iain Posted August 21, 2003 Posted August 21, 2003 Santiam Pass is burning! Check out the highway camera right now! Yikes! Quote
bunglehead Posted August 21, 2003 Posted August 21, 2003 Who (that travels the ol' Santiam Pass on a regular basis) hasn't thought this was going to happen eventually? It's like matchsticks up there. Still TOTALLY SUCKS to see. Looks like it's burning right through the PCT. Glad I'm not there now! Yikes! Quote
cluck Posted August 21, 2003 Posted August 21, 2003 That's shitty. I'm betting 3FJ won't get many climbers this weekend. When this fire does burn out the approach is going to suck ass. Quote
bunglehead Posted August 21, 2003 Posted August 21, 2003 There's a crag down here that I go to that had a fire scorch the backside of it, and going up to set TR anchors or "walking" down it is pretty treacherous. Some of the climbs are easier than the walk up! Yeah, if it tore through the 3FJ area, that would suck. Fortunately, most of the climbers trail is above the trees. Don't really help the part in the trees, tho. Quote
gapertimmy Posted August 21, 2003 Posted August 21, 2003 the two fires have joined so its now a complex that has burned over 4000 acres already. the other fire started on bear butte south of jefferson, and the other started just north of suttle lake.  the folks that live in black butte ranch are on standby to be evacuated for the 3rd time in a little over a year, the 2nd time this summer  imho, its a conspiracy, george w. set the fire so people will be more receptive to his forest thining ideas that he is going to pitch today in Redmond, OR  DUBYA IN CENTRAL OREGON! we have arrived! Quote
skyclimb Posted August 21, 2003 Posted August 21, 2003 Anyone knwo if the Jefferson Wilderness is being shut down???? I am heading in tomorrow to do a climb via Jeff Park, and that would suck if closed. Quote
iain Posted August 21, 2003 Author Posted August 21, 2003 my guess is the north side of jefferson is open for business, but you might be hacking up a lung depending on wind dir. Quote
MATT_B Posted August 21, 2003 Posted August 21, 2003 Thats shitty??? I disagree. Its a natural part of the forest. Yes it will not look all the beautiful next year but it will grow back. I know it is a bad thing when peoples homes burn down but maybe they should know the risks when the build or move out there (we should all know what it is to take some risk). The one thing I realy don't like about the whole issue is what our fearless leader has done with it. The artical I read in the oregonian was that the bush administration wants to "thin" the forests to prevent wild fires. The example they gave was to leave something like 17 out of every 50 trees in vonerable areas. On top of that they would limit environental challenge. Sounds to me like he us using public fear to make an end run around curent laws (he is good at that). So is this fire shitty? I may agree but it would be becuause of the political impacts not the natural impacts. Quote
bunglehead Posted August 21, 2003 Posted August 21, 2003 gapertimmy said: the two fires have joined so its now a complex that has burned over 4000 acres already. the other fire started on bear butte south of jefferson, and the other started just north of suttle lake.  the folks that live in black butte ranch are on standby to be evacuated for the 3rd time in a little over a year, the 2nd time this summer  imho, its a conspiracy, george w. set the fire so people will be more receptive to his forest thining ideas that he is going to pitch today in Redmond, OR DUBYA IN CENTRAL OREGON! we have arrived!  I had the exact same thought about the fires. I'm kinda glad to find out that I'm not the only one who thinks that. Quote
iain Posted August 21, 2003 Author Posted August 21, 2003 it doesn't have to be GW who did it, it could be any one of thousands in that area who bitch about the standing timber for logging interests. Or some part of the administration may be pulling some strings. Or it may just be a stupid camper or smoker. Â USFS was actually thinning the area between sherman and the pass with controlled burns just last year. the pass summit was not burned for thinning, as far as I can tell. there was a lot of insect-related tree death up there. Quote
gapertimmy Posted August 21, 2003 Posted August 21, 2003 i'm gonna go streak the redmond airport with cc.com written on my white ass just as airforce one comes mobbin in to town. Quote
