Water Lost

There was water in the canal today, which puzzled me, as our irrigation was yesterday. I followed the flow back upstream to find where one of the properties was taking water, and immediately felt regret.

I installed a gate just past my neighbor's lowest port so that we wouldn't need to use leaky checks in the canal to divert water into our yards. The neighbor receiving water this morning was using a leaky check, and water was flowing around his check and down into the canal, pretty much to wash away or evaporate. I've been considering installing a tank and small pump to gather this wasted water, useful when I overflow my berms or decide to plant trees on the property.

Today, however, I simply watched, a little sad, as the water flowed, burbling quietly, reminding me of Salt Creek on a lazy childhood summer afternoon.