11:30 pm – last truck through?

8:30 pm – another LPNF Monterey crew came through around 8. What’s that about? But my view of the fire from the front gate looks as if it is knocked down. No wind up here, all afternoon, despite the conditions on the coast and in Big Sur Valley. If internet cooperates, I will post some photos tonight.

7:15 pm – I have been trying to upload a photo for over a couple hours and no go. Plus I can’t update while I do that. So photos later. Two Gabilan crew trucks came through around 6, and a Monterey crew truck around 7 pm. Much of BSVFB is on its way home, Air support has pretty much ceased, but the word I have is that the fire is or will be knocked down by sunset. Mop-up tomorrow, in all likelihood. No worries from my end.

4:30 pm – just went to the front gate to take a look. It is *not* coming this way, it is heading down the face toward Willow Creek, so I am in pretty good shape, unless the wind changes. This was taken from the front gate, at 4:30 pm:

4:00 pm – BSVFB just came through! YAY!! It is going to be a very busy afternoon!

3:45 pm – LPNF E 15 came through at 2:58; LE at 3:25 (Roberta); LPNF Es 18 and 19 at 3:40 pm, with red lights. The fire is at Hard Rock’s driveway, if you know where that is. No evacuation at this time. Planes are laying down retardant, and a helicopter bucket is getting from the ocean. I will post as I can. I am busy taking photos, and as Avis writes below, I am having internet problems. Naturally.

This is the boray tanker. You can tell by the color of its belly. At least, I think it is a boray tanker. The pink on its belly is a little pale. Maybe because it is early in the season? 😉

This was taken from the front gate, around 3:30 pm:

This is the smoke around 2:45 pm from just in front of my place;

Hello readers of Big Sur Kate. Kate is not able to get online and asked me to post this.

As of early this afternoon there is a wildfire on Plaskett Ridge. The information I was told is that it is near the top. Which puts it near Kate’s house. And near Kinnick’s property.

As I am typing this I hear another siren going by.

The following information was given to me from a local who is on the fire brigade.

On scene at this time are the:

U.S. Forest Service – BC – Patrol 18 & Engine 18

Big Sur Fire Brigade – Engine 7832 – 7831 & Fire Brigade Chief.

Planes are flying and I was told they appear to be spotter planes and that helicopters and bombers will be on scene soon.

The Fire Brigade  member also told me,

The grasses are tall and dry up there and this fire will move quickly in the grasses. Fortunately the brush still has moisture in it and when the fire reaches it, it should slow down and that may be where they will be able to contain the fire. But it is windy and nothing is for sure at this time.

The chatter on the USFS radio is of possible evacuations of Plaskett. This has not been yet confirmed.

That’s all I know at this time. I will, or Kate if she is able, post more when we know.

Several fires today near Highway 41 on the way to Yosemite, the Walker, the Ranch, and Yosemite. The Walker (10:50 am: Vegetation Fire :Location: Rd 200 X House Ranch Rd,) and Ranch (11:10 am) fires were relatively close together, and were contained at about 20 acres total this afternoon. The Yosemite Fire near Coarsegold (Location at Rd 415 and Polk Ranch Rd.) just started at 6 pm and is only approximately 5 miles as the crow flies from the Walker incident. The first two fires were in north fork the third is near yosemite lakes park. With resources already on hand, I suspect this one will be contained as quickly as the other two were.

All three of these fires are near Highway 41. Coincidence? I suspect not. Of course, what this all means is that fire season is definitely here, and we need to be aware and fire cautious where ever we are in this state.

Per NOAA: “HAVE UPGRADED THE FIRE WEATHER WATCH TO A RED FLAG WARNING FOR ZONE 511. THIS COVERS THE EAST BAY HILLS AND INLAND HILLS OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY ABOVE 1000 FEET. INTEL FROM LAND MANAGEMENT AGENCIES IS THAT GRASSES BETWEEN 1000-2000 FEET ARE CURED AND WILL CARRY FIRE IN WINDY ENVIRONMENT…THE SACRAMENTO OFFICE ISSUED RED FLAGS FOR THE ENTIRE SAC VALLEY SO WINDY WEATHER WILL BE FELT IN THE DELTA AND OUR FAR EAST BAY VALLEYS AS WELL. FAIR AMOUNT OF PRESCRIBED BURNING AS WELL AS HEADING INTO A HOT WEEKEND RAISES CONCERNS. SPC HAS OUR AREA HIGHLIGHTED IN A CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER THREAT. INTERESTINGLY ENOUGH SEVERAL OF THE RECORD HIGHS FOR TODAY ONLY GO BACK TO 2008 WHEN A SIMILAR SYNOPTIC PATTERN TOOK HOLD. JUNE 10TH IS THE DATE THE INDIANS FIRE STARTED IN MONTEREY COUNTY UNDER A SIMILAR WEATHER PATTERN WITH AN UNSEASONABLY STRONG TROUGH OVER THE GREAT BASIN WITH FAVORABLE WIND FLOW ALOFT FOR CREATING STRONG NORTH/NORTHEAST WINDS IN THE HILLS.”

And this news release was issued by Cal-Fire today, June 11, 2010:

“Sacramento – The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning this weekend for the Sacramento Valley and Bay Area, resulting in an elevated fire danger.
In response to the heightened fire danger, CAL FIRE is increasing its staffing and urging the public to be extra cautious this weekend. “The grass across the region is already dying or dead,” said Chief Andy McMurry, assistant deputy director for CAL FIRE. “Our firefighters are ready to respond to any wildfires, but we really need to the public’s help in preventing fires.”
Today, CAL FIRE will preposition many of its airtankers from the department’s maintenance base at McClellan Air Park in Sacramento County to its air bases across Northern California. Throughout the winter the aircraft undergo extensive maintenance preparing them for firefighting activity. CAL FIRE has staffed its airbases in Southern California since the beginning of May, where conditions have dried out earlier.
The Red Flag Warning stretches from Redding to Modesto and into the East Bay from 11 a.m. Friday to 8 p.m. on Saturday due to a combination of warm temperatures, low humidity and gusty winds.
CAL FIRE officials are urging the public to remain extra vigilant this weekend and help them prevent fires.”

It is time to start really paying attention, particularly since the LPNF policy is to base any campfire restrictions on forest-wide conditions, rather than local conditions, and with high temps predicted for this weekend, it is time to tune the neighborhood watch up a ratchet. I have a number of other “news” events to cover in the next few days, as well as the photographs for the summer header to post for voting, so will be busy keeping you all updated this weekend.

Per a retired FF friend from Ft. Hunter-Liggett, controlled burns on the North Boundary have begun. Camp Roberts in SLO is also engaging in controlled burns, so if you see smoke in those directions, that is what it most likely is.

• Drought: Drought conditions continue to persist over northeast California and northwest Nevada, western Wyoming, western Montana and much of Idaho.
• Snowpack: Snowpack in the Southwest has been well above average, while in western Wyoming through the northern Rockies the snowpack has been well below average.
• Grassland Fuels: Abundant fine fuels across southern Arizona are expected to lead to an active 4-6 week grassland fire season. Fine fuels are not expected to be of concern in the Great Basin. There is an increased large fire risk over the California desert areas in June due to fine fuels, with fire potential decreasing to normal by July.
• Fire Season Onset: In areas with above average snowpack, fire season onset will be delayed due to a later snowpack melt.
• Southwest Monsoon: Early indications suggest monsoon onset will occur around the typical start date or later with associated precipitation amounts near normal for the season.

For additional information, click here: 2010 predictive maps

The good news is our fire potential is below normal.