Roadside view of a decent sized unnamed fall half hidden by trees along Matilija Creek.

With all the rain, water is gushing out of every crack in the mountains right now promising a bountiful and lush spring hiking season.

I went for a quick hike along Upper North Fork Matilija Creek late yesterday afternoon until dusk. Nobody was around.

Dark clouds clung to the peaks around Old Man Mountain, which had a smattering of snow.  All the little rivulets are running, the creeks and rivers are raging and the waterfalls roaring.

The Santa Barbara County rainfall total for the season so far, measured September 1 to August 31, is 163% of normal. Below are select rainfall totals as a percent of normal for this time of year, as well as the total in inches:

Cachuma 174% – 31.63
Carpinteria 136% – 23.81
Cuyama 150% – 10.00
Figueroa Mtn 158% – 30.68
Gibraltar Dam 156% – 37.36
Goleta 174% – 28.99
Lompoc 179% – 24.81
Los Alamos 156% – 21.00
San Marcos Pass 141% – 45.17
Santa Barbara 168% – 26.89
Santa Maria 188% – 22.85
Santa Ynez 179% – 25.29
Sisquoc 198% – 26.28
Updated 8am: 3/26/2011 Water Year 2011 County of S.B. (PDF)

As of my last count from news reports over 50 people have been rescued from the Great Outdoors in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties after being stranded due to rain swollen streams. (VC Star, SB EdHat)