Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire What's with this weather?

Heck, it's almost November and were having 103-105 degree tempertures, and fires burning on three sides. Being in the house I thought it was clouding up, maybe for a thunder shower. But, S--t it's SMOKE!

Phil

Wife just called me outside. Looks like the whole mountain above and to the west of us is in flames. Just about where their building some 1,000 new homes in Rancho Cucamonga. Hope the Santa Ana winds don't start up tonight, wouldn't be nice to get 60+mile an hour winds on top of those flames.

Phil

Thought I was going to be able to beat this fire, but was told to prepare to evacuate early this morning. Southern California is on fire. 240 homes burned in San Bernardinio, I don't know how many in Alta Loma, and from what I heard some 50 in Montclair. The three fires have merged, and the Santa Ana winds are gusting up to 100 mph.. Was able to get my guns, powder, and all flamables out of the house early this morning. Then made another trip and grabed my ATV, Welder, and tools. Just hanging around waiting for the final word now. Neighbors house got broken in while I was gone on the first trip. Looting has already started. Smoke is so thick you can't hardly breath. May just lock up and go. You guy's wish us luck.

Phil

"LUCK" and lots of it...............

And I hope you can bag a couple of those looters. Can't believe how people will prey on others like that. Just laying in wait for their chance like a vulture.

Good Luck, and be careful and don't take any foolish chances. Do they open the season on looters, damn sure should!

Good luck to you down there Phil. We seemed to have dodged a bullet up here. The temps and winds turned out to both be lower than predicted a few days ago. Still awful warm though.

Regards,
Scott

Hope all goes well!

Luck to you Phil. Would be nice if some of this Pacific NW rain would come down your way.

For all that ever face a situation like this, don't leave guns in a fire proof gun safe and expect to find anything usable. A friend had his home burn, many guns in the safe. Days later when the safe was recovered out of the basement (safe started out on the 2nd floor) and the door opened, the stocks were charred and all bluing was gone down to the wood line. Scopes were useless. This was a top line safe with the fire insulation.

I know what you are saying. If you read the safes statements closely you will knote that they say they are good for 60 minutes at xx temp or 90 minutes at xx temp. I have yet to see one that says it will hold out for 4-5 hours in house burning kind of heat. Let's face it, when a house goes the safes will drop through the floors to the bottom. How long will it take to unbury under all the hot coals.? The safe sits down there like a pig burried for a luau.

ghost you are probably long gone by now as I'm late on this but I do wish you luck. Maybe the wind will shift. Been on fire lines, nothing like what you have in your pocket of course but pretty bad fire lines in any case. Know what they can do. Lots of luck to you

BCR

GreyGhost, best of luck to you. We have 4 fires going here as well. I am not in the burn zone, but can't hardly see to drive. Driest year I can ever remember. Fire is good for the ecosystem, but not all at once. We need to breathe. Flinch

Guy's thanks alot for the support. This was my first evacuation and hopefully the last. We made it through unscathed, much better than the folks just 6 miles east where the toll now is 330 homes burned to the ground, and 4 deaths. We went to bed late Saturday night, and the toll at that time was 240 homes burned and 2 deaths. Then early (about 4:30 A.M.) Sunday morning we were awakened by the Police saying to prepair to evacuate, that the fire was in the wash (Lytle Creek basin) directly across Riverside Avenue, and a small tract of homes (Los Colinas) from us.

We made the mistake of figguring the fire was out of reach of us, and hadn't made any evacuation plans. Big mistake and a new lesson learned. Figgured with the wash between us and the fire, we were safe. Fact is only the continuous bombardment from the Sky-Cranes kept the fire at bay, fixed winged aircraft have been grounded for 3 days now because of the wind.

