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Lots of activity in Springerville this morning, with the Prescott Hot Shots arriving at Safeway for a snack, and other buses full of firefighters seen on the highway heading for the "Wallow Fire" in Bear Wallow Wilderness Area, south of Hannagan. The smoke is not that visible, although my daughter was over at Hulsey yesterday and saw the smoke. I was up at Big Lake early this morning and could see only a haze of smoke south of there, not a big plume. I think winds too strong for it to plume up much. I'm back in Flag now, so I won't get the firsthand news any more.

Oh, and no campfires or charcoal grills allowed in the campgrounds since last night in Apache-Sitgreaves NF (Big Lake, Hannagan, etc.) I think stoves still allowed. Not sure about non-campgrounds.

Here's a news story on the Wallow Fire, but as of this writing it has not made it to inciweb yet. (Maybe tomorrow?)
( dead link removed )

Perimeter Map [ Wallow Fire Map 2011-06-27 :: map ]
Inciweb ( dead link removed )

I wonder how those guys (and everyone else) ever get that burned smell out of their nose. It lingers forever.

I'm lucky I have a lousy sense of smell, I guess.

I hear there is a LOT of green left in the fire area. Some areas not touched at all (which could still burn) and other areas burned mostly on the ground. I keep worrying about the southern areas, though, such as Fish Creek, Black River, Conklin Creek, Bear Creek, Bear Wallow Creek, etc. Significant crown fire throughout that area would cause a lot of problems in the future with soil erosion and destruction of fish habitat in the creeks, and also it would never really recover in my lifetime, if all the trees were killed.

A small area of Eagar was put under pre-evacuation notice yesterday. The high wind sent embers all the way to Picnic Hill, right near the Rodeo Grounds incident command center. I am in Flagstaff right now but will go back to Eagar later today or tomorrow morning. As soon as they open 191 I'm going for a looky-loo.

With only 5k acres to go and another red flag day, it's a near certainty that the Wallow Fire today will exceed the threshold of half a million acres burned.

chumley wrote:With only 5k acres to go and another red flag day, it's a near certainty that the Wallow Fire today will exceed the threshold of half a million acres burned.

Sheez... Being back in Flag, I think I just want to forget about it for awhile...

(Bold typeface mine.)

Wallow Fire now up to 495,016 acres, 33% contained, 60 mph wind gusts expected on Sunday
Karen Warnick - The Independent | Posted: Friday, June 17, 2011

Wallow fire update, June 17 10 a.m. press briefing - ROUND VALLEY-The 10 a.m. press briefing while mostly positive, had some potential bad news for residents of Greer and Alpine. Because of the high winds yesterday, today and through Sunday, mop up operations and the removal of hazard trees has been delayed. It is considered too dangerous to have crews on the ground when winds are high and can cause trees to fall.

Until the fire chiefs of the communities and the fire crews working the fire have determined that the areas are safe, residents will not be able to return. The earliest possible date mentioned was Monday, June 20.

The weather forecast is for continued low humidity and wind gusts around 60 mph on Sunday. Perimeter lines are currently holding along the North Zone which extends from Alpine on the east and around to Greer on the west. Spot fires have occurred within the control and containment lines but have been quickly taken care of.

Greer is expected to have power restored to most areas by this afternoon.

The Big Lake area and its campgrounds remain unchanged. Areas surrounding Big Lake that have dispersed camping have been burned. Forest Supervisor Chris Knopp stated that they hope to have Big Lake open in a matter of weeks, not months, depending on lines holding and fixing roads that lead to the lake that have been damaged.

The Burro Mountain containment line is holding and the fire has not advanced into the Mt. Baldy wilderness area.The Type 1 Team that has been managing the North Zone will be transitioning out on Saturday and a Type 2 team from southern California will take its place. The Area Command unit that is in charge of all teams will also be leaving in the next day or so.

The fire is still active on the south and southeast sides of the perimeter as well as part of the west below Greer. Resources have been moved to help in those areas though a large force is still in place around the communities of Alpine, Nutrioso, Greer and the Round Valley area.

Work is being done now to assess the emergency response to the potential of flooding in areas around these communities. There will be regular daily briefings held to bring information to the public on what the Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team is doing. The Independent will be providing that information as it becomes available.

The press briefings have been scaled down to one a day at 10 a.m. We will continue to provide updates.

