Dry for months the Santa Ynez River is roaring after Gibraltar Dam spills

Gibraltar Dam behind drought dry Santa Barbara took in a tremendous amount of water this week and began spilling this morning about 10 a.m.

The rushing water headed directly into the Santa Ynez River which has been empty for months.

Many Santa Ynez Valley residents drove down Paradise Road off San Marcos Pass to see the brown murky water flow cascading down stream.

It’s directly heading to Cachuma Lake which has been about 70 percent empty going into the winter months.

The watershed has now been saturated by the parade of storms coming through.

One long time resident Lillian Rosen said, “It’s great because we need it so desperately. Maybe it will replenish the aquifer.”

She recalls the 1995 storm in an El Nino year when the area was drenched for weeks. The river rose out of its banks and on to Paradise road.

Cachuma Lake last spilled in 2011. The lake level is currently 60 feet below the top of Bradbury Dam.

If that spills, the water will go further down the river through Santa Ynez, Solvang, Buellton and Lompoc before it heads out to sea.