Are We lost Yet?

Summer’s here - because the forest is on fire:

Summary: The Pioneer Fire started on Saturday, and is burning on East Mountain, approximately 7 miles south of Globe, Arizona.  Burnout operations were conducted last night.  Aerial resources will be assisting ground crews today in holding the line at Forest Service Road 112 near Pioneer Pass.  Smoke is expected to be visible around the East Mountain area for next 5 days.  The public is asked to please use caution on Hwy. 77 because of fire equipment and fire traffic.

This is not far from the Pinal Mountains (see last post). You can keep track of the progress here.

Presciently, the Globe area is scheduled for some prescribed burns this summer (though the big, unprescibed burn going on right now may modify their plans).

“The purpose of these prescribed fires is to reduce the hazardous fuels in these areas and lower the chances of catastrophic fire, which could burn onto private land and endanger valuable electronic sites and private property. The prescribed fires will also help promote a healthier forest and watershed,” said Rick Reitz, Globe District ranger.

In the Phoenix area? Got free time? Here’s the Arizona Game and Fish Online Calender. AZG&F is, of course, a statewide operation, and the calender does have events all over the state, but, basically, the bulk of them happen around Phoenix.

Try to follow this: Towards the end of the Clinton administration, a ruling came down declaring a moratorium on new road construction in the National Forests. Towards the end of the Bush administration, this ban was overturned. Did that lead to a frenzy in two-track road construction? No. Iy led to a flurry of legal action.

So the Obama administration, late last month, declared a moratorium on lifting the moratorium. This is from the Department of Agriculture’s press release:

The U.S. Forest Service, with jurisdiction over the National Forests and Grasslands, makes decisions about what projects can take place on those lands. In simultaneously upholding and overturning the 2001 Clinton roadless rule, the courts have created confusion and made it difficult for the U.S. Forest Service to do its job. The directive will ensure that USDA can carefully consider activities in these inventoried roadless areas while long term roadless policy is developed and relevant court cases move forward.

In related news, the adminstration has also released stimulus funds to -ah - build forest roads.

So, well, good luck with that.

Friday afternoon I had a chance to go kayaking with the Rhino Expeditionary Corps (a gang of co-workers that find adventure and peril recreational). We hit the water from the beach at Butcher Jones on Saguaro Lake.

While I’m a veteran canoer, this was only my second time in a kayak; in this case a little 6′ plastic thing I borrowed from Carolyn ( a regular companion in doing something stupid in the wilderness).

Our goal was a little island all the way on the far side of the bend from Butcher Jones, where the gang wanted to find a geocache. The island itself is a pile of rocks, and doesn’t lend itself to docking anything - but we found a way. What we never found, though, was the cache - which, given the size of the island (tiny) makes us think its been removed.

While they poked in every crevice on the island, I had to pee, so I paddled to a little cove on the shore, and picked my way over the rocks and cacti, behnd the reeds, and out of sight from the lake.

The javelina started bolting from the reeds in waves. There must have been more than 20 of them, some just wee-little. And I patiently waited as they all eventually scrambled up the far side of the ravine and off into the desert. What I did not need was to start watering a bush and then get charged by the alpha male.

All this time in the desert, and this was the first time I have found myself within encounter distance with javelina. Previously, I’ve only seen them from a great distance, or simply came across evidence of the recent passing.

There are two types of kayakers: those who have tipped over their kayak, and those who are going to. I remain in the latter group.

By GPS measurments, we covered 5.25 miles of water round trip. Took about 4 hours. We’re noodling on a multi-day expedition to Lake Powell (though I’d probably have to bring the canoe for that).

As fun as water-skiing looks (even when your little kayak is getting clobbered by speedboat wakes) I still prefer self-powered craft.

I didn’t take any pictures - but Genevieve did. Her facebook album here. (If ya don’t have FB - I think yer hosed).

The Tonto NF has announced fire restrictions from May 14th until, well, until the area gets serious rain.

The Prescott and Coconino NF’s have announced similar restictions starting tomorrow. Typically, these closures cover all the National Forests in the state by the beginning of June.

This is what that means, according to the press release:

Building, maintaining, attending or using a fire, campfire or charcoal-burning device is prohibited. Restrictions also apply to smoking outside of a cleared area, operating internal combustion power tools, using welding equipment or torches with open flames, operating combustion engines without spark- arresting devices in effective working order, or discharging firearms except in taking game in accordance with Arizona hunting laws. Use of petroleum-fueled stoves, lanterns, and heating devices are allowed, and some developed campgrounds are also exempted from these restrictions. (Please see attached list).

Note, however, that fires are still permitted within designated fire pits in established campgrounds.

There is considerable gray area regarding which sort of backpacking stoves are legal under fire restriction. I know that my trusty MSR Pocket Rocket IS legal, because, like most liquid-fuel stoves of this type, I can shut it off instantly by turning the valve. I also know that my little metal Hobo Stove is NOT legal, because even though the fire is wholly contained in the cylinder, I can’t just shut it off.

