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The Pine Ridge Fire, which at one point had us wondering if we would need to evacuate, is now contained. Here is part of the press release that describes the current situation:

Current Situation

Outlook

So, aside from mop-up operations, for all practical purposes the fire is no longer a danger. That is a relief! Still there seems to be no rest for the weary. Pam and I returned home from a land hunt trip yesterday, July 4, and thought we noticed a difference in the smoke pattern. The smell of smoke was stronger than it had been in a couple days. Reason: Another fire in the area. This one is not big enough (yet) to get listed on the web page at www.iciweb.org, but here is what the latest press release has to say about it:

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July 5, 2012

11:15 a.m.

Fire Works Firefighters on July 4th

De Beque, Colo. –  Lightning caused firefighters to work on the Third Water Springs Fire approximately 25 miles up Roan Creek Road on Kimball Mountain northwest of De Beque.

The fire was reported at 1:15 pm yesterday.  It is currently estimated to be roughly 150 acres in size.

There are seven engines, one water tender, five Type II crews, air attack, and two helicopters (one Type II and one Type III) on scene this morning.  The fire is burning in a steep, mountainous area of Garfield County in grass and pinion-juniper vegetation. The fire is burning on Bureau of Land Management public lands.

There is no current containment on this fire.

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Our prevailing winds are from the northwest so the fire could move toward us should the winds pick up. The one saving grace is the weather; humidity is up a bit, winds are down, and the forcast for the next few days includes a better-than-even chance of rain. We are not worried about this fire, but cautious just the same.

I’ll have more on the land hunt trip in my next post, which I hope to get done this weekend.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Well, the fire is still burning.

It has grown to over 13,000 acres, and still impacting our town of DeBeque. While the plumes of smoke have decreased we still smell the smoke in the air and see the aircraft and helicopters flying overhead as they make their way to and from the fire’s perimiter. Hotshot crews are still in town and the local high school is still active as the incident command center.

The fire is getting a lot of local media attention. We have nightly live reports from the TV stations in Grand Junction, and some updates are being posted in Garfield County media. (The fire is in Mesa County. Garfield County is the next county to the east.)

We have returned to a more natural frame of mind. This last weekend we did all our normal things, like mowing the lawn, grocery shopping, and chores around the house. Talk of evacuating the town is no longer heard, and the small area that had been evacuated in case the fire jumped  I-70 had the evacuation order lifted. People could return to their homes, and no homes or property were damaged.

The greatest concern for DeBeque is loss of power if the fire spreads into the area of the power lines. These come out of Grand Junction and follow the Colorado River up to DeBeque. The fire is heading south-west toward these lines, but it seems the fire is on top of the mesa and not along the river proper, thus staying away from the lines for the moment.

Some of the media reports have been inaccurate, such as the one in the Glenwood Post Independent that said residents had been evacuated from east of DeBeque. Not true.  We are about 32 miles from Grand Junction, although the towns of Palisade and Clifton are a few miles closer. One site put the fire 13 miles from Grand Junction, which would put the fire some 9 – 10 miles  from DeBeque instead of the actual 2 – 3 miles. I-70 runs more-or-less east and west, but does take some turns north and south as it follows the Colorado River. It seems odd to read phrases like “east of I-70” or “west of I-70” when, to us, the directions are north or south of I-70.  Oh well.

That’s about it. Although the fire is still burning, and is only about 35% contained at this time, it has dropped from being a concern for us. Life has pretty much returned to nornal.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam and I have received several calls and e-mails regarding the Pine Ridge Fire burning very close to our current residence in DeBeque. Our status: we have not been evacuated nor does it look like we will need to evacuate. (You can check for updates at www.inciweb.org. Look for the Pine Ridge Fire link.)

In this case the fire  was caused by lightning. The fire moved quickly, fueled by dry vegetation, low humidity (single digits) and moderate to strong winds.

Last night there was a community meeting to discuss the fire, including evacuation preparations. A small residential area was evacuated in case the fire jumped I-70, but that section is about 2 miles from our house. It is this evacuation notice that seems to be causing great consternation with our friends!

A back fire was begun last night and was sucessfully completed this morning. This created a safety zone between the town and the main fire. There are 2 major concerns: flying embers causing house fires and power outages as the town’s power lines run though the fire area and may be damaged or destroyed.

The first concern, structure fires, has been addressed with extra fire trucks and crews stationed in DeBeque. These crews and trucks are on the move around town and seem to be in plentiful supply.

