Tucson Basin, August 31, 2022 — Panorama Image by kenne
Blue sky above
a winding highway
on a sunkissed morning.
Tourists in rental cars
stop at Windy Point vista
climbing boulders
for a better view —
children too close
to the edge.
— kenne
Archive for the ‘Coronado National Forest’ Category
Too Close To The Edge Leave a comment
Wilderness of Rocks Trail 3 comments
Wilderness of Rocks Trail In the Santa Catalina Mountains — Image by kenne
“One recognizes one’s course by discovering the paths that stray from it.”
– Albert Camus
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Tree On The Ridge 2 comments
Tree On The Ridge — Photo-Artistry by kenne
Tree Tops
In the yellow sunset
a blue haze glows
on the ridgetop
shadows binding
through juniper trees.
Hikers turning back —
Know what I mean?
— kenne
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A Recent Drive Up The Catalina Highway To Ski Valley 3 comments
Yesterday (08/05/20), I drove up the Catalina Highway to Mt. Lemmon. The highway was opened to the general public last Saturday morning for the first time since the Bighorn Fire began in early June. The mountain town of Summerheaven, successfully protected from the fire, is now open for business, although still having to follow HOVID-19 business regulations in Arizona.
Oracle Ridge and Mt. Lemmon Fire Station
Before entering Summerheaven, there are two ridges going north; Red Ridge and Oracle Ridge. Both ridges were severely burned during the 2003 Aspen Fire that destroyed almost all the homes in Summerheaven. Over the years since the Aspen Fire, the forest canopy has still not returned on these ridges. However, a lot of ground cover containing some bushes and small trees had returned. On June 17th, the two ridges were again burned. On June 19th, I posted two time-delay videos of the fire coming through the area pictured in the above photo. The fire station and most of the pines behind it were spared — not true of the storage building and new growth since the 2003 fire. It has now been 50 days since the fire occurred. Note how green the scared area has become with the return of ferns on the mountain slopes.
Except for the highway and Summerheaven, the public is not allowed to go anywhere in the National Forest. From what I was able to observe from the highway, most of the hiking trails with trailheads near the highway are ok, at least partially. Parts of Lower Butterfly Trail and Green Mountain Trail don’t look good from a distance.
My guess is that the trails in the forest around Summerheaven were burned like the two ridges north of Summerheaven. From a review of burn scar maps, the Marshall Gulch area to the north and west, which would include Carter Canyon, has been badly burned. For those of you who hike this area, It’s possible a lot of the Marshall and Mint Springs trails were destroyed. We may not know until November.
Since Sabino Creek originates along the Marshall Gulch Trail, the monsoon rains can result in a lot of potential flash flooding coming down through Sabino Canyon. So far, the rain amounts are very below average, but we are still in the monsoon season.
— kenne
Slideshow
Images Taken From Catalina Highway by kenne
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Wilderness of Rocks In Pusch Ridge Wilderness Leave a comment
Wilderness of Rocks In Pusch Ridge Wilderness — Images by kenne
Words by: Edward Abbey, Aldo Leopold, Ralph Waldo Emerson,
John Muir, and Wallace Stegner
Wilderness Floor
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Giant Two-tailed Swallowtail — Photo-Artistry 1 comment
Giant Two-tailed Swallowtail — Photo-Artistry by kenne
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Wildflowers In The Meadow Leave a comment
Wildflowers In The Meadow (Mt. Lemmon) — Image by kenne
Wildflower Meadow, Medawisla
The many-
oared asters
are coracles;
the goldenrod
pods, triremes.
They do not
plan their
voyages
to please us.
The tangle
of brambles
and drupes shifts
only slightly
when the wind
attempts to
part the knee-
or waist-high stalks
and thorns. What will
you do or
be in that state
you fear and look
forward to,
when none of
them needs
us, after
the last
seeds leave?
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Santa Catalina Prairie Clover Leave a comment
Bee On Santa Catalina Prairie Clover — Image by kenne
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Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly 3 comments
Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly On Thistle — Images by kenne
May the wings of the butterfly kiss the sun.
And find your shoulder to light on.
To bring you luck, happiness, and riches.
Today, tomorrow and beyond.