The grey area, then, consists of alcohol stoves, Sterno stoves, and solid fuel stoves. From experience, I know that the legality of these depend upon which ranger you talk to. So I called the front office.

According to Tonto NF Fire Supervisor Helen Graham, alcohol and sterno would be legal, so long as they can be immediately extiguished.

“The real spirit behind the restrictions is that it’s a fire you can put out immediately.” She explained.

So, as long as you have a lid handy that will snuff the flame, light-em up. Good news, since alcohol and sterno stoves (particularly well-made alcohol stoves) have excellent weight/cost/btu ratios.

Just don’t be the jack-ass who started the fire that prompted the FS to outlaw all backcountry stoves.

New thing: towards the end of every month, I’m going to digest news items relevant to the Tonto NF or Arizona hiking in general.

Fossil Springs is now open again. It has been for a month, but just sayin’ because now its warm enough to get to the TH without snow chains.

This is Wildfire Prevention Week, and according to the USFS press release:

BLM fire management specialist Ken Shaver observed, “There is some potential good news on the summer weather front.  The predictive weather services people are forecasting a wet monsoon season this year. If our summer season is like it was last year, the wildfire season in Arizona could again be on the quiet side.”

Your tax money at work, clearing out deadwood.

Quoted from the above source:

The Hazardous Fuel Reduction project areas include:

1. Payson WUI ($870,000 for 2,537 acres)
2. Pine WUI ($660,000 for 3,205 acres)
3. Verde WUI ($400,000 for 481 acres)
4. Lion WUI ($42,000 for 335 acres)
5. Chamberlain WUI ($825,000 for 1,000 acres)
6. Christopher/Hunter ($310,000 for 375 acres).

The Southwestern Region expects more projects to be approved for funding over the next few months.

Even though the reservoirs are at high levels and streams are reportedly flowing throughout the Tonto, I’d still figure on fire restrictions this summer.

The sad saga of Macho B, the jaguar (yes-really-a jaguar) that AZ Game and Fish accidentally captured, collared, tracked, rescued and ultimately euthanized suspecting a fatal kidney disorder continues into the finger-pointing stage. You can follow the story at Macho B’s website.

Finally, for those interested, my proposal for a D&O Coconino National Forest has been after much consideration, declined by Menasha Ridge Press. It was, to be fair, among the last proposals to be cut.  Everyone (that I talked to) liked the idea, they just couldn’t make the numbers work out.

A good freelancer, meaning one who can crank out readable copy on deadline, can expect a rejection rate of 11 out of 12 proposals. Mine runs a little better, but I write for beer money, and have the luxury of choosing my pitches with care. If this were my primary source of income, I’d be writing a proposal a day, and my rejection rate would be much closer to the industry norm (if not higher). If I take any of that personally, I’m done. Consideration for the writer’s supposed feelings noticeably declines at about $.10/word and is non-existent at national magazine rates.

My chief disappointment, then, is that it’s a lot easier to get out of my other obligations to go hiking when I have a guidebook in the works. So I am casting about for other ideas, and would value any input.

Meanwhile, the behind-the-hike series continues, for all of you 94+ people (and counting, I hope) who have bought a copy of my last excuse to get lost in the wilderness.

You can meet the author!

I’ll be signing copies of D&O Tonto (or anything else you want me to sign) Tuesday (17 March) from 3pm to 7pm at Dog-Eared Pages in north Phoenix. All seven people who follow this blog are naturally encouraged to attend!

16428 N 32nd Street in Phoenix

Suite #111

(That’s Bell Road and 32nd St, next to the El Conquistador)

602-283-5423

Plenty of other local authors there as well.

Get your picture taken with the new Bongo!

I have a day job, and sometimes it just sucks up all my energy. So I missed a few posts. (4, going by the schedule).

Did anyone miss me?

I have had, to date, 70 comments, one from Wordpress congradulating me on the blog, and the rest spam.

Not even devious spam - insultingly obvious spam.

So, if you read this, take a second to write a comment. Thanks.

While I’m whining, the absence of photos signifies that I’ve used up my 10MB limit.

Which is sad on several levels.

OK. Real posts after this. I promise.

As valuable as this blog might become as a hiking resource, if you need to know about a trail or hike or other extreme pedestrian scheme in the wilds of Arizona, there is no better resource than HikeArizona.com.

You need to set up a (free) account, but once inside you’ll find a searchable database of hike descriptions written by members who have actually done the hikes, along with photosand often maps and GPS routes. These descriptions are better quality than one normally expects from volunteer sites, and often more accurate than professionally produced sources (my own work being the exception - though not by much…)

They also feature a chat board where you can organize hikes, and chat, kvetch, remimnisce, gossip and whine about a multitude of subjects.

Four of the hikes* in the Tonto guide were organized through HikeAZ, and most of them were informed to some extent through material on that site. In particular, I used the site to help identify some plants, which is not (yet) a strength of mine. My book would have been three times harder without their help, and in return, I plug them at every opportunity.

So hit `em up soon, because this is the time to get out in the lower deserts. More on that (much more) next week.

* Hell’s Gate, Four Peaks, Mazazatl Divide and the East Superstitions Superloop.