Caldor Fire Evacuation... And One Thing To Brighten The Mood

One week ago, the Caldor Fire required the entire South Shore of Tahoe to evacuate. The order was issued for some areas on Saturday, our neighborhood on Sunday, and the rest of town on Monday and Tuesday.

The sheriff's deputies came through our neighborhood and made us leave in minutes. (They were kind and polite, but FIRM.) 

We took our computers and the clothes we were wearing and almost nothing else. That's stressful, not even having an overnight bag. It's easy to be gone for almost any length of time when you can have several hours get ready. The Evacuation Warning system normally gives you a day.

On Sunday morning, our area was not under Evacuation Warning. Then the wind shifted, the falling ash went from white snow to black charcoal chunks, and we were suddenly under Evacuation Order. (We never got the warning stage.) Thus we ran.

Now we will worry for days? weeks? about whether our house is going to be there when we're allowed back in. According to the current map, our house is okay. The firefighters were amazing. In nearby Christmas Valley, the fire came over Echo Summit, swept down the mountain on the west side of the valley, blew across to the east side of the valley, and swirled everywhere through the forest. Yet the fire fighters stayed near the houses and appear to have spared most of them from the flames.

We are very glad for the efforts of both law enforcement and the firefighters who throughout the Caldor burn have saved houses even as the wildfire roars right up to them.

Here is a link for one of the most up-to-date maps of the fire burn area. You can zoom in on the map and see, for example, how Christmas Valley burned and yet many of the houses were spared even though the fire came on all sides.

Now we'll watch the fire report and evacuation map for when we'll be allowed back in.

As for mood brightener... We had some business to take care of in Sacramento, but the only way to get there was to head east out of the Tahoe Basin, go north to Reno, then west down Interstate 80.

One of the best things about Sacramento is the American River with 30 miles of parkway on each side. Walking paths, biking paths, acres of green grass. Another good thing is its beauty, as you can see below.

So we took a break on the river and walked for miles.

One of the dogs we saw was a Golden Retriever. This one's owner was tossing sticks in the water, and the golden jumped in to retrieve them. When the owner tired of the game, the dog decided it could play by itself. Run into the water. Swim for awhile. Run back out. Find a stick. Take that into the water. Swim with the stick. Run back out. Drop the stick on the ground and look at it. Will it to move. Okay, it's not moving. Pick it up, run down the shore, and go swimming there. Come back out. Run to its owner. Drop the stick at its owner's feet. Will the owner to throw the stick. Okay, the owner's not moving, either. Run back into the water and swim. Come back out. Shake vigorously, throwing water all over the owner. That'll teach him.

Throughout this activity, the Golden gave that famous smile. Maybe I'm anthropomorphizing. But those who know dogs know that Goldens give you a smile unlike any other dog. (By comparison, Great Danes don't smile, but they can do a vigorous wag that is unlike nearly any dog, a wag that can raise bruises on your legs.) Like other dogs, Goldens have so much fun, it's hard to not believe they're smiling. And all it takes is water and a stick.

Decide for yourself.