— An Irish Blessing
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Yellow-eyed Junco On The Forest Floor 1 comment
Yellow-eyed Junco (Coronado National Forest) — Image by kenne
Yellow-eyed Juncos shuffle through the leaf litter of pine and pine-oak forests with fire in their eyes—
a bright yellow-orange gleam that instantly sets them apart from the more widespread
Dark-eyed Junco. Otherwise, they share many of the markings of the “Red-backed”
form of Dark-eyed Junco, including a gray head, two-toned bill, reddish-brown back,
and white outer tail feathers that flash when they fly. This specialty of the southwestern U.S.
also occurs in mountain forests through Mexico to Guatemala. — Source: allaboutbirds.org
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Santa Catalina Mountains 2 comments
View of the Santa Catalina Mountains from the Douglas Spring Trail in the Rincon Mountains — Panorama by kenne
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Fly Amanita Mushroom 3 comments
Fly Amanita Mushroom — Image by kenne
Fly amanita is the most iconic toadstool species, with a white-gilled,
white-spotted, usually red mushroom, and is one of the most recognizable
and widely encountered in popular culture.
As the mushroom matures, the can becomes flatter
and recognizable in Victorian literature, including
Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland.”
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Ladybug Convention Leave a comment
Ladybug Convention — Image by kenne
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Bighorn Fire One Week Out 1 comment
Sunset (June 12th, 2020)
The Bighorn Fire began June 5th in the Pusch Ridge Wilderness. After burning a lot the southwest area of the front ridge,
it has now moved northeast, having burned over 7,000 acres.
Sunrise (June 13th, 2020) — Images by kenne
This morning with little or no wind, evidence of smoke appears to have gone from our viewpoint.
However, looks deceive, since containment remains a 10% and is projected to not be contained before June 25th.
— kenne
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The Bighorn Fire Intensifies Over Night 6 comments
Late Wednesday, June 10th. Most of the smoke is from upper Pima Canyon, Finger Rock and Mt. Kimball.
Around 6:00 am Thursday, June 11th. The smoke has settled in over
the Catalina Mountains and beginning to move down into the Tucson basin.
The smell from the fire is very noticeable as I leave for my
morning walk in the neighborhood.
I’m now at the back of Tanuri Ridge as more of the smoke appears
to be leaving the mountains spreading over the Catalina Foothills.
I’m beginning to think I should have warned a facemask.
Now at the entrance of Tanuri Ridge and you can bearly make out
the mountains.
I used a Photoshop Dehaze filter on some of these images so in reality,
there was much more smoke and haze.
Tanuri Drive
As I continued my walk, the parts of the fire appeared to be
backtracking to the west.
There’s very little wind this morning, so a lot of the news smoke
coming from downdrafts through where rain would typically
flow off the mountains.
A big plum of smoke coming from the Finger Rock area.
It is now around 8:00 am.
It is now around 10:30 am. The fire is now about a mile west of
Pima Canyon trailhead. (Because of my distance from the
mountains, I’m making an educated guess.)
The following copy is from Haidi Chewel, with the National Forest Service.
Bighorn Fire – June 11th, 2020 Morning Update
Pima County Sheriff’s Department issues “SET” notice
Acres: 4,769 Percent Containment: 10%
Start Date: June 5th, 2020 Cause: Lightning
Origin Location: Santa Catalina Mountains
Jurisdiction: Coronado National Forest, including portions of the Pusch Ridge Wilderness
Personnel: 391
Resources: 6 hotshot crews, 3 Type 2 hand crews, 7 Type 3 engines, 1 Type 4 engine, 7 Type 6 engines, 4 Type 1 helicopters, 1 Type 2 helicopter, 2 Type 3 helicopter, 10 water tenders
The Bighorn Fire remained active overnight, with flames being pushed downhill by downslope winds. Temperatures up to 106 degrees today and continued low humidity will increase fire activity. The fire will again be highly visible on the front range of the Santa Catalina Mountains. Crews will work to hold the fire perimeter and continue building fire lines, tying into control features such as roads and rock outcroppings. Additional aerial resources will support the crews on the ground with water and retardant drops.
Over the next several days’ communities can expect to see crews and apparatus working in an around subdivisions in the Catalina Foothills. Members of the public are advised to drive with caution and leave roadways clear for emergency vehicles and equipment to pass.
Becoming is Superior to Being 