The 'La Cresta Fire'

This one really scared the crap out of me.

I'm usually off from work on Thursdays so just happened to be home last week on September 24th. Around noon time, Hana had trotted over to the kitchen door, looking really alert, like she wanted to bark at something. I thought it was probably the gardeners' truck pulling up the driveway, since they typically show up around this time. I peered outside and didn't see anything. Not surprising, with Hana's extremely vivid imagination. But just for the heck of it, I also took a quick peek up towards the hill to the right (east) side of the house. Well, for the love of Hana...

OMG - there was a huge plume of smoke directly behind the house. My first primeval, knee-jerk reaction thought? No *@$%&^%% way could this be happening!!!!. And at that very moment, the space-time continuum in my normally simple simon universe literally screeched to a stunning, unambiguous halt.

Ran up the hill to see exactly where the fire was. I was stricken with two simultaneous, conflicting thoughts as soon as I was able to catch my breath and assess the situation. The point of origin for the smoke column was actually about 3 miles away - fantabulous. But let me tell you, 3 miles away is like 3 inches away when you are in panic mode.

Called Gilbert & told him to get his hiney home. Shortly after, our neighbors, Hermina & Woody, drove up the hill in their golf cart and, together, we watched the fire progress over the next 45 minutes or so. Amazing aerial attacks by several water-dropping planes and also a helicopter.

At 1:30pm, Gilbert called me and said he had arrived in Murrieta, but unfortunately, the police had completely blocked access up Clinton Keith Road to La Cresta at Bear Creek. He, along with everyone else who had been trying to drive into Bear Creek or the Santa Rosa Plateau, were routed over to Ralph's supermarket on Calle de Oso Oro. At Ralphs, Gilbert called again and said he was going to use the GPS in the car and find his way back home by 4-wheeling it on a dirt road connecting to La Cresta from Deluz/Tenaja Road. Amazingly, he did make it home around 3:30pm. So I won't ever diss GPS again...

At the end of the day, the fire was contained within 24 hours, with a total of about 20 acres burned, no structures damaged or any casualties. A true testiment to the skill and dedication of our brave firefighters and amazing air support.

And now, for the 'Dumbass' award of the year: the fire was apparently caused by a tractor mower that was, what, mowing bone dry brush in chaparral foothills, in the middle of the day, in 100F temps, and Santa Ana wind conditions? WTF?!

You Tube videos posted by a La Cresta resident on the La Cresta fire:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BE8lubuggyE

9/24/09 La Cresta (Bear Creek) Fire

As seen from the top of the hill behind our house.

9/24/09 Fire at Bear Creek, from Gil's perspective on his drive home.

Random Weekend Stuff: a cool sunset, an uppity Cooper's hawk, and more of those bloomin' natives

Blue skies, mild to occasionally blustery breezes, and fall-like temperatures. All in all, a beautiful weekend here in La Cresta. Even got nippy last night, with some fog rolling in around 3am. And how do I know that? Because I had insomnia and also because all the windows were open, so I could literally smell the cool, damp air wafting through. We may get more of that fog again tonight - it's only 7:50pm but the temps have already dipped down to 60F.

On Saturday, high level clouds overhead created the perfect atmospheric foil for a cool sunset.

Lately, there's been a juvenile Cooper's hawk hanging around the bird feeders where all the hapless and generally clueless song birdies congregate.  This unruly teenage accipiter is obviously staking out the area for some easy pickings. Luckily, there are plenty of trees & shrubbage for his potential victims to scatter to.  These pix were taken this evening around 7:00pm. The Cooper's was perched on the oak tree above our pond, feathers tousled by the brisk late afternoon wind.

I know we're on the cusp of autumn when the California Fuchsias start putting forth their shamelessly crimson floral dispays. It's just driving all the hummingbirds absolutely nuts! A few of the monkey cultivars are also (surprisingly) reblooming.  Here are some shots of those bloomin' natives, all taken today.

'Richard's Red' Monkeyflower cultivar.

'Sunset' Monkeyflower Cultivar

'Ghostly Red' California Fuchsia (Zauschneria californica)

9/13/09 'Uvas Canyon' California Fuchsia     

'Route 66' California Fuchsia. RSABG Intro.

'UC Hybrid' California Fuchsia

 

'Catalina' California Fuchsia

   Rose Mallow (Hibiscus lasiocarpa)

'Burgundy' Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis)

Chinese Chives (ok, they're not native, but just had to throw them in)

Of wildfires, rainbows, and...bugs?

Just gave Hana a bath, which is a 2-person job. She likes to shake the water off her like a salad spinner every few minutes, so Gilbert and I also got showered. But, that's ok. It's August.

