Friends and neighbors,
Thought I’d chime in with a few notes.
I was able to return to Alpine yesterday morning. Passes were issued at the Springerville/Eagar rodeo grounds. Lot’s of us were there bright and early between 9:30 and 10:00. Because I was a few minutes early I took the time to buy a couple of “Wallow Fire” shirts from the vendors parked nearby. I want to truly be able to say, “Been there; done that; got the T-shirt!!”. Also nearby is an ICP camp for some of the firefighters that looks like it’s being used by 700-1,000 folks.
I’d been seeing smoke in the sky since about Midway (I came in on 60 from Show Low) but I didn’t see any roadside burns until I left the rodeo grounds. After that they were immediately evident. The evidence of burning did not get really heavy until after I passed Nelson River Reservoir (I may have missed a few because I was alone and intent on watching for elk as well as emergency vehicles). Near the boat ramp there, a pump and a tank are set up with a flexible line down to the water. It looks as if they have been using that as a helipad.
The Check Point was at the southern Nutrioso road. I had to show my pass and my driver’s license. Then it was straight into Alpine passing a big sign, several fire vehicles, and about 20 fire volunteers from the Alpine Fire Department waving and welcoming returnees. The drive into town was slow because I was trying to take it all in. During the community meetings Joe and Brannon had told us that, “The fire burns in a mosaic. You will be surprised by the amount of green spaces.” They were 100% right. But the scope of the devastation in the burned areas is also surprising. The fire and the wind were capricious in their travels up and down the slopes. Gobbler’s Knob has been cooked. South Mountain has a lot of black areas but seems to still be about half green. Its the same all the way around our valley.
Today and yesterday the wind has blown very hard. When it blows through the severely burned areas it generates giant clouds of ash. The haze this creates is full of ash particulates and I try to stay indoors when that’s going on, or at least in the truck. Also, within the severely burned areas some “stump holes” (a term I learned from one of the firefighters) are still burning. It’s easy to spot five or six across the slopes of South Mountain. Hopefully the winds will be quieter tomorrow.
This morning, just after dawn, and before the wind got really fierce, I drove down to Auger Canyon. The is a large herd of elk cows just north of the turn-off there and at dawn and dusk the calves are up and busy. It’s great to see. There is also a significant herd at the south end of Nelson.
As previous emails have noted several of us are here and more are trickling in all the time. Also present are several fire and law enforcement vehicles. One or the other patrols Chapache about once an hour or more. They are from all over. The last police cruiser I saw was from Show Low.
Yesterday afternoon I needed to go to Show Low and Sylvia came along for the ride. The rumor that Monty Riggs started that she and I were on a date to see the Oak Ridge boys at Hon-Dah casino is absolutely false. I mention it so that I can relate what we saw on the drive across 260 between Eagar and Pinetop. It’s easy to see why Springerville and Eagar were evacuated. The burning on the south side of the road is really bad in some spots. The road to Greer is blocked, as are the Big Lake road and the road to Sunrise. There is another very large ICP camp at Horseshoe-Cienaga lake.
Life in town is returning to normal, but slowly. Several folks stayed put. There is only one topic of conversation and right now there’s not as much joking around as is usual. Vada has a generator parked behind the Bear Wallow and is open with a limited menu. She has a hug for everyone that comes in the door. The Tal-Wi-Wi, the Alpine Grill, and the Bush Valley Cafe all appear to be closed but will probably be open soon.
There is a huge helipad with four or five big Sikorsky heli-tankers across from the transfer station and “reflecting ponds”. They are trying to fight the fire in Luna but have been grounded most of today because of the wind.
By and large I think that we in Alpine and Chapache have dodged a huge bullet. We can thank the forest thinning around Alpine, our own efforts to keep our properties defensible, and the firefighters. Most of all the firefighters. They have done an amazing jog. The came to each of our cabins and raked the flammable fuel away from the wall to protect us. The courage and dedication amazes me.
For those of you on the fence about returning, I hope this disjointed effort has convinced you it’s worth the trip. Jim Pinter mentioned a “Plan B” and that may be worth considering. The power is on. It was shut off for a while today to protect the firefighters battling the blaze near Luna, but that was temporary and no one is complaining. Frontier has the phone lines and the Internet connections up and running, and Verizon has a temporary cell site set up that seems to work pretty well. It’s different, but it’s OK. Somethings will never change and one of those are is the great folks that live in Chapache.
Hope to see you soon,
Steve Malcolm
P.S. There is a meeting tomorrow night at the Alpine Community Center At 6:00 PM, as well as the one at the same time at Round Valley. Several of us will be attending the one here and will report the happenings.