Reach the reporter at kwarnick@wmicentral.com.

Per the 8:00 a.m. Incident Command Press Release - The Red Flag Warning issued by the National Weather Service remains in effect from 11 AM to 8 PM MST due to strong winds and low relative humidity. Southwest winds are forecast from 15 - 25 mph with gusts of 35 – 45. Critical fire weather is expected through Sunday. Relative humidities this afternoon will range from 5 - 10 %. The hot, dry and windy weather coupled with the drought stressed vegetation, and heavy fuel loading in mixed conifer forests has the potential to create extreme fire behavior.

Active interior fire will continue with torching and short-range spotting. Yesterday firefighters responded to spot fires in various areas of the fire and the threat of spot fires continues. Firefighters continue to strengthen and secure lines, prepare lines for burnout, mop-up, patrol and conduct structure protection across the fire. While interior pockets of fire remain active, no fire movement is anticipated in the northern portion of the fire today. However, there is significant growth potential in the northeast due to Red Flag conditions. Active fire behavior continues east of Alpine in unburned islands north of US 180.

Burning along US 180 from Luna to Alpine was completed yesterday. Active burning can be expected in the Blue River drainage. Fire was active in the Grant Creek area last night. Brushing and chipping along SR 281 to improve it for use as a containment line continues.

On the southwest flank, fire crews have completed a line to keep the fire in Warren Canyon. Firelines immediately south of Black River are holding. Operations south of SR 273 and north of Black River are focusing on mop-up and rehabilitation of existing firelines. Road construction crews were allowed to return to work along SR 273 in the Sunrise Ski Resort area. Nearly 30 miles of slash created by improving roads will be chipped on the west flank.

Forecasted Red Flag conditions will make it difficult to secure the south end of the fire. As winds increase today and tomorrow, returning evacuees and all individuals within the vicinity of the fire need to be aware of the possibility of increased fire activity.

I guess Alpine is allowed back in tomorrow morning according to inciweb and the Alpine hotline. My parents are going to head up and check on their place. They have to meet at the rodeo grounds, show proof of ownership and then they will be allowed in. I am nervous to see pictures of the area. I was never worried about the old house. It is insured. The forest isn't. I have the rest of my life to watch it recover. I know I won't see the ponderosa pines and douglas firs come back. But, the aspens should come in quick. I think it will be exciting each year as I visit to see new things come back to life. I am just trying to be optimistic.

Yeah, I hear that a lot of it really isn't that bad, lot of ground fire. Just still worrying about those creeks in the southern section... Very happy for the Alpine folks. I know folks who live there year-round. Good little elementary school they have there, a few amenities such as a library, small grocery store, etc. It would be nice to live there. Hope they don't get too much flooding. (Now I am being pessimistic.)

azbackpackr wrote:Just still worrying about those creeks in the southern section...

The creeks and rivers recover much quicker than the trees. The flooding will flush them pretty good which will be a good thing for the aquatic life. Many fish will die but if G&F stocks the streams, it should only take 5-10 years for them to recover and they will be more healthy and clean.

azbackpackr wrote:Good little elementary school they have there

My granddad tutored some of the local high school students there during summers in the 80's.

i thot wallow creek was a rehab area for apache trout.. who will restock them? and where to?
http://www.azgfd.gov/w_c/apache_recovery.shtml
(as well, the declining numbers of mexican wolf surely wont be throwing a party)

te-wa wrote:i thot wallow creek was a rehab area for apache trout.. who will restock them? and where to?

Sometime after the flooding, G&F will be restock the streams and rivers. I don't know if they will restock the Brown Trout. Bear Wallow, Fish, and Conklin Creeks have been closed to fishing while G&F have been reintroducing the Apache Trout.

te-wa wrote:(as well, the declining numbers of mexican wolf surely wont be throwing a party)

I think wolf numbers have been increasing ... but many were still affected. This quote appeared in an AZCentral article and was posted earlier in this thread:

Mexican gray wolves were released in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests in 1998.

As of January, officials counted at least 50 wolves in the forest, said Sherry Barrett, Mexican Wolf Recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. That number was up from 42 the previous year; the goal is 100.

