HikeArizona.COM

Most recent post has an update on the Tax Day Storm



How long has it been since you saw a sign like this?

We stopped in at the USFS Happy Jack Info Center at Clint's Well Friday and did a double take when we saw this sign! We can't really remember when the arrow pointed to "low!"

Then Sunday morning the "News Update" at the top of the Arizona Republic's Local Section stated,

"Recent rainfalls have Flagstaff forest officials cautiously optimistic this year's fire season will be normal."

During a "normal" fire season, the National Forests usually don't close!

J&S

That is definately a first for me, thanks for taking the picture! I'm sure you all have noticed, but even out towards the Superstitions, everything is GREEN! It's amazing what 2 weeks of rain will do for vegetation.

Saw something similar heading up to grandcanyon 2 weeks ago...Green is great...Hope it stays that way.

i can't even remember the last time i saw a sign like that. hopefully it will stay like that for quite some time.

I just hope that the rains will keep up. All it takes is two dry months to get it high again.

It's good to see, thats for sure!

jeremy77777 wrote:I just hope that the rains will keep up. All it takes is two dry months to get it high again.

Your absolutly right! There was a recennt year in Flagstaff that we had a good snow year and the forests came real close to closing due to a few month drought. Luckly it started to rain right before the closure happened and it was able to stay open.

It needs another sign that states: This is a fee free forest.

Nighthiker wrote:It needs another sign that states: This is a fee free forest.

Yes!!

So far!

The Tax Day Storm (April 15) has laid down some great moisture in the Rimlands' ponderosa forests. We are sending this message from the Williams, AZ, public library a little before noon. It is still snowing here. We woke up this morning in the Kaibab Lake Campground to about 2-3 inches of snow. Elsewhere, when we drove into Williams, it looked more like 4-6 inches. In any event, it is WET snow that is typical of a spring storm. We are impressed at how sloppy wet the streets of Williams are right now. Gutters running, sloppy slush everywhere. We just checked the NEXRAD radar and the storm total precip coverage and it looks like the Rimlands from Bill Williams to the eastern side of COconino County along HWY 260 NE of Payson got pretty uniform coverage.
Interestingly, the NWS computer graphics show lighter precipitation here in Williams that we can see with our own eyes and feel with our own boots. This storm won't produce any appreciable runoff but it will go a LONG WAY to keeping fire danger low and the forests open well into the hot, dry season. If this trend continues, it is great news for all outdoor recreationists, ESPECIALLY hikers!
We plan to be here in Williams until April 21 so we will get to see first hand how quickly the local trails dry out after this storm. We will keep you posted.

J&S

We're having some welcome rain and snow up here in Prescott today. Last year I had to evacuate my house for 4 days because of the "Indian Fire" (named for Indian Creek". That sucked!! Standing of the roof of my house holding a garden hose trying to water my roof down with a 1000 acre fire just over the ridge is not a very comforting feeling! 2 years ago while camped at Whitehorse Lake, canoeing around casually, I saw a whirlwind lift a campfire from the organized campground. whirl it up in the air and drop it about 1/2 mile away, the forest was so dry it immediately caught fire, and of course my camp was in that general vicinity. The bombers came in along with some very fast response firefighters.....I would prefer not to see that happen again. Hopefully this summer there will be water in the high mtn lakes and the fire conditions will be tolerable, unfortunately there will always be those who are not "fire wise". When you are out there, keep an eye out for other campsites which have been abandonded and take a minute to check to see if they have properly put out their fire, it only takes a minute or two......

Was up in Greer a few weeks back and saw the same sign. I also had to do a double take!