The idea was to take some night pictures of the Oak Fire from the San Pedro Vista and then get a workout on the Incinerator Ridge Trail – the Oak Fire was not as bright/visible as I hoped, but the storm, clouds and lightning were beautiful and and I sat for awhile about 1.5 miles up the trail taking pictures and enjoying the night.
We met a friend and co-worker who was doing a night time Bear Canyon Loop – there was a small breeze in the parking lot, but up on the Phoneline Trail in many of the twists and turns it was still – and quite warm…
The Oak Fire – currently burning in the Galiuro Mountains – was started by lightning on June 17th and is currently just over 11,000 acres – on Sunday smoke from the fire was clearly visible from the San Pedro Vista and at times on the Incinerator Ridge Trail and Kellogg Trails. InciWeb – Oak Fire.
Metro Week: Fire Season Underway, Prep Began Months Ago and Lookouts at Forefront of Fire Spotting – Arizona Public Media – Two articles about the fire season preparations on Mount Lemmon including some interesting details about the Lemmon Rock Lookout.
Bighorn Reintroduction status update for June 9 – June 22, 2014 (updates are currently available here) – no mortalities during this period and the report notes that all 5 of the lambs born this season are alive, healthy and growing. There is a great picture in the report of ram 641 in the Pusch Ridge Wilderness in June and some notes about his movements including that he has covered areas from Sutherland Ridge all the way over to Sabino Canyon!
Enjoyed a beautiful night for a run on the Sycamore Reservoir Trail last night – the highlight may have been the beautiful rattlesnake coiled on the trail, what an amazing sight!
If you have not been to the Gordon Hirabayashi Recreation Site recently note that the gates to the lower parking are have been closed – the upper parking area is open and there is no closure of trails or of foot/bike/horse travel on road thru the campground – you can still enjoy hiking in the area!
