DO NOT WANT TO BE AN ALARMIST….HOWEVER….
THE OTHER DAY I WONDERED: COULD THE DETWILER FIRE BURN TO THE SOUTH AND AROUND LAKE McSWAIN AND THUS THREATEN THE LAKE DON PEDRO SUBDIVISION?
NOT LIKELY. OK.
BUT NOW KNOWING IT HAS MADE IT TO THE HORSESHOE BEND REC AREA—-
WHAT ABOUT IT CIRCUMVENTING LAKE McCLURE TO THE NORTH AND AROUND HORSESHOE BEND RECREATION AREA AND PROCEEDING WEST WITH THOSE STRONG WINDS TO THE LAKE DON PEDRO OWNERS ASSOCIATION SUBDIVISION AND VINICITY?
STILL PROBABLY NOT LIKELY BECAUSE
\ THE SUBDIVISION IS QUITE A DISTANCE AWAY….
……BUT – SO WERE COULTERVILLE AND MARIPOSA A FEW DAYS AGO!
NEVER SAY NEVER!
HOPE FOR THE BEST – PREPARE FOR THE WORST.
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Thurs/July 20th, 2017 @ 0830hrs: Just heard on KCRA CH3 television news: +70,000 acres, 45 structures destroyed (unknown number of residences), 10% contained and over 3,000 personnel working to stop the Detwiler Fire.
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THURSDAY July 20th, 2017 @ 0745 hrs
BELOW: From the Lake Don Pedro subdivision looking Southwest towards Merced
LOOKING TOWARDS MARIPOSA (Southeast)
Pencil point approximate area of fire @ HORSESHOE BEND this morning
THURSDAY July 20th, 2017 @ 0620hrs – Just returned home after a short “field trip”. The photo below was taken from Alamo Drive in the subdivision looking towards Coulterville:
Looked like it was around the HORSESHOE BEND area of Lake McClure – so took a quick trip up HWY 132 to check it out. Yup, CHP had 132 closed right after the right turn into Horseshoe Bend so I pulled in to see if there was any view of the fire.
BELOW: HORSESHOE BEND BOAT LAUNCH AREA/LAKE McCLURE around 0400hrs: Fire was slowly advancing AGAINST THE WIND! Ash was lightly falling like snowflakes – the sound of that roaring fire in the background with an occasional “pop” of vegetation exploding due to the heat was quite a contrast to the rhythmic relaxing lapping of lake waves on the shore.
JUST BEFORE SUNUP A WATER TANKER ARRIVED TO
FILL UP WITH LAKE WATER
ONE OF THOUSANDS WORKING TO DEFEAT THE DETWILER FIRE –
THANK ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE – BE SAFE!
BELOW: Heading back to Lake Don Pedro subdivision via HWY132
RESULTS OF THE BANDERILLA FIRE IN THE SUBDIVISION LAST WEEK
Thursday, July 20th, 2017 @ 0300hrs
Awoke to heavy smoke again so I got up to close windows. The red glow on the horizon to the Northeast appears larger. Just checked the CALFIRE INCIDENT Web page which reported the loss of more structures.
Many years ago while camping up here on my Lake Don Pedro property I woke up in a tent to the smell of heavy smoke from a Yosemite National Park fire in the early hours of the morning. Although I cannot say with any certainly, I do believe this Detwiler Fire is much worse. Outside versus inside difference aside, this seems much worse. Even my eyes are stinging. I cannot imagine what sort of hell lies just beyond those mountains.
