Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Fire maps tell one story....

According the fire maps and satellite photo's of the Rough fire, there were many hot spots and patches of raging fire which surrounded the Boyden office and staff camp. We were not optimistic that the camp would survive. Also with the canyon winds carrying fire embers blowing past our little gift shop there was a good chance the shop would not have survived. However the good news came in late Monday night (August 24, 2015) that the camp and gift-shop currently are not affected by the fire. Now there is plenty of fire left in Kings Canyon which could still affect us, but with the number of fire crews, tankers and equipment dispersed throughout the park and forest we can be cautiously optimistic that Boyden will be spared. How can we possibly thank everyone for their tremendous efforts and determination to protect our homes and business.  One sad story to report, Kings Canyon Lodge located  about 7 miles north of Boyden Cavern did fall victim to the fire, the lodge has been a favorite of many visitors over the years and a personal favorite of mine. I have known the Evans family for years and hope that they are able to recover from this and come back stronger than ever. If anyone would like to help the Evans family rebuild let them know by clicking on the Help Rebuild Kings Canyon Lodge Link

For more information on the Rough Fire I have three links available now
Hume Lake

Inciweb_Rough Fire Kings Canyon

http://wildfiretoday.com/2015/08/18/rough-fire-east-of-fresno-ca-forces-evacuation-of-hume-lake/

We still have no word as to when the lower part of the forest and respective park including Cedar Grove will be open. I will keep updating our blog as I get information from my sources.

Finally I will try to speak with a geologist about how the fire will affect the lands, the highway into the canyon (tremendous rocks slides reported already), and with the possibility of a El Nino this winter how large rain and snow fall will affect the burned areas.

Friday, August 21, 2015

Rough Fire Update

We have no anticipated opening of Lower Kings Canyon and Boyden Cavern

Kings Canyon is one of the deepest river carved canyons in the nation. With the canyon measuring at about 8000' deep with shear walls of rock, one would think that fire danger would be fairly minimal. The problem is along the south western edge of the canyon, brush and fuel for the fire is thick and dry.... Now the fire is moving toward Hume Lake at an amazing speed, just to the south of Hume Lake is an area called camp 7, an old logging area that was logged back when Boyden was in the area around 1906. What the loggers found were trees of enormous size in both height and girth. Giant Sequoias grow in this area and are approximately four thousand years old. Today the Rough fire is threatening these groves of Sequoias with the intensity of fire that these trees may have never had to endure. Although Giant Sequoias have an amazing fire resistant bark and historically have stood the test of time, the Rough fire may prove more than even these mighty trees can withstand.

Keep an eye on the below link and see all the smoke around Hume Lake, as we learn more we will update this page.   http://wildfiretoday.com/2015/08/18/rough-fire-east-of-fresno-ca-forces-evacuation-of-hume-lake/


Monday, August 17, 2015

Fire in the Kings Canyon

Effective Immediately 

Boyden Closed Due to Forest Fire

 

As of August 15th the United States Forest Service has closed Highway 180 at the Hume Lake turn off, approximately 14 miles above Boyden Cavern. All of the lower portion of Kings Canyon including Cedar Grove has been evacuated, that way fire crews can move along Highway 180 unhindered by general public and vehicle traffic. 

 Currently there is NO estimated reopening date, we have a high pressure area over the park and temperatures are high with conditions critically dry, our guess is there may be several days of Park closure or longer, please keep an eye on our blog for the most up to date information.

For those of you who would like the most current status on the "Rough" fire click on the below link.  

 Lower Kings/Boyden Rough Fire Status