Rain said at 8:18 a.m. on Sep 22, 2006: Wow! this is a beautiful tabblo. I like the mix of fun, sad (fire) and pretty.
Exlumberman said at 7:33 p.m. on Sep 23, 2006: California State Environmental Logging Company doing their job. Hundreds of thousands of acres of timberland burns again due to piss poor forrestry management. Results in tens of thousands of tons of pollution pumping into our air and streams plus unknown future land slides due to poor soil conditions. Hundreds of thousands of endangered species animals and plants are destroyed or lost forever. And we call this good management?! What a waste!!!
Stupid People!
RBHntr said at 10:39 a.m. on Sep 30, 2006: I agree that forestry management has been doing a terrible job in performing controlled or prescribed burns. I've hunted in parts of this general area for the past 10-15 years and most of it is absolutely impenetrable due to the high, thick, useless chapparal. While there are pockets of animals, for the most part, the chapparal is so thick and tall that grasses, shoots and small shrubs can't grow. It has been just terrible habitat for the critters and the fuel content of the brush is the same as tinder, approx. 95% due to years of drought.
This entire area should've had progressive, prescribed burns performed in years past. Looks like it got all done at once, finally. So while people look at this as a sad event, the truth of it is all is that it is simply a cycle of nature, and certainly is terrific news for animals in that ecosystem as next year shoots will sprout, animal populations will increase, hopefully to what they were 30-40 years ago.
Dsearls said at 10:19 p.m. on Sep 30, 2006: Good points.
There is a reason mature redwoods (the state tree) have short branches that commence 150+ feet up, survive in semi-arid conditions and have thick park that burns slowly: they are adapted to fire.
California's hills were built to burn. I read somewhere that soil studies in Santa Barbara show that the area burned on the average of once every 25 years, before Europeans began showing up.
It's clear that the forest service did its best to let the Day Fire serve as a controlled burn, and to 'doze defensible perimiters in paths toward human habitation: Frazier Park, Ojai, etc.
I just bought some detailed maps of the area today, and look forward to exploring them with my kid next spring when refoliation begins.
Yoach said at 6:34 a.m. on Oct 4, 2006: This fire was just what the Dr. ordered. As you said, years of overgrowth, no controlled burns. Remember this is wilderness, can't touch this. This isn't poor policy, just natural process. Now granted this fire wasn't started naturally, but this area was long overdue for a burn.
Glad no one lost a life.
Pele
CatsEyes said at 10:25 p.m. on Oct 10, 2006: I agree, having lived my whole life in California until last year, the forestry needed the burn badly. We need to give natural process it's due. I have to tell you though, looking at your pictures had made me HOMESICK. I am looking forward to graduating so I may move back to where my heart is. Thank you for the incredible pictures.
