CZU Lightning Complex Fire Perimeter's Journal

June 13, 2021

Recovery after 9 months

It has now been nine months since the devastating CZU Complex fire and despite a very dry rainy season, there is encouraging recovery in some areas. On a recent bike ride along the length of the affected area along Gazos Creek Road, we saw lush new growth popping up in the burn area. There was very little difference in the species composition of flowers along the road compared to a similar ride one year earlier. Shrubs such as Coyote Brush were coming back strong. The canyon was filled with bird song. One big difference, and this also seems to be the case in areas not affected by fire, is that there were almost no butterflies, whereas last year, there was an abundance of butterflies in the canyon.

Here is a link to a series of photos taken along the length of the road. It shows not only stump sprouting from the redwoods, but also sprouting from the upper trunks. Bigleaf Maple was sprouting all over from the ground and from stumps, but Red Alder was not rebounding as fast. Time will tell what happens to the Douglas Fir trees, but they do not usually fare as well after fire.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/dpom12/albums/72157719409709081

Posted on June 13, 2021 11:17 PM by dpom dpom | 1 comment | Leave a comment

November 5, 2020

Impact on the Redwood Forest

Here is a lik to an excellent article explaining the potential impacts of the CZU fire on our Redwood forests.
http://www.scmbc.org/news

Posted on November 5, 2020 11:36 PM by dpom dpom | 0 comments | Leave a comment

October 29, 2020

One month after the fire

It has now been just over a month since the fire and I had a chance to ride my bike the length of the fire-damaged area of Gazos Creek Road in San Mateo County from the intersection at Cloverdale Road east for another three miles to the end of the road. EPA crews and San Mateo County maintenance crews were present in the areas where there were structures and I heard chainsaws cutting down some of the trees that were posing hazards. The road is clear all the way back now, but the overwhelming smell of wood smoke still lingers. Other than the sound of chainsaws, it is very quiet, with very few birds, in an area that was spectacularly birdy. In spots where vegetation was spared, the leaves are coated in a fine layer of ash and dust. The once-beautiful creek is clogged with silt, debris, and ash. The steep slopes of this canyon have lost the ground cover and brush that will protect it from mudslides this coming winter. A few months ago, I saw small steelhead in the creek. It does not look likely that they could survive in such stagnant water, now. The good news is that the larger Redwoods and Douglas Firs look as if they will survive. Only the lower limbs are damaged. There are scattered Bigleaf Maples and Red Alders that survived, as well as some of the Coast Live Oaks. There were even some sprouts of the hearty California Mugwort coming up. The spring should be very interesting, as we see this area revegetate. There is very limited opportunity for hiking in this area at present. Butano State Park is closed indefinitely.
Attached is a link to some photos I took during my ride.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dpom12/albums/72157716666926688

Posted on October 29, 2020 08:26 PM by dpom dpom | 3 comments | Leave a comment

September 16, 2020

We are close to 100% containment as of September 16,

The CZU Complex Fire has been raging for more than a month now, and finally, Cal Fire predicts they will have 100% containment by Sunday, September 20. As we near containment on this terrible fire that has affected San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties, we are beginning to anticipate the day when we can go back into this area we love and document its recovery. This project has been set up to include all the pre-fire observations that we have made on iNaturalist and to add all the new observations we are able to make after the fire is out. Some areas are close to roads and we will be able to access them right away, but for others, such as Big Basin and Butano State Parks, it may be a long time before they are safe and we are allowed to enter. Regardless, please stay safe and use good judgement before entering any fire areas. Dead trees and tree limbs will be falling for a long time to come. Flare-ups will likely occur for quite a while, so don't get caught off-guard. I am tagging those inat users who I know have spent time hiking and observing nature in this region and hopefully, will have a chance to continue to add observations. All observations made within the perimeter of the CZU Fire will be accumulated into the project automatically, so it is not necessary to join, but please do. We also ask that you indicate in the "Notes" section of each observation whether the specific area for that observation has burned or not.

@leptonia , @terrydad2 , @gyrrlfalcon , @leslie_flint , @metsa , @lizziesusco , @chloejreid , @jmaughn , @ventanaphile , @hfabian , @kevinhintsa , @kenk , @leftcoastnaturalist , @apatten , @nmcnear , @garth_harwood , @geodani , @toucan55 , @joseph103 , @barbarab , @pdvmushroom , @alan_rockefeller , @thrasherbird , @chris_nelson , @libbing_life , @robberfly , @kfistanic , @damontighe , @kwillott , @satucker , @tiwane , @catchang , @sea-kangaroo , @earth_tide , @willfreyman , @thomas_laxton , @dgreenberger , @u_phantasticus , @lilithohlson , @mrchasse , @dsacer , @arvel , @brycestauble , @ross2 , @alvarojaramillo , @wests20 , @basquebird , @bkossy , @cae1 , @caseygirard , @cedrodebryl , @charadrius , @chyroptera , @ericgbirder , @joshuabobcatstacy , @keith_g , @kschnei , @moonlittrails , @prakrit , @serpophaga , @tui

Posted on September 16, 2020 08:50 PM by dpom dpom | 19 comments | Leave a comment

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