wesmcb.com

I am going to pass on this blog address listed above. It is a family blog turned great info source for the Wallow fire. It is ran by a volunteer cousin of mine, Wes McBride. He is an amazing computer techno wiz (yes you are) and has spent so much of his time, money and efforts in helping our White Mtn. family stay together. I love the spirit of helping and giving we have here. Love all you guys.

Some highlights that really should be called lowlights: Eagar is mandatory evac. I think it is only the south side, but really it should be all Round Valley. If you look at Wes' conversation with a fire expert, you will see that it so close. At the closest it is as far as Patterson's pond is from my house.
Later they had a town meeting and someone mentioned that the fire was a mile and a half from somewhere I couldn't understand. That is to the Oversons or the Wiltbanks from my house. WOW wow wow.


And on an unrelated note: the baby jumped off the the tramp and landed on her back . She is ok... just stunned. Nothing an ice pack or medicine can't fix.

24 hours shifts, extra horses, and blue skies

A quick note of random happenings: the horrid wind died down around dusk last night and as I was feeding animals in the dark at 9 there were stars in the sky-even when I looked back towards Round Valley. We had extra horses from friends who had dropped them off during Wes' ball game. I thought they would come back to stay with us, but never did.

Scott finally was home around 12. He will have to go back and be there by 6. Many guys from RV are taking off to save what they can- they estimated at last night's meeting that there was a 48 hour window to evac before the fire got to town and even though the others will be paid, they are still sacrificing time, family, sleep and etc. The most I can do as a good wife is support my hubs as he supports the job and co-workers. So no getting naggy at bad behavior until things get right.

At 5 this morning skies are blue and the only clouds are along the eastern horizon below our back yard tree line. I walked out to the end of our drive and peered through the snaggle of elms to see the smoke line. It is still tinged yellow/red and is most concentrated where RV would be. I don't smell the sick dead fire smoke smell and even the birds are cooing in the morning.

Good signs but I know things can turn on a dime and someone said we will probably be battling this fire until the monsoons when we will begin to battle the mudslide aftermath.
*sigh*

Lorax, Theeds and the Once-ler

Somewhere in the 70's progress met environmentalism. Environmentalism won and so we did less and less controlled burns, roads to get to "nowhere" and population regulation. Everyone cheered about the forests going back to nature and how that awful man was not being allowed to ruin the forests.

What we allowed (were forced) to happen was the opposite of what the Once-ler did. Maybe it is all Dr. Seuss' fault for putting the vision of the dying forests in my generation's heads. For now instead of lowly little BarBarloots in their Barbaloot suits leaving their ruined forest in a sad endless trail  downtrodden masses, we have our downtrodden masses of homeless families slowly leaving their smoke filled homes. http://youtu.be/lzYRkGIQpOs

The Lorax mentality of "I SPEAK FOR THE TREES" has done this to us. All the mismanaged, red-tape antihunting, anti-touching the forest mentality has outlawed roads, cutting permits and logging in the name of some "real" BarBarloots (like Mexican grey wolves). I even saw an article this week reporting on how the fires were affect the wolves. WOW. Yea, they ARE the real victims here. They have no where else to go poor things.

The real answer is moderation in all things. Man isn't the enemy and today is totally a victim. I wish all those who voted for less management would lose what we have lost this week.

Life marches on.

Even though the smoke is the worst yet, life still happens and faith grows and we just ... do. What else to do but keep busy.

I was going to throw the thing she has nested on away: I will wait

closer shot. Nature is still busy recreating life 

I wanted to see how many time I could take her picture and how close 

baby bird left after the mom flew away

crazy sun

same shot but pulled the lens back a little

Hanging In there 6.6.11 Worst smoke morning yet

6 am 6.6.11 in my back yard

I went outside in the early morning: my favorite time and was hit with a wave of old stink and this view. My neighbors orchird is 1/4 mile from my barn. I can't see them.

sunrise red

pink glow above a red small cold sun

6/4 about 3 PM Wallow Fire Smoke in SJ

I drove down the road and took some pics again. The smoke has changed for the 3rd time today.

at different times of the day, the smoke was being blown into town and at others it was being blown towards Sanders. 

Saturday Jun 4th St. Johns: A day of faith, A day of heartache

I heard the fire was 5 miles from Springerville. My family in RV is packed and ready to evac if needed. I am so sad for the loss of our mountains. It has really hit me hard this morning about the loss. I know most people will be ok and we will recover. I pray that we all are praying for divine intervention of rain or something good to come from this all.

Lord protect us from ourselves. I keep reminding myself that the Lord has a plan.

Around 8 AM outside our back porch: the sun was barely orange

A view from a parking lot: for you SJ-ers, this is the backside of the Padilla/Crosby places. No visibility past the road. Can't see the Davis place or anything in the horizon. The smoke smell was strong, eye-burning.

SJ High School District office  and Tennis Courts. As you can see (not see) past the tree-line going to the JR high.

Another SJ photo: the Issacsons' hill and can't see beyond about 1/2 a mile as the crow flies. I was on the corner of 24th and 15 for these photos about 8:45.

Down N24th West street about 9:30 AM 6/4. Again, on the corner of 24th and 15th.

In Round Valley visibility is about 3 houses. They have not been evac'ed yet, but waiting. Check out inciweb.com for more information and horrific beauty in the photos. 

**later** the wind picked up and blew some of the smoke out toward Sanders. I can see blue sky where in the pictures above 2 hours earlier, I couldn't. This is a mixed blessing. Windy days means more acres burned. It also means less smoke in the low lying areas.