Barrett said the wildlife service keeps track of the wolves through a weekly flyover of the area. Many of the wolves wear collars that send a signal to the plane while others have GPS collars that can be tracked through satellite. Since officials have been unable to do their flyovers because of the smoke, they don't yet know what has happened to the packs.

There are 10 packs in the national forest; four were probably unaffected and six are believed to have pups, Barrett said. One pack, called the Rim Pack, was in the Bear Wallow Creek Wilderness, the area where the fire started May 29.

"It burned very hot in that area," Barrett said. "But there is a possibility that the pack had made their den underground and the fire just went right over them."

She said that of particular concern are pups that were born in April and May and are not strong enough to escape the flames.

"Wolves will move pups to a safe area, but if a fire is coming too hot and fast, they will abandon them," she said.

chumley wrote:With only 5k acres to go and another red flag day, it's a near certainty that the Wallow Fire today will exceed the threshold of half a million acres burned.

Size: 500,409 acres total

Chazz_Reinhold wrote: G&F will be restock the streams and rivers

that would be nice, but my concern is WHERE are they going to be stocked? there are not many places where they could create a strong population of Apaches, not for many seasons (until habitat returns), but the good news is there wont be any pesky browns and rainbows to hamper their rebound. this reminds me of Canyon creek where many trout died not of ash, or flooding, or erosion, but a couple degree increase in water temp from the lack of shade.

chumley wrote: I think wolf numbers have been increasing

i was glad to hear this. from '09/'10, there were decreased #'s as you stated, down to 42 animals. I wonder if the Rodeo fire didnt help the wolves to concentrate in other areas, allowing seperate packs to breed amongst themselves. im not a wolf biologist.. but it looks like more pups are surviving. until Wallow, that is. lets imagine that they all made it out alive.. ;)

te-wa wrote:WHERE are they going to be stocked? there are not many places where they could create a strong population of Apaches, not for many seasons (until habitat returns), but the good news is there wont be any pesky browns and rainbows to hamper their rebound. this reminds me of Canyon creek where many trout died not of ash, or flooding, or erosion, but a couple degree increase in water temp from the lack of shade.

I don't know exactly where the restocking will be. I am sure there will be some downed trees that might create some new deeper pools, but G&F will find places to restock. I am not worried about that. I am hoping the fire skipped the areas around the streams and river, otherwise there will be an increase in water temps. However, the stream side vegetation comes back quick so that shouldn't be a problem in the next few years.

hope so too.. the shoreline insects that rely on grasses like mayflies 'n hoppers will need to have hatching grounds.. wasnt there also a re-introduction area in W. Fork along the Thompson trail? hopefully that area has some trees left over, or passed over. I still need to add a caught (and released ;) ) Apache to my resumè.

te-wa wrote:wasnt there also a re-introduction area in W. Fork along the Thompson trail? hopefully that area has some trees left over, or passed over.

Yes there was. G&F installed 2 fish barriers to prevent the browns from moving up the stream. That was one of my favorite places to fish. The fire did pass through that area and I am afraid to see what remains. The upper West Fork of the Black passes through many meadows so hopefully those areas didn't get burned too bad.

When I looked at South Fork last week, it didn't look bad. But I have been in Flagstaff since Thursday, and I heard there was more smoke coming from that direction the other day. I'll be heading back to Eagar tomorrow afternoon, so will check it out again. It has at least 2 dams for the Apache Trout. At least, that is what I think they meant them for. They just built them in the last several years.

Won't the post-fire erosion threaten the viability of those streams as trout habitat for a while?

A friend of mine is a fisheries biologist who used to work in Alpine district, now is working out of state. They brought him in to do some evaluating last week, since he knows the area's watersheds better than anyone who actually works for the A-S now. I am hoping to talk to him or to his wife about some of these things later on.

511,000+ acres. It made a run for Luna, New Mexico today, and they have been evacuated. Power went out in Alpine and Nutrioso, although those folks have been let back in. Greer still under evacuation order. Where is everyone staying? They are mostly staying with family in the Valley or in other towns in the White Mtns. where they have family.
EDIT: Greer people are being allowed back tomorrow if they can prove they have a home there.

New fire near Bear Canyon Lake on the Rim above Payson, which they are throwing a lot of resources at, for obvious reasons. And the fire in the Huachucas is now the #1 priority in the state, since the Wallow Fire is quickly becoming New Mexico's problem.