Putting the wet stuff on the hot stuff...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ So what I'm doing now is drafting water out of Whiskeytown Lake, using a National Guard blackhawk. Then we fly over the fire. Air Tactics gives me the general area then I select a target and do a count down, then the water is released from the bucket. This is a 660 gallon bucket. This is the fun part. I have to find hotel space, food, track billing stuff, log flight use stuff, do paperwork. Lots of paperwork. I suspect they make lots of paperwork just to cut down more trees and thin the forest, making firefighting easier. Oh by the way---ther are lots and lots of trees out there.

The new assignment

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Here's my new copter. It's a National Guard machine from North Dakota. My seat is on the other side. These guys are excellent pilots, with NO fire experience. The Military Helicopter Manager's job is to direct the water drops on the fire and decipher the firefighting orders. You get to fly alot, and lean waaaay out the left side. It's pretty tiring. The President will be here in a week so all firefighting will stop.....Grr. Two days with Annamarie and the kids wasn't enough, but it was something at least. Hopefully the overtime checks come before she just changes the locks....
In the Yosemite fire I was living in a tent for two weeks. This fire I'm at the Red Lion Inn with my own California King bed. My tent would fit on this bed.

Out of the frying pan....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Got just a few days at home to take care of some honey-do's. The phone rang off the hook from North Ops, South Ops, and Cal Fire.... Couldn't put it off anymore, and got sent north to Redding. Tomorrow I meet with an airwing of National Guard Blackhawks--I'll be flying with one for the next couple weeks until the fires are out. How do our soldiers in Iraq do it???? This is just two weeks at a time and I don't like being away from home. 72 hours at home wasn't enough.
Not even sure what fire I'll be fighting. I'll see if I can get pics from inside the Blackhawk; there's going to be lots to do

My Helicopter/Helibase crew

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Took this photo last night after the debrief. What a crew. They handled the shuttling of equipment and cargo into the backcountry at a breakneck pace, setting up three remote fire camps in the High Sierras---all while doing bucket work for water drops. No one complained about the 5:00 am briefing or 9:30 pm debrief, every day, for two weeks. Safety was a priority. We're slowly narrowing it down to a skeleton crew to haul everything back out again.

Today's workpill

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We sort of alternated between doing water drops and troop shuttle stuff, flying fire crews into the spike camp. After that we did a whole bunch of slingloads of food/toilet paper/chain saw fuel, that sort of thing. Bears are a real problem. They've learned helicopters come with food so they run towards them. We started putting food in these bolt rim barrels.
We are doing well enough to release some resources. My task now is to put together my best people into an 'initial attack crew' and we'll be paored with a copter to handle new starts in the area. All part of the standard winding-down process.
There are lots of good pictures but internet access is rare. Thanks much for the comments---these are long busy days with few pleasantries (Showers, etc)

Morning Recon

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I got a chance to run up a little fire road to check out where we'll be dropping water today. The terrain doesn't look too conducive to ground unit firefighting. Also if there are engine problems, I don't see any good spots to put down.......

Helibase tradition

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Last year on the Moonlight fire we got a direct order to fly our flag at half staff on 9/11. So, no wanting to disobey an order, we stripped a cedar tree that had fallen on its own to make a flagpole, bought a flag, and flew it at half staff. (The header for this blogsite shows the sillouette of that flag)
Anyway, it became the rally point for briefings and debriefs. Now I bring a flag to every helibase and as time allows have my crew improvise a pole and fly the flag. The cool thing today was, someone came looking for me, knowing I was here because he saw a flag up. (The crewmember with the helmet is going home because one of his molars split in two)

North Mountain Fire

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ok....I'm just west of the edge of Yosemite National Park and this is a particularly messy fire. The terrain makes ground units impossible---steep granite cliffs. So, It's an airshow, but there aren't any Helicopters. There are just too many other fires around the state. We're using the Yosemite copter when we can and we have a 205, and the skycrane is on the way. Annamarie knows I'll be gone until mid-July unless God sends rain. Even with the fire this is beautiful country. Tioga pass must be the most beautiful drive in the state.

On to the next adventure

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Steve----we need you to go to Yosemite to manage helicopters right away" Ummm 'K. Does Chief Donnelly know I'm going? "He knows. He said to wait for the order from SouthOps but we name-requested you so get ready". My guess is I'll finish out my shift then go, probably for 14 days. I like going. I like staying. I just don't like being in a holding pattern not knowing.
The good----it's camping, with a purpose, on the clock from the time I get the call until after I'm home again. Also, you get to know the air ops folks from around the state.
The bad----Massive monstrous fires eating up timber faster than you can run. Now THAT's a carbon footprint. Very expensive operation, too... Order up another type I copter at $13,200/hour if needed, and no one bats an eye
The ugly----Rare showers. Box lunches. Left over box lunches for dinner. No coffee unless you drive to the firecamp. Can't even feel sorry for myself because there will be HUNDREDS of seasonal firefighters cutting fireline all day, day after day, just to sleep in a spike camp out on the fireline, eating nothing but MRE's. Those are the REAL firefighters.

Re:Re:Re:union

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ OK so here's the update. All the reserved places are paid for. MF, B&P are in RV spaces near the log cabins, which are occupied by Keeka (Fri-Sun)in one, and V. Moore's family (Thurs-Sun)in another!!! Very glad Vince is coming. I didn't even recognize his voice. Shoo in a Duplex Fri-Sun, Suella and whoever else they've brought in tow in the other duplex, Fri-Mon. (I think there's a Legoland adventure in the works for Monday) RBG's clan in our rental cabin will be the first to arrive on Wednesday. Another addition is Maggie formerly Patterson's family, just fo rthe day though.
Celeste is working with Annamarie to figure out who needs to bring what. There will be various opportunities for general mischief but Saturday afternoon will be the big meet and eat at our house. Of course, a group photo will commence. No funny faces unless you were born with it.
Typical to mountain weather, it can range from 40 degrees to mid 90's in August. I'd predict comfortably warm. Sunscreen, bug spray, fishing stuff, hiking stuff, and old pictures of past things would all be good.
There is still one log cabin available, already paid for. RV sites and tent space too, but if anyone else is coming better let me know quick. Still working on Ronn and Father Joe.

Make your own Southpark character!

I'm stuck in a trailer waiting for something. I gave the order to my crew to make good use of their time, so I'm doing the same---- I made a Southpark character out of Lee. I did Shoo first but it was.......too realistic.
http://www.sp-studio.de/ if you want to try it.....