Been watching the local news stations on and off all day on the huge fire (aka the 'Station Fire') that's been burning up in the San Gabriel Mountains since Wednesday. Over 35,000 acres burned, 6,000+ homes evacuated, and the fire's only 5% contained. They're also keeping close watch on JPL and Mt. Wilson, which is home not only to the observatory, but also to a ton of transmitters/communications towers. We've been wondering if the fire has burned any portion of the Arroyo Seco, a favorite hiking spot of ours when we used to live in LA County. But in the overall scheme of things, that's not important. I feel mostly for all the residents, human or otherwise, who have been displaced by this terrible conflagration.

So far this year, we've been lucky in our neck of the woods, with only a few minor fires in Temecula, some smoke wafting over the ridge from Camp Pendleton (I think they ignited some small brush fires on the base as a result of their gung ho, seemingly 24/7 testing of an accoutrement of 'top secret' armaments and munitions), and most recently, on August 28th, a 2-acre fire at Tenaja Road and Avenida Escala, which was quickly contained by our most excellent firefighters.

For all of us here in Southern California, October can be the cruellest month because of those devilish Santa Ana winds combined with the exceptionally tinder dry chaparral in our local mountains. I do NOT want to revisit those horrible fire storms of October 2007 that raged out here in Riverside County and Northern San Diego County.

For pix of some of the fire hazards we've gone through, check out: http://camissonia.smugmug.com/Events/FIRE-WIND-RAIN-SNOW-Other/3702089_3njAk#217540243_cDPsT

And now, for a diversion from the dire meteorological forecast, here's a Kodak moment captured as we were leaving for work at 6:35am on August 4th. Monsoonal flows (although we never really got any measureable rain here in La Cresta) along with a good dose of morning sunshine, created this virtual kaleidescope-in-the-sky. Wonder why I don't miss LA more than I do.

As for bugs, we have plenty of them out here. However, anything that resembles a grasshopper is, IMHO, evil incarnate and MUST be destroyed, killed, smashed, obliterated, and utterly annihilated.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am neurotically, pathologically, insanely, phobically, opposed to anything that remotely emotes 'grasshopper'. Crickets (or the brown grasshoppers), as long as they are less than 1" in length, are marginally acceptable. Everything else? KABOOM!! DEAD!, RAID! Gilbert, kill that thing or else you're not getting any dinner or even allowed back in the house! BLECH!@!!!

I can't imagine why I'm so mortified by these things. Short of paying a shrink to explain it to me, I will self psychoanalyze and say that I probably transferred my childhood fear of those enormous flying cockroaches in Taiwan to the grasshoppers of Southern California. I also vaguely recall an old black & white sci-fi flick I had watched as a small child about aliens from outer space which somehow tangentially involved the discovery of enormous pods of grasshopper-like thingies. Towards the end of the movie, there was this ghastly giant Lucifer-like image that emerged, obliterating the skyline, ready to destroy the world. Thankfully, the abomination was destroyed only after a beam or crane made of iron went crashing into it (and I think with somebody actually riding on it!). As an adult, I'm sure I would have found the plotline of this movie pretty hoaky, but as a youngster, I was just too darned naive and impressionable. So, the unfortunate dye was cast, and I am now cursed with this life-long inability to differentiate between grasshopppers and the evil spectre of Satan.

Religio-neurotic implications aside, all I can say is give me a rattlesnake any day over a freakin' grasshopper!

However, there are other bugs that I absolutely love, or at least am intrigued by, including spidders and the bootiful butterflies. Here are a few I happened on, both in and out of the house.

8/12/07 Tarantula (Aphonopelmus reversum). We found this guy in the garage, and had to catch & release him back into the wilds...

7/23/09 Silver Orb Spider (Argiope argentata), webbed between the Spanish Lavenders

8/13/09 Western Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio rutulus) on Butterfly Bush

9/30/06 I think this is a Stripe-tailed Scorpion (Paruroctonis silvestrii). Gilbert almost stepped on this guy when he got out of the shower. He started screaming like a girl, and I thought he was messing with me when he said there was a scorpion in the bathroom, so I totally dismissed his cries for help. Ooops - my bad! Anyhoo, we managed to get him (the scorpion, not Gilbert) into a gladware container & then set him free in the chaparral hillside behind the house.

3/31/01 Bramble Green Hairstreak (Callophrys dumetorum)? Photographed this little cutie on a visit to the property several years before our house was built. Looks like he or she is imbibing on Popcorn Flower (Plagiobothrys or Cryptantha species?)

6/3/01 Mormon Metalmark (Apodemia mormo) on Deerweed (Lotus scoparius). Again, photographed on one of our trips to the property before our house was built.

A PLETHORA of Hanny Toys

Only a Pet Parent would understand. We treat our pets like we gave birth to them...

A 'Plethora' has been variously described by some lexicons as: "an embarrassment of riches," "an excessive amount or number," "an overabundance: not problematic, but more than required," "in humoral medicine, the condition of too much blood, resulting in an imbalance of the humors... usually treated with phlebotomy."

