[pct-l] burned areas

[Dena Van Derveer]

De-lurking for a moment to echo everything Pieces said, with one added
comment: not everything burns. Hiked in north Yosemite last fall
through an "active burn" (with ranger warnings to "feel the ground for
heat") and had visions of complete, blackened devastation. I was
thinking nuclear wasteland, but t wasn't that way at all. I'd assume
that's the case with other fire areas, too.

You've probably all see photos where one house is left standing amid
the ruins of a neighborhood. Same thing happens in the wilderness --
there are islands of grass, trees, shrubs, that look like a big fire
never happened there.

So, while getting dirty from hiking through the soot and ash, it *was*
possible find relatively clean places to camp free of burned trees
threatening blowdowns.

Bottom line: I wouldn't hesitate to hike in a recently burned area.
There's a strange, eerie beauty about a landscape that's poised to
come back to life.
--Pika

On Nov 17, 2007 1:14 PM, Phil Baily <pbaily at webuniverse.net> wrote:
>
>  My experience has been that there is no significant change in available
> water, there is less cover from the sun, and there are dead black bare trees
> and shrubs. In freshly burned areas there will be black ash that may blow
> up, but you can count on at least getting your feet/shoes coated with ash.
> There also may be more blowdowns than usual because dead roots don't hold
> very well. That also depends upon wind strengths this winter. Burns more
> than 2 or 3 years old usually have no ash, significant low height green
> recovery growth and black dead tree trunks. At this point, the only planning
> change I would recommend is to avoid camping in freshly burned areas.
> Trails may be rerouted but they seem to not be rerouted in most cases.
>
>  Pieces
>
>
>
>  At 10:47 AM 11/17/07, V Hurst wrote:
>
> Ok so I'm such a newbie that I guess I need to ask this...the burned areas
> mean that there will be less water? or less cover during the day or just
> black burned areas? Sorry may be a silly question but thats how I learn..
> :)What does this do as far as planning goes? Will the trail be rerouted to
> let it recover?
>
>  thanks
>  vera
>
>
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