fire

Goats, Fire, Improvements, Restoration, Camp Out – 3/25/2016

Updated - Posted - Charles Miles
Cliffs below Pusch Peak and Bighorn Mountain in the sunset from the Linda Vista Trails. March 2016.
Cliffs below Pusch Peak and Bighorn Mountain in the sunset from the Linda Vista Trails. March 2016.

The Santa Catalina Bighorn Sheep Reintroduction Project update for the period ending March 9 was released earlier in the month – it reports that 19 lambs have now been observed this season and estimates the population could be up to 87 sheep! However the most fascinating Bighorn news for the month was probably Domestic sheep, goats pose threat to Catalina bighorns from the Arizona Daily Star. Signs have been posted at several trailheads warning that domestic sheep and goats can transmit diseases to bighorns – apparently there was a report of someone walking a goat on the Finger Rock Trail. Walking the goat is legal – the signs are meant to discourage people from unknowingly endangering the bighorn sheep in the area.

Hiker with medical issue dies at Seven Falls, Arizona Daily Star: A 62-year-old hiker died on a trip to Seven Falls.

Firefighters extinguish small brush fire on Mt. Lemmon – TucsonNewsNow: A human caused fire near the Butterfly Trail was put out by Mount Lemmon Fire District Crews – a camp grill left burning and unattended has been indicated as the cause.

The plans for Improvements at the Marshall Gulch Trailhead and Picnic Area – “replace restrooms, renovate picnic sites and trailheads, install vehicular bridges over stream, naturalize stream channel, and improve roads and parking areas” – is now listed as expected in July 2016 – Schedule of Proposed Actions for the Coronado National Forest.

Partners continue Lower Bear Canyon restoration – Coronado National Forest: “The Santa Catalina Ranger District, Coronado National Forest and the Sky Island Alliance will continue work on a project in Lower Bear Canyon to remove invasive fountain grass and restore native plants for pollinators and other wildlife. The year-long project is funded by the National Forest Foundation, and is expected to continue through May.”

Some seasonally-closed gates reopen on Mt. Lemmon – Coronado National Forest: This release was from the beginning of March and notes some gates as still closed – while these gates may be open now this is a good reminder that there are a number of gates that close seasonally and warm weather in Tucson may not always be a good indicator about the ice/snow/conditions of road thousands of feet higher up the mountain.

7 runs: Break a sweat, enjoy the party, Arizona Daily Star: A schedule of selected runs including a long running, and quite fun, trail run in Catalina State Park.

A colorful spectacle: Canyons in bloom, Arizona Daily Star: Great wildflower pictures and a call out for the flowers along the Ventana Canyon Trail.

Brief snowstorm blankets Mount Lemmon, KVOA.com – Despite overnight snowfall, Catalina Highway is open, TucsonNewsNow: In early March there was a wonderful storm that, briefly, brought new snow to the mountain!

Introduce the family to camping in a state park, TucsonNewsNow: The Arizona Family Campout Program is taking place in Catalina State Park April 16 and 17 – the program is for families that have little or no camping experience, families are asked to bring some equipment but tents, sleeping mats, chairs, help, knowledge and activities are provided! Registration is required – see the Arizona Family Campout Program page for information.

One of the many rocky points on the ridges below Pusch Peak. March 2016.
One of the many rocky points on the ridges below Pusch Peak. March 2016.

 

Burned and Disappearing, Upper Pontatoc Canyon Trail – 3/5/2016

Updated - Posted - Charles Miles
A Yucca transformed by fire on the Pontatoc Canyon Trail. March 2016.
A Yucca transformed by fire on the Pontatoc Canyon Trail. March 2016.

The upper section of the Pontatoc Canyon Trail – above the last crossing of Pontatoc Canyon at ~2.1 miles – has been faint/overgrown in some places for years – but the Finger Rock Fire has made it even more obscure.

Not long after the last canyon crossing you enter the burn – not everything is scorched, but the fire was not subtle.

