Managing Wildfire Damage on the PCT Left to Right: the PCT Passes Through an Area of the Russian Wilderness in California That Was Severely Burned
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Managing wildfire damage on the PCT Left to right: The PCT passes through an area of the Russian Wilderness in California that was severely burned. Photo by Mike Taylor. Klamath National Forest soil scientist Joe Blanchard looks over fire damage to the Grider Creek Bridge. Photo by Laura Shaffer, Klamath National Forest. Fire left a patchwork along the PCT south of Etna Summit in the Russian Wilderness. Photo by Mike Taylor. By Ian Nelson, PCTA Regional Representative ildfire is a fact of life in the West and is part of the for- PCT closures and possible detours gets to trail users during these There is much we don’t know yet about the damage to the PCT commit multiple hitches of one of our American Conservation est’s natural cycle. While fires can be beneficial, they hectic times. and surrounding landscape. Based on fire maps and on the ground Experience crews to the Grider Creek section in June and July. also can have significant consequences for the PCT, As wildfires grow and threaten the PCT, Forest Service leaders reconnaissance before the winter snow began to fly, it is estimated Klamath National Forest and PCTA staff will visit the low-elevation especially the trail user experience. will consider closing the trail to protect public safety. Closing public that approximately 20 disconnected miles of the PCT burned in site over the winter to further assess the damage. W the Klamath National Forest in 2014. While that may sound like a During my 10 years as PCTA’s Regional Representative for land is not taken lightly. It’s a well-thought-out process that involves The Happy Camp Complex fire also destroyed the uppermost lot, it is important to keep in mind that fires burn in a wide variety Northern California and Southern Oregon, the fire season’s influ- coordination with multiple parties within the agency. In the case of two of the four bridges that span Grider Creek. These bridges are of intensities. Some fires left behind a patchwork of burned under- ence on the trail has varied from year to year. It’s important to the PCT, once a closure order is in place, the local PCTA Regional more than 60 feet long and will require agency engineering and story, benefitting the ecosystem, with little to no damage to the trail note that we are entering our fourth year of drought in California. Representative will work with the Forest Service and an information environmental work before they can be replaced. PCTA and forest itself, while others burned much hotter and left little living vegeta- Typically, as the calendar turns to June and the spring rains come officer assigned to the fire to get the word out. managers are working to secure funding to help rebuild the bridges. to an end, area forests become especially dry. While the Klamath- tion. Such is the random nature of wildfire. Meanwhile, PCT users are urged to exercise extreme caution if At PCTA, we use our website, social media pages and trail Siskiyou eco-region isn’t known for violent and wet thunderstorms, Some of the most significant damage to the PCT tread is in the attempting to ford Grider Creek at these locations. conditions phone line (888-PCTRAIL) to spread the word. When it does experience periods of dry lightning – a thunderstorm with Grider Creek drainage, where the trail descends northward from possible, PCTA and the agency will share information regarding a Last year’s fire damage to the Grider Creek section of PCT is one little to no rain. Combine dry lightning with dry forests, and wild- the Marble Mountains Wilderness to the Klamath River crossing at detour. Unfortunately, viable walk-arounds are not always available, of the more extreme examples in Northern California. There are fire is almost a foregone conclusion. Seiad Valley, Calif. While the trail here is not very steep, the sidehill particularly in the cases of significant fires, such as those the PCT certainly other burned sections of PCT that will require ongoing that the trail is built into is. Consequently, the burned vegetation In late July and early August 2014, more than 1,000 lightning experienced in 2014. Additionally, PCTA and agency staff will post maintenance and special attention to limit the increased erosion combined with winter rains and snows has the potential to create strikes hit the area, most with limited rainfall. Numerous fires start- signs at key PCT access points and trailheads and get information often associated with wildfire damage. As with any section of PCT slides that may cover or completely wipe out sections of trail. ed, and agencies mobilized to assess, monitor and suppress them. to popular PCT gathering spots, such as hostels and outdoor stores that requires maintenance following a significant fire or weather Within days, fires with names such as the Whites Fire, the Log Fire in nearby trail towns. Of particular concern to stock users are the undercut sections of event, PCTA will work closely with the local agencies as the work and the Beaver Fire were burning near or – in some cases – on the trail created when the fire burned roots and stumps in the ground progresses. It is the strong partnerships between PCTA, volunteers, As the fires burned in the Klamath National Forest last year, PCT in the Klamath National Forest. beneath the trail tread. The Klamath National Forest already has corps crews and agency staff that will ensure the PCT is maintained many smaller fires were put under two large complexes for manage- begun emergency repairs in these areas. PCTA is planning to to the high standard we have all come to expect. n As the Whites Fire grew, a Forest Service-sponsored PCT American ment purposes. They became known as the July Complex and the Conservation Experience trail crew was forced to relocate its base Happy Camp Complex fires. The July Complex burned 50,042 acres camp and work site. In addition, PCTA volunteers including the and included fires located primarily in the southern portion of the Lyons’ Pride trail crew had to adapt to the ever-changing conditions Marble Mountains Wilderness and Russian Wilderness areas, while 2013 Fire Closures in the area. By mid-August, fires closed nearly 100 miles of the PCT the Happy Camp Complex burned 134,056 acres and included fires between Scott Mountain Summit and the California-Oregon border. predominantly in the north and west. Resource advisers from the • Powerhouse Fire, June 2013 – Angeles National Forest: PCT closure still in place with detours posted. PCTA works closely with the U.S. Forest Service to manage local Forest Service offices joined firefighting teams from across the • Mountain Fire, August 2013 – San Bernardino National Forest: substantial PCT closure still in place with detours posted. the trail. Our strong working relationships with many different West to monitor, identify and evaluate potential impacts and ben- Forest Service offices and other state and federal land managers are efits of firefighting operations on natural, cultural and recreation For 2015 volunteer opportunities to help restore the PCT in fire-damaged areas, visit our website at www.pcta.org/volunteer particularly important in ensuring that accurate information about resources, including Wilderness areas and the PCT. 28 PCT Communicator • Spring 2015 PCT Communicator • Spring 2015 29.