Firestorm
WEDNESDAY, JULY 16
7:00 PM – It was another exceptionally hot day. We had been watching smoke from the fires in Carlton all afternoon, hoping the winds would continue to blow to the east. At 3 pm things began to get a little smokey by our house and we considered taking Finn up valley for a little river time. By 5 pm, the main valley had begun to close in and we thought it would be wise to retreat with our infant to the west side until the fires blew clear. We started packing.
All day the Cougar Flats fire hadn’t been of much concern. We knew there was a small start near the top of Pipestone Canyon. We had no idea it had a name, or that it would burn all the way to the Columbia within 30 hours. (See rate of spread map.) But as we packed the car, it was clear that leaving was the right decision. Here’s the view from our house when we left.
11:00 PM — As soon as we headed towards the pass, Chip and Diane started packing our stuff. They loaded most of our valuables into two pickup trucks. At 11 pm they were given a Level 3 mandatory evacuation notice by the sherif and left our house.
THURSDAY, JULY 17
10:00 AM — Nick and I left Seattle early to get back and try to defend the house. Just as we arrived at Storer Creek, two engines from Clark County pulled up to remove grass and brush from around the house and barn. The crew was great and we had hoses down, the barn cut out and a perimeter of clean sand all the way around the house in about an hour. Then the air show began.
This is a DC-10 dropping a line of fire retardant along our eastern property line. It didn’t do much. So they came back again and again with five different aircraft to drop retardant and water to try to keep the fire from moving down valley. The maneuvers were impressive but the fire hardly slowed.
1:30 PM — We got concerned about getting hit by a drop, so we moved to the opposite side of the valley where we had a better view of the hills above us.
Most of our neighborhood gathered here to watch the show. Both Chris and Becky (pictured above) lost their homes.
3:30 PM — A fast-moving wall of flame tore out of Fuzzy Canyon and ripped down the west side of the valley where we had been watching things unfold. We’d lost our vantage point and it was time to go.
Here’s what was unfolding on our property when we left. The fire had been backing down that slope, into the wind, all afternoon.
6:30 PM — From Studhorse Mountain we could see the other end of the Cougar Flats Fire. The origin of the fire is in the valley directly behind Dane.
7:00 PM — Officials refused to answer questions at the first community meeting in Twisp.
8:00 PM — This was the view from downtown Twisp of the column above Loup Loup and Finley Canyon.
9:00 PM — After the meeting we returned to Upper Beaver Creek. The south end of Pipestone Canyon is on the left; our house is buried in the smoke at the center of the frame. The cottonwoods along the creek began burning. As darkness fell, the southern sky glowed red and the fires raced towards the Columbia.
FRIDAY, JULY 18
7:00 AM — Our house was untouched. Our barn burned.
Nick surveys the scene. We had a perimeter of dry grass on all sides of the house.
We had moved the picnic table to the center of our our parking area. There wasn’t a mark on it, though three cords of firewood burned 20 feet away.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 23
All that’s left of the barn is the metal roof. We think it’s about 80 years old.
Our snow tires.
The recycle bin.
Firewood stack.
Our electric meter.
Junk from previous owners had been hidden in the grass.
The aspen draw along the creek.
This is the view from the top of our road. Our house is the lowest one in the sandy clearing.
Four of the six homes on our road survived.
The next three images are from the hills around our house.
A huge thank you to everyone for all the good wishes and offers of help. The destruction in our little valley is severe and yet such a natural part of the landscape in which we live. Though our entire 20 acre property burned over, the house smells a little smokey, and we lost the barn, we are fortunate to still have a place to live. A huge thanks to Diane, Chip, Nick and Dane and the crews from Clark County who helped us move out, clear brush and set sprinklers. It worked beautifully and protected our house from two separate fire fronts. Our thoughts are with our many friends and neighbors who were not as lucky.
This is really just the beginning. The Carlton Complex still burns in the hills above us and the clean up and restoration work will take months. We can’t wait to see what the spring will bring.