Burned Yuccas lay among flowers and stand in strange and unexpected shapes. Short stretches of the trail are still identifiable – but it would have been difficult to link those sections together without help from occasional cairns. At least for now it seems the upper section of the trail has almost been erased – perhaps in another few seasons the sturdy ‘End of Trail’ sign, still standing in the canyon bottom, will be a puzzling and obscure landmark…

Fire and flowers along the Pontatoc Canyon Trail. March 2016.
Fire and flowers along the Pontatoc Canyon Trail. March 2016.
A fallen burnt Yucca along the Pontatoc Canyon Trail. March 2016.
A fallen burnt Yucca along the Pontatoc Canyon Trail. March 2016.
A fire formed black pod along the Pontatoc Canyon Trail. March 2016.
A fire formed black pod along the Pontatoc Canyon Trail. March 2016.

Balloon, Vandalism, Firescape, Bighorn – 2/14/2016

Updated - Posted - Charles Miles
Balloon - trash on a hillside above La Milagrosa Canyon - there was a 2nd balloon below... February 2016.
Balloon – trash on a hillside above La Milagrosa Canyon – there was a 2nd balloon below… February 2016.

Balloons floating up into the sky can seem beautiful and symbolic – but after picking up balloons from an astounding number of places in the mountains – including many off-trail destinations with no sign of people/trash for miles – I cringe when I see a piece of floating trash ascending into the sky… For more sad pictures of balloons and a bit more information see Balloons in the Backcountry.

In January a boulder with a petroglyph was pushed over and some surrounding vegetation was damaged in Catalina State Park – if you have any information please contact the Coronado National Forest Supervisor’s Office at (520) 388-8300. It is sad anyone would vandalize a site like this – January was not a great month in regards to vandalism with an incident also reported in Saguaro National Park. Vandalism at Catalina State Park – Coronado National Forest, Catalina State Park vandalism under investigation – Arizona Daily Star, Native American petroglyph vandalized at Catalina State Park – TucsonSentinel.com, Vandals strike Catalina State Park – Tucson News Now.

The comment period for the Catalina-Rincon FireScape Project  is open and the Forest Service is holding several open houses about this project:

  • Saturday, February 20, 2016 – 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.  Chuck Bowden Mt. Lemmon Community Center, 12949 N. Sabino Canyon Parkway., Mt. Lemmon, AZ
  • Tuesday, February 23, 2016 – 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.  Oracle Fire Department, 1475 W. American Ave., Oracle, AZ
  • Thursday, February 25 – 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.  Morris K. Udall Regional Center, 7200 E. Tanque Verde Rd., Tucson, AZ

The press release from the Forest Service provides this quick summary of the project – “The CRFS is a landscape-scale restoration project that focuses on promoting resilient ecosystems; protecting life, property, and natural resources; and encouraging natural wildland fire to function as a healthy process in the ecosystem” – and the Scoping Notice provides background including:

The fire history recorded by tree rings indicates that, since the beginning of the early 20th century, the frequency of natural fire has decreased dramatically. Tree-ring research has shown that for many centuries, the Santa Catalina and Rincon mountains shared broadly similar fire regimes and ecosystem properties. However, since the early 20th century, natural fire regimes have been significantly altered because of grazing (which removes the fine fuels that carry surface fire) and continued fire suppression.

The latest Santa Catalina Bighorn Sheep Reintroduction Project update was recently released:

  • As of 2/10 the total number of lambs confirmed by visual observation is now 13! The Friends of Catalina Bighorn Sheep Facebook page has links to recent video/pictures.
  • Ewe #39540 died in the first part of February – “she had suffered a severe injury to her left front leg in addition to a
    superficial wound on her chest, both injuries likely sustained in a fall” – samples have been sent for disease testing.
  • Test results from Ewe #39554 who died in December indicate that she did not have pneumonia and that injuries sustained in a fall were the likely cause of death.

Coronado National Forest waives fees in honor of Presidents Day – Coronado National Forest: Coronado National Forest will waive fees at most of its day-use recreation sites Monday, February 15, in honor of Presidents Day – Fees are waived generally for day-use areas, such as picnic grounds, developed trailheads and destination visitor centers!

Recreation projects completed on Mt. Lemmon – Coronado National Forest: A recent press release from the Coronado National forest notes several recently complete projects include 22 new interpretive signs along/near the highway and new restrooms at the Cypress Picnic Area and Showers Point Campground.

