June's cold rains may have put off your backyard garden plans, but they were great for the state's reservoirs, especially Bear Lake.

That's because the rains delayed farmers' need to tap their irrigation shares and helped modify the snowmelt, which filled most of the reservoirs.

In fact, at the end of Utah's water year Wednesday, total precipitation was just short of average for the past 30 years, said Todd Adams, assistant director of the state Division of Water Resources.

The statewide precipitation average was the fourth-highest for the decade; only 1999, 2005 and 2006 were wetter. Utah's reservoirs on average are 67 percent full, slightly higher than the long-term average.

Bear Lake accounts for nearly half of the 33 percent deficit. Yet the lake now holds about 170,000 more acre-feet than it had this time last year -- a 60 percent improvement, Adams said.

The Bear River's headwaters are in the High Uintas, which had "a great runoff" this past spring, he said. But several dry years literally have left a big hole to fill and it's going to take a while to catch up.

"This year was kind of one of those recovery years," Adams said.

While northern Utah benefited from June's three weeks of stormy weather, reservoirs in the Sevier region are significantly below the 30-year average, according to the state report.

The water-year data was collected at 77 stations in the mountains.