Gary-Summer: October 17, 2019

Thursday, October 17, 2019

October 17, 2019 - Delilah Lookout

Title: October 17, 2019 - Delilah Lookout
Hike Info : Description : Menu : Extra Photo's : Animals : Flowers and Plants

Trail head: Delilah Lookout

Hike Info:

Type:Lookout

Description:

We thought last weekend would be our last time at Delilah for the season. But it was going to be unstaffed for several days, so we offered to switch over to Delilah instead of Park Ridge. They were able to fill Park Ridge, so we are back here for one last hurrah this season.

I got up at 0545, took a shower and had breakfast. We took off shortly after 0700. Sherri was already packing coffee, so we did not stop along the way. Along the Delilah Road, a white truck pulled over so we could pass, but his window was rolled down. So we slowed down and said Hi.They asked if we were going to Delilah-affirmative. Then we talked some-you could tell there was some knowledge of lookouts and how the Forest Service operated. We finally met Shelby who worked as a battalion chief a few years ago. He was the one who saved the Hume Lake area during the Rough Fire by setting a backfire in front of the dam, forcing the fire to go around the lake and the structures in the area. This was an honor meeting him.

Clouds on Pine Ridge

We get to Delilah at 0900 and start loading stuff up, as well as take the weather and raising the flag. At 0930 we go in service with both Sierra and Poterville. Buck Rock came in early and will be leaving a bit early, so we do not hear her go in-service, but we do hear Park Ridge.

The fire which happened a week ago, the Ridge Fire, has been declared out. On a small fire like this one, it seems like they will wait 3-5 days with everything out before calling a fire out.The term they use is No Heat, No Smoke.

We heard Patrol 33’s voice today. We were getting concerned with what happened to her. It is good to hear her.

At 1315, I take the weather. It is colder than this morning. Also the wind is between 13 and 15 mph. But it does not look nearly as hazy as it did in the morning. Also the RH is pretty high, around 65-70%. Which greatly lowers the chance the chance of a fire starting, either spontaneously or set. But the thing which looks interesting is that clouds have been hanging around to the west and are starting to close in.

View from the Delilah Lookout cabin

At 1350, those advancing clouds attacked Delilah and pretty much overwhelmed her. We could not see out, so we told Sierra and Porterville we had no visibility because we were in a cloud. There is a beauty and grace when clouds dance around you. They puff on by, waving their whitish tentacles at you. But there is also menace hidden there. When we look out, we see a darkening gray and blackness to the north-nothing happens today though. After about 45 minutes the cloud gets tired of playing with the lookout and passes on by. There are still clouds above us which looks like, with a little encouragement, will drop down on us. So it is not until a little after 1500 and a phone call from BC31 saying it is OK to go out of service if it does not get better. We let Sierra and Porterville know that we now have a stable 10 mile visibility. Here is a 30 second video to give you an idea:

But both Buck Rock and Park Ridge now are playing with the clouds and they will not be having good visibility for the rest of the day. So they go out of service.

Not much happens, except we admire the clouds and the shadows on the land around us. Then at 1630, we go out of service for the day. We are staying over tonight. But before eating, we decide to go for a walk. Probably distance wise, not too far, about 40 minutes worth. But this is not like walking in Fresno where things are flat. We go down a high and climb back up the other side. This leaves us panting a bit. When we come back down, Sherri steps on something-turns out to be a small stick, which gets driven through her shoe. With a bit of ingenuity, it gets removed and we resume our walk.

By the time I visit the outhouse, Sherri almost has dinner ready. So we get a nice view of the setting sun for our dinnertime atmosphere. We read and stuff before going to bed. Sorry-no evening pictures.