
“Our role in life is to bring the light of our own souls to the dim places around us.”
My online journal where I share my interests in photography, nature, coffee life, journaling, fountain pens, bicycling, spirituality and asking deep questions.
Yesterday afternoon a new fire began in the Rist Canyon Area. It began as a brush fire and is located about 12 miles from my condo. The above image was taken yesterday evening around 6:40 pm at Reservoir Ridge Natural Area, a favorite hangout for me. Here is what that scene normally looks like at sunset. This is in the same vicinity of the High Park fire back in 2012 that burned over 87,000 acres and killed one woman. Needless to say the air quality is horrible at the present moment. We are now getting smoke from our two fires and but also the smoke from California fires are now moving into the area, even reaching as far east as Nebraska.
If you look closely in this image you can see the helicopter carrying a bucket of water to the fire. They have brought in firefighters from the Cameron Peak Fire in an attempt to gain control as quickly as possible. But, we are talking about nature which we have no control over. Last report I saw this morning the fire had grown to 140 acres at 11:00 pm last night with 0% containment.
The Cameron Peak fire is now over 19,000 acres and at 0% containment. Weather conditions are not good. Temperatures are expected to be in the 90’s the next five days with no precipitation. I’m inside this morning with my door closed because of the smoke. Not burying my head in the sand but trying not to take in any more smoke and soot than necessary. Probably not going to run a marathon today but I will try to get my walk in.
Smoke hovers over the city
The foul smell of smoke, now choking
The amber color uninviting, otherworldly
So quiet, birds sing in silence or elsewhereDespairing mood in this darkened world
Close my eyes, pray for a brighter day
Open my eyes, but nothing changed
I go for a mocha, stare at blank pagesI sit in the quiet, seek the light within
Wishing it will shine on this gloomy day
Now write words, they keep me in the present
Even in this blackness we do not give up hopems
Awoke early, had my quiet time, made a french press then drove up to Pineridge Natural Area. Quiet up there and had the place pretty much to myself. The smoke from Cameron Peak Fire is very noticable in this image, especially in the color. The fire is now over 14,000 acres with over 500 firefighters attempting to control mother nature.
I had some journaling time at the natural area then did a short walk to get the heart rate up. I meet Joe for coffee this morning then cleaning around the condo. It’s gonna be a laid back kinda day. We need days like this.
This is not the easiest scene to photograph but it’s much easier than trying to fight a forest fire. The sun has been an eerie red color for the past few evenings due to the smoke generated by the Cameron Peak Fire. I have stopped in my tracks several times to just look at the bright red color of the sun. As of last night the fire had grown to over 12,000 acres and has crossed over Highway 14. Today’s temperature is going to be above 90 again but winds are to be calm, which adds to the heat. The smoke has been strong, causing my eyes to burn, and the smoke on my clothes remind me of campfire days as a young man. This is not the best image to start the week with but it is what it is. Have a great day!
We now have a forest fire about 60 miles west that is affecting us smoke. This was taken last night at Reservoir Ridge Natural Area. Here is a link to the fire status. This morning we can definitely smell the smoke as it hovers over the city. Sure has an eerie feel to it.
It has been cold the past few days. The 15 inch snowfall we had has not melted due to the cold temperatures. However, there is hope over this weekend as we could reach 50 degrees. I will not complain as there is major weather stuff happening all over the world that’s destroying peoples homes and massive amounts of land. It’s almost incomprehensible that almost 7 millions acres have burned in Australia.