THE TETON mountain range is a stunning(令人惊叹的) sight from any angle. Reflections of the jagged(嶙峋的、参差不齐的) peaks shimmer(闪烁、波光粼粼) in the water below. Yet this summer, the biggest lake in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park is suffering. Jackson Lake, which also serves as a reservoir, was just 20% full on September 6th.(杰克逊湖同时充当水库，9月6日蓄水量仅剩20%。) Usually tourists queue in Colter Bay to rent boats or buy berth(泊位、停泊处)s for lake cruises. Right now, the docks resemble mud flats. The marina(码头区、游艇停泊区) shut down in mid-July—two months early.
从任何角度看，提顿山脉都美得令人惊叹。嶙峋山峰的倒影在下方水面上粼粼闪烁。然而今年夏天，怀俄明州大提顿国家公园里最大的湖泊却境况堪忧。杰克逊湖同时充当水库，9月6日蓄水量仅剩20%。往常游客会在科尔特湾排队租船，或购买湖上游船的泊位。如今，码头看上去就像一片片泥滩。码头区已于7月中旬关闭——比往年提前了两个月。
It is rare, but not exceptional(罕见的、例外的), for Colter Bay to dry up(干涸、枯竭). Jackson Lake’s elevation(海拔、水位高度) has fallen below its current level on around 16% of days since record-keeping(记录保存、数据记录) began in 1909. But high demand for the lake’s water and uncertainty over whether the coming winter will bring much-needed snow have river-users in Idaho and Wyoming feeling anxious.(但对湖水的高需求，加上今冬能否带来急需降雪的不确定性，让爱达荷州和怀俄明州的河流使用者倍感焦虑。) The dry lakebed is not yet a catastrophe(大灾难、灾祸)—but it is a warning. Jackson Lake’s trials illustrate how it is becoming harder to balance competing demands for water across the American West.(杰克逊湖的遭遇说明，在美国西部，平衡相互冲突的用水需求正变得越来越难。)
科尔特湾干涸虽属罕见，却并非绝无仅有。自1909年开始有记录以来，杰克逊湖水位低于当前水平的天数约占16%。但对湖水的高需求，加上今冬能否带来急需降雪的不确定性，让爱达荷州和怀俄明州的河流使用者倍感焦虑。干涸的湖床尚算不上灾难——却是一个警告。杰克逊湖的遭遇说明，在美国西部，平衡相互冲突的用水需求正变得越来越难。
It is tempting(诱人的、让人容易想到的) to think that abysmal(极差的、糟透的) snowfall in the Rocky Mountains last winter is entirely to blame for(对……负有责任、是……的原因) Jackson Lake’s low water level. But the headwaters of the Snake River, which feed the lake, were “almost the only part of the West that had near-normal snow-water amounts”, says Bryan Shuman of the University of Wyoming.(但怀俄明大学的布莱恩·舒曼指出，为杰克逊湖供水的蛇河上游，“几乎是整个西部唯一积雪水量接近正常的地方”。) In fact, the lake’s plight(困境、窘境) owes as much to people and policy as to weather.
人们很容易认为，落基山脉去年冬天降雪极差，是杰克逊湖水位偏低的全部原因。但怀俄明大学的布莱恩·舒曼指出，为杰克逊湖供水的蛇河上游，“几乎是整个西部唯一积雪水量接近正常的地方”。事实上，这座湖的困境，人为因素和政策因素与天气因素同样难辞其咎。