Ok, I will concede that the last definition is neither here nor there in the context of this post. Particularly the reference to 'phlebotomy', which I believe involves the ancient medical practice of bloodletting, totally not my (nor Hana's) cup of tea.

HOWEVER, I am embarrassed to admit that Hana (aka "Hanny") does have too many toys. Whose fault is that? Her mom and dad's, but primarily her mom's.

I confess that I am afflicted with an addictive need to purchase poochie toys wherever I can find them, and especially the ones that produce the most obnoxious noises, because I think Hana/Hanny needs them. How's that for anthropomorphizing?

But, just look at how contented she seems here, shredding Turkey while surrounded by her entourage of resigned groupies!

Hana's toys are:

Turkey (her favorite)

Fishie

Bunny

Squirrel

Skunky

Hedgehog

Chipmunk
Ball Ball

To see more of Hana, go to her website at http://www.hanabanana.homestead.com/

Summer ain't necessarily the doldrums in the native plant garden (& some other odds and ends)

St. Catherine's Lace (Eriogonum giganteum) along the wall

Santa Cruz Island Buckwheat (Eriogonum arborescens)

'Ghostly Red' California Fuchsia (Zauschneria californica)

I know that the traditional summer native garden palette here in Southern California trends towards the brown-grey-olive hues - what I have fondly dubbed as 'Chaparral Camo' in the Crayola Crayons of my mind. So, it always makes my day to happen on some seemingly errant gems of color that emerge from the monochromatic expanse of our native coastal sage scrub in the otherwise humdrum months of July and August.

Some of the stuff in bloom right now that's native to our site includes California Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum), Tarweed (Hemizonia spp.), Small Wirelettuce (Stephanomeria exigua), and the lovely but 'Pepe le Pew'-with-a-hint-of-mint scented Vinegarweed (Trichostema lanceolatum).

Scarlet Monkeyflower (Mimulus cardinalis)

There are also some bright spots in my garden, which is not exactly a purist's notion of a 'native' garden, but rather a mix of California natives, Mediterraneans & drought tolerants, interspersed with a hodgepodge of fruit trees, grape vines, vegetable, herb & New Englandy cottage garden. Product of a slightly confused mind...

Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis)

Pink California Fuchsia (Zauschneria californica)

"Yo planto, ergo sum," is the only way to explain my garden concoctions, a phrase you won't find in Wiki or any proper Latin dictionary, but then, hey! who's checking?

San Miguel Island Buckwheat (Eriogonum grande rubescens)

Anyhoo, for what it's worth, which for me is a million bucks (in 'in your dreams' Monopoly money), here's the run down on what's blooming in my summer garden on the native plant front, in no particular order:

Bur Marigold (Bidens laevis)

Joaquin Sunflower/Bur Marigold (Bidens laevis)
'King Range' Yarrow (Achillea millefoium)
Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis)
Desert Willow 'Burgundy'
Bush Monkeyflower (Diplacus aurantiacus)
Acton Encelia (Encelia actonii)
'Cape Sebastian' Seaside Daisy (Erigeron glaucus)
Santa Cruz Island Buckwheat (Eriogonum arborescens)
San Miguel Island Buckwheat (Eriogonum grande rubescens)
St. Catherine's Lace (Eriogonum giganteum)
Longstem Buckwheat (Eriogonum elongatum)
Cliff Buckwheat (Eriogonum parvifolium)
Wright's Buckwheat (Eriogonum wrightii)
'Dana Point' Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum cultivar)
Saffron Buckwheat (Eriogonum crocatum)
White California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica alba)
Island Snapdragon (Galvezia speciosa)
Coastal Gum Plant (Grendelia arnicola)
Scarlet Monkeyflower (Mimulus cardinalis)
Desert Four O'Clock (Mirabilis bigelovii)
San Antonio Hills Coyote Mint (Monardella antonina)
Hooker's Evening Primrose (Oenothera hookeri)
'Deer Spring Silver' Cleveland's Sage (Salvia clevelandii)
California Goldenrod (Solidago californica)
Canada Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis)
Apricot/Desert Mallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Hedge Nettle (Stachys bullata)
'Catalina' California Fuchsia (Zauschneria californica)
'Ghostly Red' California Fuchsia (Zauschneria californica)
'Pink' California Fuchsia (Zauschneria californica)
'UC Hybrid' California Fuchsia (Zauschneria californica)
Rose Mallow (Hibiscus lasiocarpa)
Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
Southern Indian Pink (Silene lacianata major)

Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis) at top of falls; backdropped by Cuyamaca Manzanita (Arctostaphylos patula ssp. platyphylla) on the left and Pointleaf Manzanita (Arctostaphylos pungens) on the right.