Fires along Superstition Ridgeline

[AZLumberjack]

Last night, around 7:30, I noticed a red glow coming from the Superstition Mountain Ridgeline. There were two fires burning. The first was a small fire just below the 5057 summit and the other appeared to be above the Three Sisters rock formation, above the Wave Cave. I called 9-1-1 to notify the fire dept but they were already aware of the fires.

This morning, the fires were not burning but there's still smoke coming from areas that were not burning last night. As of 07:30, as I'm writing this, there are no aircraft in the area of the fires. Don't know if the Forest Service is just hoping that there's not enough fuel up there to send a crew up to fight the fires.

[chumley]

@wallyfrack

You look'n for this?

No, that's the extension of Stage 1 Fire Restrictions. It mentions nothing about a closure area in the Superstitions.

[chumley]

@rayhuston
I'd like to ask Kyle to share the forest order number so I can find it and read the details.

[rayhuston]

@chumley @wallyfrack
I called him back. The order number is 03-12-03-20-411. See attachment.

20200929 Order2.pdf

(94.41 KiB) Downloaded 154 times

[rayhuston]

@DixieFlyer
I sent a subsequent reply with the updated closure order. I did not ask for the map since it's already been posted previously in this thread.

[nonot]

Hopefully they get this organized on their website soon. Not sure how the public is supposed to be informed about a "secret" forest service order.

[chumley]

@nonot
I know people who hiked Flatiron today. It's a total failure on the part of the FS to communicate with the public. This isn't an emergency situation. Extending the closure did not sneak up on them.

[wallyfrack]

The orders are on the website now.

fseprd816059.pdf

(94.42 KiB) Downloaded 118 times

fseprd816060.pdf

(1.47 MiB) Downloaded 155 times

[chumley]

@wallyfrack
Here's the link to the alerts and notices page where those links are found:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/tonto/alerts-notices

FWIW the "check your rec" map and trail status pages have not been updated and still show trails such as Siphon Draw to be "open". Hopefully they get that in order soon too.

[skillpore]

lame, was over by tonto national monument yesterday and it was closed. went up to payson(shoofly ruins) and took 87 back in. I saw that deer creek entrance was open and got excited. i was planing on doing an overnighter in gowan camp.

[chumley]

Tonto might as well get out of the forest management business!

Peralta trailhead was packed full today and hundreds of people were hiking closed trails across the range as there are apparently no signs indicating a closure.

Besides the forest order, most trail-specific pages on their website indicate trails are open, despite being within the posted closure area.

Is it all a ploy to claim they don’t have the resources they need so they can ask for more funding?

Because if they really wanted to close the area they might consider putting 5 minutes of effort into it .

[AZLumberjack]

@chumley
I hiked out of Needle Vista on Saturday, on the portion of the loop where I went past the horse trailer parking lot, I spotted two vehicles parked and a third driving down the road.... none of em was Forest Service. The barricades at the entrance to First Water Road were thrown around when I went past at 06:30 but were in place when I went past a couple of hours later.

[wildwesthikes]

No one at TNF can even explain how the extension of this closure assists the non-existent ongoing firing operations and public safety measures.

[chumley]

@wildwesthikes I suspect that somebody there can, but perhaps not the person who answers the phone.

Post-fire work can take a long time, and it’s possible that with all the significant fires this year there may be a backlog of work and not enough qualified individuals to perform it.

Here’s a link that explains the work they’re likely still in the process of doing.

https://www.nifc.gov/BAER

[wildwesthikes]

@chumley
I am familiar with the BAER process. I am just surprised if it is ongoing still for this particular fire. I've seen past BAER events and it is usually communicated to the public that that is what has been going on.

[chumley]

@wildwesthikes
Well I think we've determined that Tonto isn't particularly good at that "communicating with the public" thing!

[chumley]

Tonto National Forest officials will lift the Superstition Fire public safety closure order on Oct. 6, 2020.

Following the fire, a Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team conducted assessments to identify impacts from the fire and recommend actions for mitigation and management of the burned area on the Superstition Mountains.

The Forest Service BAER program provides guidance in the aftermath of a catastrophic wildfire with the goal of safeguarding forest visitors and employees, and protecting Federal property, water quality, and critical natural or cultural resources from further damage after the fire has been extinguished.

“The BAER final report found that within the fire perimeter, 90 percent was classified as being either unburned or as having low soil burn severity,” said Mesa District Ranger Matt Lane, of the Tonto National Forest. “The majority of the burned area exhibited low soil burn severity and hydrologic modeling predicted relatively low increases in peak flow discharges, which was one of many factors we used as the basis for recommending rescinding the area closure.”

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) debris-flow analysis identified the primary streams to collect data from as Boulder Creek and La Barge Creek. In their report, they estimated relatively low to moderate level of debris-flow hazard within the burned area. The moderate hazard areas are situated in the Old West Boulder Canyon and in the very southeastern portion of the burn area. Visitors should exercise caution when recreating in the area.

The BAER final report recommended emergency response actions that include the installation of warning signs at Canyon Lake, Crosscut and First Water Trailheads, Forest Service Roads 78 and 1455, and at a few interior trail intersections. In the interim, temporary warning signs will be installed but replaced by permanent signs and the forest will continue to work with USGS and the National Weather Service on evaluating the need for additional warning measures. Future funding includes emergency detection and rapid response for invasive weeds.

With monsoon season over, the BAER team determined the likelihood of a storm is low for the immediate future. This gives the forest time to implement emergency response actions prior to a rain event.

The Superstition Fire, which started on August 20, grew to almost 10,000 acres in approximately 10 days until significant rainfall came into the area enabling firefighters to contain the fire and prevent its spread in difficult terrain.

For more information contact the Mesa Ranger Station at (480) 610-3300 or visit the Tonto National Forest website at https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/tonto/home.

[AZLumberjack]

@chumley
It's open. The barricades have been removed and the trails are open for hiking..... again.

[Jim]

Good, so for my 5057th post, I will be able to hike 5057 in the coming weeks as we cool down, in continuing preparation for Finger Rock and Kimball after that opens.

[skillpore]

@Jim_H
What route ya takin?