This new fire as it turned out was "Arson" too. Authorities are looking for 2-20 year old's seen in the area. The fire started up in Waterman Canyon approx. 1:00 P.M. Saturday afternoon, then burning in 3 directions. With the winds when it burned donw to the base of the foothills, it split and burned both East and West. Then yesterday up into the Crestline area where all the dead trees from the bark beetle are. Most of the homes were burned withing the first 6 or 7 hours. The fire merged with the other two local fires Sunday, and is now considered one masive fire. Combined with fires burning in Simi-Valley, and San Diego, the toll now stands at close to: Half a million acres burned, 850 homes burned, and 14 deaths.

Their are over 10,000 fire personal on the lines, that haven't had a break in over 48 hours. Their totally exhausted, and with the Santa Ana winds still pridicted for another 3 or 4 days. It can only get worse. Its now been labled the worst fire in 50 years, and its only 5 % contained.

One thing that had me totally disgusted was the television brodcasting stations. All day Saturday and Sunday it was regular programing, untill the scheduled news brodcast. California was burning and they were showing cartoons. Our evacuation order was called off about noon, and we didn't know about it till later in the day.

There's a lot of Californians need prayers right now.

Phil

God's grace upon you and best luck to you.

We had to cut our hunting short because my son's house was endangered. It was saved but he lost one outbuilding, his fence,and most of his new landscaping. The houses on either side of him were total losses.
I put him on a plane in Denver early sunday morning to fly to Ontario but his plane was diverted to Las Vegas and sat there for hours until it returned to Denver. He got off the plane without his luggage and is trying to get home by road today
The flames kinda went around my daughters house, but I have some friends in the mountains above San Bernardino I can't contact, and I'm afraid they took some losses

I'd love to see these arsonists caught, doused with kerosene and set on fire. Make sure the tv cameras are rolling. Do it in public at about high noon. Make sure the word gets out that the next a$%holes will suffer the same fate, maybe with a 'necklace' this time... Broadcast their screams over loudspeakers so everybody can hear.. Time to deal with this scum the right way, and liberals be damned....

Sorry about your situation. Hope your place is spared. Maybe it's time to move out of that state and find one a tad wetter.....

Tracks,

I believe the most damage was North of 40th St., just East of Hwy 18 (where it turns into Waterman), and also West burning along Kendall Dr.. The Santa Ana winds pushed the fire down out of the canyon into the flatlands, where it spread both East, and West. Saturday night the fire apparently crossed over the 215 Freeway behind Muscoy and jumped into the wash, which is where it came close to us. When the Santa Ana's died down Sunday morning. The whole fire line burned back up into the mountains. I believe concentrating in the Crestline-Twin Peaks area. Close to us, the part that moved up into the Devore area is still burning, with another 2 homes going up today. I live 3 miles due South of Devore on Riverside Ave.. The smoke is so heavy you can't stay outside for long. We moved back into the house last night, I was going to unload today, but with Devore still going, have decided to wait. All three fires in this area have merged and are called either the Grand Prix fire, which started last Tuesday in Fontana, or the "Old Fire" which started up in Waterman Canyon Saturday. Guess they can't make up their minds. Homes burned in this area have now reached 550, with more than 1,100 throughout Southern California.

If I can be of any help, picking some one up at the airport, or something. Just let me know.

Phil

On a side note: Paper was saying this morning if the Arsonist are caught they will be facing murder charges. Which is only right. Prank or not, starting a brush fire in 60+ mph winds, you should figgure on high property damage and loss of life. Manslaughter charges just don't get it.

Redneck, better yet. Just strip him or them down to their undies and string them up high on a cross and dowse them down with very warm kerosene every 15 minutes or so. Making sure we have a very large fire burning near and around them. That should take the outer hide off in a short time and burn like HELLO! Maybe throw a little course salt onto the burning skin.....

Greyghost, Sorry to hear about all the problems. Sounds like things may be getting a little closer to being under control if you can call it that now.

Thanks for the offer Greyghost, but my kid got a ride in from Vegas
His house is on Modesto just south of 40th st in the Del Rosa area, just below the old Arrowhead Springs Hotel
I heard from him tonight and the damage was worse than first thought, but he still has a house.
They expect to be without power for two weeeks
My daughter lives on 48th near north E, north of little mountain and I guess that part came out OK