I often report from my cabin in Okanogan County, Washington. Or I report as best I can, given that the cabin is fully off the grid and lacks so much as one bar's worth of a phone signal. Turn a phone out there, and all you get is a screen that announces "Searching for Service."
The cabin has pretty much everything a forester-hermit could want: Solitude, trees, an incredible night sky, and an awesome view.
The view across the valley usually looks like this (all images Lightbox, click to enlarge):
The Daily Bucket is a regular feature of the Backyard Science group. It is a place to note any observations you have made of the world around you. Insects, weather, meteorites, climate, birds and/or flowers. All are worthy additions to the bucket. Please let us know what is going on around you in a comment. Include, as close as is comfortable for you, where you are located. Each note is a record that we can refer to in the future as we try to understand the patterns that are quietly unwinding around us.
|
Behind the tranquil scenes, a harsh reality lurks: This is fire country. Rainfall is scarce, and fuels dry out in a hurry. All it takes is a spark on day with 10% humidity and high winds, and the fire is quickly racing up the hills and along the valleys.
I have spent much of my spare time cutting the lower limbs off the large ponderosa pines near the cabin, and the smaller trees across the property. A tree with limbs all the way to the ground will soon become a torch. Pruning the lower branches creates an opportunity for fire to zip beneath the tree without killing it.
Sunday morning, the view was a bit less tranquil than usual. A fire was burning on the other side of the mountains. The overnight temperature inversion had caused the smoke to fill the nearby valleys.
About 3 hours later, as the day grew warmer and the humidity dropped, the smoke billowed higher.
Being off the grid meant having no access to information. How big was the fire? Were any crews working on it? How fast was it spreading, and in which direction? I drove to the Aeneas Store, which despite being only 7 miles away, required a 20 or 30 minute drive to reach due to rough roads. By asking around, and by picking up snippets of conversation with customers, I learned that the fire was pretty much out of control, and was mostly in unoccupied timberlands administered by the Colville Indian Reservation and the US Forest Service. A shifting wind, however, could send the fire towards lands dotted with homes and cabins.
One group of people gathered around a cattle trailer. They had been rounding up cattle from the fire zone, and had picked up about half of the herd thus far.
From the vantage point of the store, the fire was only 2 or 3 miles away. As the fire churned through tall timber on steep ground, smoke rose high into the sky, creating its own cloud at the apex. The edges of the smoke changed as the fire advanced through fresh fuel
The following images show the fire's progress between 5pm and 6pm Sunday evening. Look carefully and you can see the changes. The peak is called Dugout Mountain.
At night, from the safety of my cabin, I could see this ominous glow in the distance.
At last report, the North Star fire covered 22,000 acres. More than 100 firefighters with heavy equipment are attempting to control it.
The area near the North Star fire was the setting for this diary, written last September:
Stranded in the Deep Dark Woods. Rescued by Black Men with Guns. Hopefully the landmarks featured in that story will survive the blaze.
I'm putting this diary in the queue for Wednesday morning. Lacking internet coverage, I won't be able to respond to comments right away. When I go to town later in the day, I will see what everyone has to say. Meanwhile, feel free to report on what's happening in your part of the world. Since it's a Daily Bucket, comments on any nature-related subject are welcome.
UPDATE August 19, 11:30am Pacific Time: Yesterday, with low humidity and strong winds, the fires increased in coverage. Dugout Mountain is mostly burned over. The so-called Devil's Canyon fire, which is the northwesternmost blaze and is thus closest to my cabin, crept over the ridge during the afternoon, and I could see an occasional crown fire on that ridge approximately 5 miles distant.
Last night, I could see a spot of fire even closer than the ridge. At first I was not sure whether it was a new spot fire, or a backfire. Later on, the fire became a distinct line, which indicated a backfire being set along an existing road.
The big challenge comes Thursday night and Friday, when winds will pick up and change direction. That's when we find out how well the fire lines hold. There will be a meeting at Aeneas Store this afternoon, where we can get the latest news on the fire. I will try to report as best I can, but with no internet or phone service, it might be awhile before I can check in again.
I will close with a picture taken at dusk yesterday, looking towards Dugout Mountain. This is a view that I never wanted to see.
**
"Spotlight on Green News & Views" will be posted every Saturday at noon Pacific Time and every Wednesday at 3:30 Pacific Time on the Daily Kos front page. Be sure to recommend and comment in the diary.
**