Rescues/Accidents/Incidents including information from the SARCI Newsletter:

  • Finger Rock Trail 1/16/2016 – Hikers descending from Mount Kimball ran out of daylight on the way down the Finger Rock Trail, ended up at Linda Vista Saddle and couldn’t find the way down.
  • Alamo Canyon 1/18/2016 – Hikers returning from Romero Pools ended up in on the slopes of Alamo Canyon.
  • Blackett’s Ridge 1/20/2016 – A fall results in ankle, knee and face injuries – injured hiker was flown out by helicopter.

 

Fire Near Pusch Peak – Bighorn Mountain Fire – 8/23/2015

Updated - Posted - Charles Miles

Update 8/26: This fire was called the Bighorn Mountain fire – the Forest Service reports that the fire was caused by lightning and in a fly over on 8/24 (the morning after the fire started) no fire activity was observed (report here). Bighorn Mountain (Wildfire) – WildfireAZ.com,  Wildfire burning on Pusch Ridge – Tucson News Now.

Midnight Update: I could still see two very small/faint orange dots on the mountain, but the fire appears to be very very small at the moment compared to the picture below…

If you are in Tucson you may have seen the smoke and flames near Pusch Peak – I haven’t seen any news yet about this fire but here is a picture from town.

A fire burning just below Pusch Peak in the Push Ridge Wilderness, Santa Catalina Mountains, Coronado National Forest. August 2015.
A fire burning just below Pusch Peak in the Push Ridge Wilderness, Santa Catalina Mountains, Coronado National Forest. August 2015.

Bighorn Pneumonia Deaths, UFOs, Fires, Bowden – 8/16/2015

Posted - Charles Miles

First the first time in months there was some bad news for the Bighorn Sheep in the Santa Catalina Mountains with 3 deaths reported. While some deaths are inevitable Pneumonia has been identified as a cause and that could cause delays in plans for releasing additional sheep – Mark Hart for AZGF: “That doesn’t mean we couldn’t come back later and do an introduction in 2016 or 2017, but until we’re sure how widespread the disease is among the population up there, we’re going to have to take a wait and see attitude.”

 

Wildfire Can Benefit Wildlife; Bighorns Not in Danger – Arizona Public Media, Latest on bighorn sheep from AZ Game and Fish – Tucson News Now: AZGF reports that the Buster Mountain Fire and Finger Rock Fire did not have a negative impact on the Bighorn Sheep in the Santa Catalina Mountains and that in fact these fires will probably improve the habitat for the sheep.

Hiker reported missing in Catalina State Park has been found – Tucson.com: A hiker that was late returning from a few nights on the mountain is located and able to walk out with assistance.

Kerwin Dewberry incoming Coronado National Forest Supervisor and Ken Born new Santa Catalina District Ranger: New personnel in Coronado National Forest and the Santa Catalina Ranger District.

UFO Lights Up Tucson Sky Like Christmas Tree – Huffpost Weird News, UFOs caught on video by two night vision cameras near Tucson, Arizona – OpenMinds UFO News and Investigations:  UFOs filmed from Sabino Canyon over the Santa Catalina Mountains?!?

Late author Chuck Bowden will be honored Saturday – Arizona Daily Star,  Mt. Lemmon center to be dedicated Saturday to late author Chuck Bowden – TucsonSentinel.com: The community center on Mount Lemmon will be named for well known author and journalist Charles Bowden. Supervisor Ray Carol said “we thought it was appropriate to name the Mount Lemmon Community Center for him because of his devotion to the Catalina.” Bowden wrote the brilliant and sad Frog Mountain Blues about the Santa Catalina Mountains.

Injured vulture on Mount Lemmon released into wild – KVOA.com: A nice story about a injured vulture who was caught, allowed to recover and released back on the mountain.

Sabino Canyon remains open while restroom repaired – Tucson News Now, Sabino Canyon Visitor Center restroom to be reconditioned – Coronado National Forest

See a quirky cactus collaboration in Sabino Canyon – Arizona Daily Star: A prickly pear growing on a Saguaro…

 

Other Trail Incidents:

  • Hikers or Bikers loosing the trail: Sutherland Trail (this is likely not the last time this will happen – currently Sutherland is an attractive route up/down the mountain but one of the easier trails to get lost on), Butterfly Trail
  • Heat/Illness: Bear Canyon to Seven Falls and Pima Canyon