2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Questions and reports related to Sierra Nevada current and forecast conditions, as well as general precautions and safety information. Trail conditions, fire/smoke reports, mosquito reports, weather and snow conditions, stream crossing information, and more.
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maverick
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by maverick »

Hi Tollermom,

Try this: http://www.techland.time.com/2013/08/26 ... -wildfire/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Professional Sierra Landscape Photographer

I don't give out specific route information, my belief is that it takes away from the whole adventure spirit of a trip, if you need every inch planned out, you'll have to get that from someone else.

Have a safer backcountry experience by using the HST ReConn Form 2.0, named after Larry Conn, a HST member: http://reconn.org
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rlown
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by rlown »

quit being so tech. wind is SW.. guess where it hits. just go south.
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kpeter
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by kpeter »

Looks like some good news. Higher humidity and the fire is no longer spreading very much in NW Yosemite.

It seems to have been stalled for several days on the ride south of Kibbie and is showing little sign of getting closer from that direction.

Then, after leaping east toward Laurel Lake and Beehive a few days ago, it seems to have stopped moving in that direction, and still has not quite cut the trail from Hetch Hetchy to Beehive.

The dramatic spread of the fire south of Hetch Hetchy a couple of days back may have been deliberate backfires from what I read. The perimeter maps do not show it getting any closer to Harden Lake than on the first day it spread along the south shore.

One place it has spread--it has completely surrounded the Shingle Springs trailhead next to Cherry Lake. The entire length of the road from Cherry Dam to Shingle Springs trailhead has burned. It has also burned up the hill to the intersection of the Kibbie Lake and the Kibbie ridge trail. That particular intersection was filled with about 30 deadfall north of the intersection last time I was over it. It probably was quite a bonfire. But the fire must be running into areas that burned not long ago and thus is probably burning mainly brush in that vicinity. I am concerned that it could spread up Kibbie Ridge and approach Kibbie Lake from a different direction than first expected.
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kpeter
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by kpeter »

Well, despite the fire slowing down substantially, it does creep forward, and if it just creeps forever the final results will be just as bad.

The fire has now spread about half a mile north on the Kibbie Ridge trail. There is no particular reason it should not continue north towards Lookout Point, unless they are fighting it up there.

It also creeps along the ridge south and east of Kibbie lake, edging closer to point 7697. At this point it has erased some of the old trail between Flora and Kibbie.

Progress reports sound good--they have made much progress on the fire, but of course they are probably not fighting it in the wilderness but where it threatens structures.
"We are making good progress on the fronts that bump up against communities," said Daniel Berlant, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. But "the dryer conditions have the potential for the fire activity to pick up."

Weather reports are not good, and this could mean that the fire just burns and spreads and creeps along in the wilderness indefinitely.
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old and slow
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by old and slow »

Kpeter -- that makes me want to cry. I'd been meaning to visit the Hetch Hetchy area and now I'm not sure what will be left. I was actually planning a trip to Yosemite last weekend (Mono Pass/Parker Pass) but opted for Desolation Wilderness instead (got a lot of smoke up that way too although the sky did clear up in the evening and the night time star gazing was actually brilliant). Anyway, thanks for the update.
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Tollermom
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by Tollermom »

thanks Maverick for the tech link. I also found a daily modis view.
hope I got the formatting correct.

http://ge.ssec.wisc.edu/modis-today/ind ... tline=true" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
and thanks rlown, I get south is the direction I want but the southern point I hiked last Sunday which was clear (Virginia Lakes to Summit Pass), is under smoke today. Just want to plan my trails and how much gas to put in my car.
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by Shawn »

Found this on supertopo -

http://www.mappingsupport.com/p/fires/2 ... e_map.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Tollermom
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by Tollermom »

Shawn...nice map with the wind directions.
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kpeter
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by kpeter »

Does not seem to be spreading much, but the fire did start coming down the switchbacks towards the North shore of Hetch Hetchy. The trail/old road from Eleanor to Hetch Hetchy is now nearly 100% in the burn zone. However, the trail to Beehive and Vernon has not been cut, which after several days of stagnant fireline in solid forest makes me think that there may be some NPS firefighters up there holding a line.
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KathyW
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Re: 2013 Fire & Smoke Reports

Post by KathyW »

On Saturday I drove from Ely, NV to Bridgeport, CA and then to Convict Lake. Smoke wasn't an issue until got close to Mono Lake, and then it was really bad - it was about 5 or 6 pm when I got close to Mono Lake. Heavy Rain in the Tonopah area had me skip the backcountry drive into Monitor Valley / Mount Jefferson north of Tonopah and reroute over to near Mount Patterson in the Sweetwaters, but the smoke was so heavy around Bridgeport/Mount Patterson that I turned around and headed south on 395. The smoke was really heavy between Bridgeport and Mammoth. I wasn't willing to sleep in that smoke if I didn't have to. I finally camped at Convict Lake because there was a bit less smoke in that area, but it still was like sleeping next to a campfire with the smell of fire and the smoke in the area. Then yesterday morning I woke up and there was smoke in the sky first thing in the morning; so no hiking for me. I headed south on 395. It was clearer south of Bishop, but still a bit smoky and so dry looking. The scenery isn't very spectacular this year along 395 south of Bishop - just too dry. It's just plain ugly looking between Lone Pine and the Cajon Pass.
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