Not Good At All

Day 315: Let's start the day off with a bang...literally. At 7:33 AM, I heard a loud growling rumble which I initially thought was an earthquake. A minor rattling accompanied it, more like a reverberation than a shake. It was over in just a few seconds, causing me to re-evaluate my supposition, and upon review, I decided it had been an explosion, and of course I immediately associated it with the Alder Lake Fire. As I sat down to compose an email, I thought, "Maybe I ought to check the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network before I draw any conclusions," and lo and behold! There it was, a 2.9 quake, epicentered only a few miles from my home. Never a dull moment around here!

After putting in a full day at work, I decided to swing by Lillie Dale Road to check on the fire, and there discovered the same young firefighter standing duty by his truck and talking to a crowd of onlookers. He greeted me with a "Howdy, stranger!" and immediately took me aside to explain the fire situation in more detail. I was dismayed to learn that it is progressing eastward, and that it has now spread to 150 acres. The good news is that the Dept. of Natural Resources has now joined the fight since the blaze has crossed over into DNR land.

As my erstwhile "interpretive guide" ran his finger across the map, showing me where crews were actively working and where he had gone in on foot to scout a possible firebreak, I noticed a difference between his map and mine. "What about this ridge? Isn't there a spur road going out it? It comes to a T right along here." I traced the ridgeline for him. "Are you sure?" he asked. I replied, "Yeah, I have it on the old Gifford Pinchot map." He paused for a second before responding, "I'd like to see that map. Could you bring it down tomorrow?" I said I'd be glad to do so.

There's a reason I'm known to several friends as "Mapping Crow," a play on my geocaching moniker. I find maps more fascinating reading than any work of literature I ever held in my hands.Could it be that my map shows something they need to know? I double-checked when I got home. There it is, a short spur which T's off into the 017 and 015 along the crest of the ridge. I'll have my map in his hands at 8 AM tomorrow when he resumes his watch.