The second concern, loss of power, has not happened yet but is still a real possiblity. Since the wires could actually burn up, replacing them would be a multi-day project. In the interim, no power for refrigeration, air conditioning, or town pumps. We have a small generator that is  large enough to power the refrigerator (we have no freezer) and a fan or two and a couple lights. We could get by. The town has back-up generators for the water plant so we assume water would still be available.

Today was the make-or-break day. With the sucessful back fire and additional trucks and crews in place it is unlikely we will have to evacuate, but that is still a possibility. There is smoke and ash in the air, and I-70 has been closed periodically. Helicopters are grabbing water from the Colorado River along I-70 and officials don’t want them bumping into road traffic. The volume of smoke and ash has been decreasing as the day goes on, a good sign the worst is over.

Here are a few photos of the smoke plume as taken from the I-70 and DeBeque interchange and from our back yard: (DeBeque is about a mile to the right of this interchange.)

Wednesday evening from I-70 interchange

Wednesday’s smoke plume from our back deck

Thursday’s smoke from our back deck

Thursday’s plume of smoke from I-70

Plume of smoke in the sky

We are still watching this closely, but wanted to let everyone know we are OK, have not been evacuated, and by the look of things right now, won’t have to evacuate.

Several local friends have offered their facilities for us to use should the need arise, and we greatly appreciate these generous offers! Should anything else develop we will be in contact with our children Felicity and Toby and will try to add a quick post to this blog.

Thanks to all for the calls and concern. They are greatly appreciated by both of us.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

I have a lot of ground to cover in this post, so let’s get started.

I generally like to post at least every 2 weeks, but  the delay from the last post to this one was due to a bout with the flu, which kept me down for about 4 days. Ever since my illness in January of 2011 I seem to be susceptible to the stomach flu. Not fun.

The kittens are entering their cute stage, about 5 weeks old, and are beginning to explore their surroundings.  Here is a photo of all 6 of them:

Kittens at 5 weeks

I figure we did well to get 4 looking in the same direction at the same time! Some of them are developing a taste for being petted and will roll over to have their chin scratched or tummy rubbed. They are a well- adjusted and healthy group.

I did make a land hunt trip, solo, on my motorcycle a couple of weekends ago. This time was a return to the Lake George area to look at a cabin on 3 acres. Not mentioned in the listing was the fact the cabin is off-grid and has no running water. Pass! It was a gorgeous day to ride, however, and I checked  a few other properties as well. I called the guy who was going to list his lot, and he indicated family problems (his father had a severe stroke) had delayed his moving ahead with the listing. I have a bad feeling about this. We will give this another few weeks, and if nothing happens we will move on.

Computer update: I have decided to replace my 10 year old Mac G4 with a newer (not new) model. Apple is changing its e-mail and other services to run in “the cloud” and I need a Mac new enough to run the latest software. I bought a used Mac Pro from E-bay and will be configuring it in the next couple weeks. Moving all our Favorites, music, photos, and other files from the old to the new system will take some time. The result will be a faster system for us and the ability to run newer copies of our favorite programs.

Around the house, yard work is big. Although there was a freeze warning this last Friday night – Saturday morning, it did not get that cold here. Our Lilacs are blooming and the yard needs mowing, which is on my list for later today. Daffodils are done, and a few Tulips are blooming. Lilies are coming up, and this year, for the first time, Hollyhocks are growing in a couple places. (Pam harvested some seeds from neighbor’s plants and planted them last fall). Hopefully they will bloom and we’ll see what color combinations we get.

I was able to take my ATV to Moab, Utah yesterday to run some trails. The area around Moab is famous for the number and variety of Jeep and off-road trails available for public use. I had to buy an out-of-state annual permit ($30.00) to be legal, but no one was checking permits where I rode. It was a good day; I ran 2 trails (Kane Creek and Hurrah Ridge) for a total of about 6 hours of riding. Here are a couple photos from the trip:

LaSalle Mountains near Moab, Utah

Part of the Kane Creek trail

Kane Creek trail scenic moment

It was a good day to be out and about, and I can now say I 4-wheeled in Moab. Given it is a long trip over and back, I won’t be in that area often, but will probably make another trip or two during the course of the summer.

Eli says she wants more photos of our cats and dogs. Well, Eli, here are a few photos for you:

This is what our 3 dogs do most of the day - sleep!

Velvet (in window) and Mira relax in the afternoon sun.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!