Fire danger

With the Butte Fire growing to more than 64,000 acres Friday in nearby California foothill counties of Amador and Calaveras counties, fire danger throughout the entire region persists. And with near record high heat stretching into western Nevada through Saturday, the fire danger becomes dire.

An updated Lake Tahoe Basin Community Wildfire Protection Plan will be presented to the public during the Lake Tahoe Environmental Summit on Monday, August 24.

This new Community Wildfire Protection Plan was collaboratively developed by the 18 member organizations of the Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team and is the culmination of a three-year planning effort.

You can look forward to all kinds of serious problems for the rest of this year and well beyond 2015 due to our prolonged drought.

Personal use fireworks are illegal to use or possess in Carson City, Lake Tahoe Basin and surrounding counties, including sparklers and so-called “safe and sane” fireworks. As you enjoy your holiday, leave fireworks to the professionals by attending one of the many public displays around Carson City and Lake Tahoe.

Fire restrictions on National Forest System lands in the Lake Tahoe Basin begin Wednesday, July 1, 2015, and will remain in effect until the official end of fire season, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
Campfires will be restricted to certain exempted recreation sites and other fire-related activities will be prohibited.

A famous bear visited Heavenly Mountain Resort Tuesday to raise awareness about fire danger in Lake Tahoe. Thanks to Heavenly Mountain Resort for helping out Smokey Bear by banning all smoking on the mountain.
Here, Smokey uses the telescope at the Gondola mid-station to check out the work the Forest Service and its partners have done to reduce hazardous forest fuels and protect Lake Tahoe communities from severe wildfire.

A cold front will move through the Sierra and western Nevada late tonight through Tuesday morning bringing strong winds and much colder temperatures, according to the National Weather Service in Reno. A Wind Advisory is in effect through 11 a.m. Tuesday morning for Carson City, Carson Valley, Dayton and Virginia City areas in western Nevada as well as South Lake Tahoe, Incline Village and Truckee in the Sierra.

An illegal campfire touched off a wildfire Tuesday in the Desolation Wilderness at Granite Lake. Firefighters responded quickly, despite high winds, and were able to keep the fire from spreading, according to a U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada and Northern California. This report is for the week of Aug. 13-20, 2014.

UPDATE 4:45PM: An Urban and Small Stream Flood Advisory is in effect until 6:45 p.m. for Carson City, according to the National Weather Service. At 4:23 p.m. street flooding from heavy rain and hail earlier this afternoon was subsiding. However, showers and thunderstorms will continue to move into the Carson City area through this evening. Rainfall on saturated soils may lead to additional street flooding along with rapid rises on creeks and drainage ditches.

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Independence Day is upon us and many of you will take to the roads to visit our local lakes, rivers and parks. Should you find yourself celebrating the holiday with adult beverages, remember to designate a driver or take a taxi cab home.

If you are boating, stay sober while on the water. Operating a watercraft on a crowded lake takes skill and reflexes to avoid crashes or injury to swimmers. Enjoying this time with friends and family can be fun however they are expecting you, their Captain, to get them back to dry land safely.

Last week, I wrote about the strong possibility of poor fishing this summer due to our prolonged drought period.
In addition to the possibility of poor fishing, be aware of the ever-increasing, serious fire danger surrounding us because of our current long daylight hours, hot weather, gusty afternoon winds, low humidity, bone-dry vegetation and dumb acts by humans. Not a good combination.

The National Weather Service in Reno has issued a Red Flag Warning for Monday. That warning indicates a high fire danger on the western Nevada Sierra front, including Carson City.

An upper level disturbance will move across the region today. This will bring isolated thunderstorms this afternoon initially along the Sierra Front and far northwest Nevada with activity moving quickly to the east across the basin and range during the evening. Some of these thunderstorms may produce dry lightning.

Feb. 9, 2014 marks a special day in the life of yours truly. It is my three-year anniversary, writing about the Great Outdoors at Carson Now.

Three years! Time certainly flies when you are having fun, and it has been both a totally enjoyable and memorable three years of writing about all kinds of activities in the Great Outdoors, both near and far away.