wayne Posted August 22, 2003 Posted August 22, 2003 The timing is eerie .Were there thunderstorms? Quote
iain Posted August 22, 2003 Author Posted August 22, 2003 I wonder if gw will get breakfast at the redmond Big O tomorrow Quote
skyclimb Posted August 22, 2003 Posted August 22, 2003 SOM BITCH. DAMMIT ALL TO..... Just as I am getting ready to leave tonght, I find this.... http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/willamette/ Closed...CLosed.....Closed.... AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Well Going to flagstone tomorrow, and smiffy on saturday. Probably be on the north point at smiffy. Maybe see some of you there....... Jefferson, you are still MINE. Quote
jlag Posted August 22, 2003 Posted August 22, 2003 I was up on the fire last night with F.S. and the fires have not joined. The Booth fire is MILES away from the Bear Butte fire. The Bear Butte fire is pretty mellow, already crossed into the reservation, I saw their cats cutting line near the wilderness boundary. The booth did double in size overnight, over 20,000 acres now and 0% contained. I saw flames over 150' high ripping towards 3FJ. The reason they evacuated Camp Sherman is because of the shape of the fire, it's 7 miles(over that now) long from S to N. When winds come out of the west the fire will grow very large very fast, right towards Camp Sherman with limited escape routes. Yes I believe the fires are arson, number of reasons why: to back up George W's Healthy Forest Initiative, job security for firefighters and mainly because that area needs to burn. If the fire jumps the highway near the 11 Road you can kiss Camp Sherman goodbye. Quote
iain Posted August 22, 2003 Author Posted August 22, 2003 how about hoodoo and more specifically those small buildings on the road into hoodoo on the left??? are they doing structural pro on those, or are they out of harm's way (or are they ashes now ) Quote
Fejas Posted August 22, 2003 Posted August 22, 2003 It would so suck if hoodoos bran new lodge, just finnished last year, burned to the ground... Quote
iain Posted August 22, 2003 Author Posted August 22, 2003 and all the santiam pass ski patrol stuff in cinders, and a good friend of mine's small cabin there  well there will be faster access to mt. washington, just like back in the day after the Big Lake fire.  The TFJ approach could be a Bataan death march now though. Quote
Fejas Posted August 22, 2003 Posted August 22, 2003 iain said:Â The TFJ approach could be a Bataan death march now though. Â How so? Quote
iain Posted August 22, 2003 Author Posted August 22, 2003 I was just thinking it's hot and south-facing with no water as it is with the limited trees there, I can only imagine how bad it would be with cinders everywhere and no trees. Just hot hot hot. Quote
Fejas Posted August 22, 2003 Posted August 22, 2003 I gotch ya now, It will be hot... noon never looked more like hell... Quote
jlag Posted August 22, 2003 Posted August 22, 2003 Luckily the new lodge has a great deal of defensible space due to the parking lot and little trees down low near the edge of the lot. I imagine most of the small building on the edge are toast, I do know that there's an engine stationed in the lot at Hoodoo to keep an eye on things. I really hope that mountain maintains, killer little place with no crowds on powder days. Quote
steepconcrete Posted August 22, 2003 Posted August 22, 2003 iain said: and all the santiam pass ski patrol stuff in cinders, and a good friend of mine's small cabin there  My family also has a cabin. I bacically live up there in the winter. The last we got word the cabins are still there, and they have the biggest structural crew working on em as of last night.  Check out this BIG (sorry) pic of Potato Hill, in paticular the back of Boars Tooth. It is from yesterday, I think/hope. Just a mile west of the cabins.   I don't see how they could survive. The trees are so dence and the cabins are so dry. If the pic is from today we could be toast. Hope we have time to rebuild.  Hoodoo has 50,000 gallons of water stored for this. The new lodge is made out of carbon fiber with a latex roof. There is a little wood, but not much. It would be hard to burn it. Quote
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