaska and finding little resistance to riding low pressure troughs into California from the north; and/or (2) the establishment of a temporary conduit of moist air from the tropics – the so called river of air known colloquially as "the "Pineapple Express", since it tends to originate near Hawaii. It can be a very wet year without the presence of any Pineapple Express. These phenomena are sometimes assisted or hindered by global interaction with sea surface warming, or cooling, of various degrees by "El Niño" or "La Niña" events, respectively, occurring in the Central Pacific. The northerly progress of warmer waters up the western coast of North America during El Niño years displaces the normally colder California Current, which hinders coastal cyclogenesis and provides California with its typical Mediterranean style climate.

As a rule, our wet years, by definition, include the entire state of California. Any particular region of this great state may experience differing degrees of 'wetness' based the specific geography referred to above, but all parts will be wetter in a wet year. Look no further than California's Death Valley, separated by three distinct mountain ranges and their individual rain shadows milking moisture from westerly storm systems, experiencing its last massive wild flower bloom in another wet year (2006?).

If you seek academic authority, my "thoughts" are that you go to the people who know these things and keep records. That would be the U.S. government (NOAA, NWS), not the inexhaustible supply of self appointed experts and anecdotal sources you will find on the web and elsewhere – including here, including me. If you are more than "just curious", you might consider what others, including me, have done and satisfy your intellectual curiosity by obtaining a degree in meteorology or atmospheric science from an accredited university. Perhaps more to the point of this forum, yes it was wet in 2011, and the mosquitoes were horrible!

Yes, it seems that I have answered you fairly completely. The problem seems to be that I wasted my time with an advanced degree from UC and not Wikipedia.

1998. I remember huge snowdrifts at 5,000 ft in the San Gabriels in June. And on june 19th it snowed 2 ft. in The Sierra. Answer "for the entire state" is 1998, even the desert greened up, it was an amazing year. In Oct 98 the red slate couloir was ice from bottom to top, except for one small section of gravel about 3/4 way up. 1995 was a huge year in the sierra too. In june of 1995 I went to Big Meadow (S.Sierra) and the only reason I got in was that someone had broken the gate open, I was unaware that I was not supposed to be there, and I drove in to one of the first campgrounds by Sirretta Pk and there was a creek crossing at the campground that I could not drive beyond. I stayed there for three days and never saw anyone. Sirretta Peak looked like Mt Shasta, the snow was at least 10 feet deep. Big Meadow was a lake. I could not believe how much snow and water there was. All the hiking I did was remembered most by the creek crossings. It was so beautiful and amazing. This was before the big fires and drought. God those are such good memories, I am so fortunate to have seen it in its finest splendor.

I remember during the winter of 2008-2009 Washington was having a dry year so the skiing was terrible. A friend with considerably more financial resources than myself was flying to Tahoe every weekend to ski and said it was amazing. So winter of 2008-2009 was good for that part of California at least.

In most years some part of the State gets dumped on, but the whole State getting dumped on is rare. I know the Southern part of CA, south of Big Bear, has not had a good winter since 2005. I really wish the big El Nino would come back, I was very hopeful a few months ago, then it fizzled. It looks like a "normal" winter is the best we can hope for now.

Clark

Southern California mountains had the last good winter in 2010/2011. Since then, it has been very,very dry. Same with the Sierra. The last reasonable year was 2010/2011. Since then, every year was drier and drier.

I'm not checking or quoting any statistics, I say so because of my personal experience in the mountains.

The 2013/2014 winter here in San Jacinto mountains was extremely dry. We lived here the last 16 years and this past winter was the driest. We desperately need rain/snow.

Historically, there is some hope both for Southern California and the High Sierra. There are few examples of severe drought lasting more than three or four seasons. Let's hope the coming winter is a wet one.

it doesn't look good through January for the Sierra:

http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/e ... mmary.html

If you have a green lawn, it might be time to realize that you're being selfish wasting that water. If you must have green, grow something edible. I suppose you could eat that turf, but I'd rather have kale.

Accuweather.com put up the winter forecast the other day. It predicted a wet winter for southern CA. Personally I'm skeptical, but hope I'm wrong. All the wet winters I remember, there was snow on the ground by November. Also, i made a mistake in my earlier post. I said it snowed 2ft. on or about 6/19/98. It was 1995, not '98,(I frequently mix up those two years) I was at Rock Creek, and when it happened I was thunderstruck, two feet of new snow a couple days before summer, it was unreal. Anyhow, we really need some precipitation and I hope it happens, a lot of stuff (trees, animals, etc. ) are really suffering from the lack of rain.