With our current long daylight hours, extremely hot weather, fierce afternoon thunder boomers, high winds, low humidity, and bone-dry vegetation, you need to be aware of the ever-increasing fire danger surrounding us.

Our countryside is a disaster waiting to happen, and it would only take a moment of carelessness, sparks from target shooting, illegal fireworks, a hot vehicle muffler on a dirt road, an abandoned campfire or a tossed cigarette to create a roaring inferno.

An area of low pressure moving into the Pacific Northwest will increase winds today throughout the Carson City region, producing gusts of 35 to 45 mph from late this morning and into this evening, according to the National Weather Service.

Here is this week's fishing report for Nevada, Northern California and Sierra area rivers, lakes and streams. Fall colors are around the corner for the Sierra and Lake Tahoe region. Enjoy the fishing while the weather is still good and don't forget to pack your sunscreen and fishing license. This report is for the week of Sept. 5-11.

ADOBE POND, CALIF:
Tom Loe of Sierra Drifters Fly Fishing Guide Service (760-935-4250) (www.sierradrifters.com) reports:

The TRE Fire burning in south Douglas County has grown to 7,500 acres, and is 15 percent contained, officials report Thursday.
The fire continues to burn in the hills to the north and east of the Topaz Ranch Estates residential area. Two homes and 17 structures were destroyed. No additional homes or structures have burned or are in immediate threat. The area in and around the fire is under a red flag warning to 11 p.m. Thursday due to high winds and relatively low humidity.

Douglas County sent out an update this morning on the TRE Fire, which they say is now 6,600 acres. They also believe the fire was caused by a private residential open burn.

Press release:

The fire has grown to 6,600 acres burned. 2 homes and 17 outbuildings have been reported damaged or burned from the fire. No personnel injuries have been reported or discovered.

Elaine and I just returned home from a special way to celebrate a special occasion. March 30 was our 10th wedding anniversary and we had wanted to do something out of the ordinary for that event.

When we were married 10 years ago, we took a 19 day honeymoon in Southeast Asia, which included Hong Kong, China; Singapore, Malaysia; Bangkok, Thailand; and the last eight days at Bali, Indonesia.

Most interesting, we took my new mother-in-law, Mary Bottoms, with us!
I bet that very few of you took your mother-in-law on your honeymoon!

Expected strong winds to arrive on Sunday has the U.S. Forest Service asking Lake Tahoe fire agencies to be on alert for forest fires in the basin.
The wind, combined with virtually no snow or rain since November, has already pushed the fire danger level back to high. The Forest Service urges the public to use caution with activities that could start a fire.

By Nevada Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources
From Southern Nevada to Lake Tahoe and all parts above and in between, state, federal, local and volunteer firefighting resources have responded to numerous lightning- and human-caused wildfires across Nevada so far this year. The state has lost about 94,000 acres to wildfire this summer, which is significantly less than the five-year average of 428,084 acres a year.

CARSON CITY — With our current long daylight hours, hot weather, gusty afternoon winds, low humidity and vegetation rapidly drying out, you need to be aware of the ever-increasing fire danger surrounding us.
Our countryside is tinder dry, and it would only take a moment of carelessness, sparks from target shooting, illegal fireworks, a hot vehicle muffler on a dirt road, an abandoned campfire or a tossed cigarette to create a roaring inferno.

By the Nevada Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources
This is a reminder that Nevada State Forester and Fire Warden, Pete Anderson, issued a warning on July 8 about fire danger throughout Nevada.
Western Nevada has experienced numerous wildfire ignitions over the past few weeks posing an increasing danger to the public as vegetation continues to dry out.

By the Nevada Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources
CARSON CITY — Nevada State Forester and Fire Warden, Pete Anderson, issued a warning on July 8 about fire danger throughout Nevada. Western Nevada has experienced numerous wildfire ignitions over the past few weeks posing an increasing danger to the public as vegetation continues to dry.

LAKE TAHOE - Heavy precipitation throughout the Lake Tahoe Basin during the winter and spring months will result in a late-arriving fire season this summer, officials said.However, when it arriv...

It might feel like a stretch to think about the dangers of wildfires when it's raining every other day, but fire prevention officials say lots of winter and spring snow and rain mean fire danger co...