Title: August 31, 2025 - Park Ridge Lookout
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| The Masked Lookout |
I did have time to have my quiet time before going in service. I looked at 1 Corinthians 11. There are several things which seem so old fashion in there about husbands and wives. But Paul also talks about how both were made for each other. It is a good thing to remember that it is a symbiotic relationship, not hierarchical.
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| Smoke down at Grant Grove |
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| Garnet Smoke |
By the time I went into service, the smoke had dissipated to a great extent. I am starting to see areas which I need to look over. And this is a good thing. Also the smoke smell has left. Actually by this evening, almost all areas are clear, except to the west, and of course right at the fire.
I am doing my scans when I look over in the direction of the Garnet and I see one of the Erickson tankers. It is flying west down the Kings from behind the area I cannot see. These planes are enough to have a lookout just stop and watch their activity. I watched as a second one emerged from the same area. I think they are trying to protect an area from going over the Kings.
About an hour later, I hear a jet to the south, and there is another Erickson tanker flying north over Buck Rock. But this one did not look like the others-it has more red. But when I get on FlightAware, it says it is another Erickson plane. There must be some really strong concern about what is happening to this fire.
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| Tanker |
I fall into a rhythm of scanning, then reading or working on a spreadsheet trying to match fires with lightning strikes. I heard Buck Rock trying to get a hold of Delilah, but there is no answer. I talk with Buck Rock, but he says that Delilah had gone in service this morning. Around noon, Delilah radios me and we talk.. He is getting some visibility. Buck Rock also chimes in and tells Delilah if things get too bad, to go on home. He does stay till the end of his shift.
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| Air Traffic over Garnet Fire |
While I am talking to Delilah, I have visitors-the first time Park Ridge has had visitors in four days. This is a couple from Minnesota. As they leave, another set of visitors comes up. It turns out this is a group of about 20 people from Los Angeles. When it rains it pours.
I have lunch, then do a scan. I notice that there are some people down at the picnic table who are eating. I invite them up. They are four men who are from the Bay Area who are of Indian origin. They listen and are interested in all that I have to say. It helps to have the Garnet Fire as a backdrop to my rambling. They even want to have a picture with me.
When the men leave, four young females who are staying in Fresno, but are from LA come up. Another time to talk. One of the ladies looks like she is dehydrated. I give her one of my bottles of water. I have enough for my needs through tomorrow.
Most of the rest of the afternoon is spent doing lookout things. There were no more visitors. I did sneak in a 5 minute nap. There are reports from the various units which indicate that the fires in the area which I am concerned about are being well taken care of. Some are being called out, others are continuing being in patrol status. Except for the Garnet Fire which continues to be the dominant visual to the north, things are pretty calm around me.
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| Lots of smoke |
While the Garnet Fire is the main show, there were 38 other fires from the storms last week. The area is from Kaiser Peak in the north down to the southern border of Sequoia National Park. Most of these we do not have any special concern about as they are well out of my viewing area. Both Eshom and TUU-Look were discovered by Park Ridge. There is another which is on Big Baldy which E42 checks up on-I would think we would have found this one too. Also there are the Fox and Stony fires which are behind Big Baldy’s ridge. The Big fire is in the Big Meadow area and also is warranting attention. Then there is one which we know where it is on Verplank Ridge, but really do not have a visual. We hear Cobra 4 and Yosemite 33 checking up on this a lot. This might be of bigger concern than the rest. All of these we hear about, except for the Look fire which belongs to CalFire.
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| How Park Ridge Lookout sees the Garnet Fire |
Well that is except for the other types of traffic on the radio. There are medical, traffic stops, missing people and leaky pipes. It is enough to keep my ears busy. But it may be from more of a morbid curiosity than involvement by me. In those cases it is better to make sure I keep out of the way than anything else.
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| Garnet Fire Pyrocumulus |
I also keep an eye on the Garnet Fire. Not because I can contribute, even though if I did notice something terribly out of place, I would say something. But with my frontal view and all of the smoke, I could not tell too much. Delilah would have a much better view than I would. I just am in awe of the immenseness of the fire. Even this fire is not that large by large fire standards-about 18,000 acres. A 100,000 acre fire I could only imagine-the last three in this general area where this fire is. (By the time I post this entry it is over 30,000 acres).
Today, the Buck Rock Foundation has their annual Labor Day weekend event at Buck Rock. Buck Rock is staffed with volunteers until later on in the day when Mich comes in. When she does, she tries to get a hold of Delilah to see how the lookout over there is doing-it is the closest lookout to the fire and has been enveloped in the smoke. But there is no answer. A bit later, I hear him on the Park’s General Use channel. I let Buck Rock know and she contacts Delilah to straighten out the situation.
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| Fire and Glow from Garnet Fire |
Later on I hear Porterville talking with Buck Rock about a smoke being reported at about 21 degrees from her. She spots it at 19 degrees, but across the River in the Park. They do not know if this smoke is an issue or not. This sounds familiar and I look up a few things and let Buck Rock know that it is the Kettle fire which got reported last week. I also give her the coordinates.
The shadows deepen, but I continue to do my scans until I go out of service at 1930 along with Delilah and Buck Rock. After going out of service, I go downstairs, bringing down things which I will not need. It is a bit late for a walk, so I go back up. After getting ready for bed, I talk with Sherri for about an hour and then get to sleep at 2200.
Extra Photo's
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| Clear view looking southeast towards Silliman |
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| Evening glow on clouds over the Garnet Fire |
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| Mountains outlines against evening sky |
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