Gary-Summer: August 19, 2024

Monday, August 19, 2024

August 19, 2024 - Delilah Lookout

Title: August 19, 2024 - Delilah Lookout
Hike Info : Description : Extra Photo's : Animals

Hike Info:

Type:Lookout

Description:

My welcoming committee and escort

Got up at 0520 and saw that there was no lightning in the area-which met expectations. But already there has been a bit of excitement on this trip, even before I left the house. Last night, the Ford Ranger did not start. Sherri is making arrangements to get the truck in. So I took the Highlander up to Delilah. I was already packed with only a few things left at the end. Lately, those are the things which have been my downfall. But today, I think I have everything. Addendum: Well, maybe not everything. Evidently when I was copying my needed files to the thumb drive, a whole directory was missing. Also forgot my almond milk. I guess tomorrow’s granola will be dry.

After breakfast, I am off by 0645, about 15 minutes sooner than normal. The trip up is uneventful and I arrive at 0830. Because Sherri is not with me, I only need to bring up enough stuff for one person. That means two trips up the stairs with my food, water and backpack. I will be going down again after my shift to bring up my sleeping back and some more water. Tomorrow, I start taking stuff down.

Smoke pattern from Coffee Pot

Rich, the Delilah lead lookout, texted me to say that there is a new clipboard to record some of the gauges we have up here: power, propane, water levels,… Also he mentions that a bear and its tracks have been spotted on Delilah Springs Road. A mountain lion as well. My response is, oh goody! I have never seen a mountain lion in person-I have been close enough as I have seen their tracks. Also, Sierra bears away from campgrounds are a thing of beauty. There is hope, but also doubt as we have heard this report before.

Visibility is not as bad as I feared and not as good as I hoped. The Coffee Pot Fire to the south in SEKI is puffing out a lot of smoke and it is circling around and coming up the Kings and every low place in my area. I can see the dinginess of the air because there is an inversion layer above me, maybe around 6500-7000’. At least the air is breathable.

At 0931 I go in service with both Sierra and Porterville. A few texts come my way concerning family stuff and the Ranger. It will be towed into the shop. Also Sherri is taking care of calling LG about our refrig. <sarkiness on> Ah, the pleasures of family life that I am missing being up here, suffering as the lonely fire lookout. </sarkiness off>

Inversion layer visible to the west

And then I fall into the routine of lookout like. Scanning every 15-20 minutes, listening to the radio. At 1000 the area weather and the Forest staffing comes on, and then it is back to the routine.

Coffee Pot Smoke

But wait! Around 1040, I get visitors from Fresno: George and Jennifer! They are interested in both fire lookouts as well as the view from here. They are even considering being volunteers themselves. They stick around for half an hour before leaving, apparently satisfied with their stay.

With the wind starting to blow, some of the smoke has blown away, leaving a lot better visibility. Such as I can see Mt Nelson now rather than barely seeing over Patterson Bluffs. This is to the north. To the west and east, there is still sufficient haze that I could barely see 10 miles. Wind has blown away the drifting smoke leaving an enormous smoke cloud originating where the Coffee Pot fire is from. This is 32 miles away and it is very evident where the smoke is coming from.

Not much else exciting for today. Of course the moment I say that, I spot a hang glider over Sontag Point. The glider seems to be just enjoying the loft he is getting from the evening winds. I watch him for a few minutes before continuing on my scan.

Smoke over Park Ridge

Now 1800 approaches and I go out of service with both Sierra and Porterville. My dinner is a quesadilla type meal. I do a few odd jobs to get things cleaned up. Also write up my notes for the day. Then it is off downstairs to get my sleeping bag and a few bottles of water. Now to wait around for the supermoon to arrive. While I am waiting, I go for a short walk.

The moon is to come up at 2004, but because of Park Ridge, I need to wait until 2017. Because of the CoffeePot smoke, the moon comes up an awesome blood red. It is a Wow moment. Once it rises above the smoke layer, it is the normal pale moon we are accustomed to see.