Posted by Pikes Peak 14115 on July 2, 2026, 3:47 pm ADMIN
Helping with the disaster relief services in support of the Aspen Fire firefighters. Aspen fire now at 40,000 acres and growing. 0% contained.You can look away from a painting, but you can't listen away from a symphony
Terrible!
Posted by greenman on July 3, 2026, 10:05 am, in reply to "Colorado Burning " Valued Poster
Best of luck out there, take care. SAY ‘NO’ TO WAR! RESIST!
Be careful!
Posted by Skye on July 3, 2026, 7:03 am, in reply to "Colorado Burning " Valued Poster
Stay cool and drink lots of water!
Update
Posted by Pikes Peak 14115 on July 3, 2026, 11:11 am, in reply to "Be careful!" ADMIN
78f on way to 90f with high wind and 10-15% humidity. Dew points in the 20's.
Going back today to do it again. We provide meals and water for the firefighters.
60,000 acres and 0 containment. May burn all the way to Pueblo Reservoir. You can look away from a painting, but you can't listen away from a symphony
The wind...
Posted by Skye on July 3, 2026, 2:15 pm, in reply to "Update" Valued Poster
could turn on a dime. Please be careful. Bless you for doing what you can. Daughter says it was the dryest winter on record in the mountains. Could be a long fire season.
It did
Posted by Pikes Peak 14115 on July 4, 2026, 12:09 am, in reply to "The wind..."
We had to evacuate the staging area north of the fire when wind shifted and fire began to burn to the northwest.
It has burned about 80,000 acres as of this evening and is zero contained. Wetmore was evacuated and Florence put on evacuation watch. It is believed the fire burned all around Bishop's Castle. A crew there reported the fire just 200 yards away, and they had to evacuate.
The fire is burning into Hardscrabble canyon and pass. Hwy 67 into Wetmore was closed. We had to drive into Westcliffe and then north to Texas Creek and US 50, a sixty mile detour to get back to base of operations near Pueblo Reservoir.
You can look away from a painting, but you can't listen away from a symphony
Oh geez...
Posted by Skye on July 4, 2026, 8:18 am, in reply to "It did" Valued Poster
Not sure it will do any good to even try to contain a fire like that... better to just try to protect and evacuate people in it's path.
My gawd! You be EXTRA careful!
Posted by Sia on July 4, 2026, 7:46 am, in reply to "It did" ADMIN
Bless you for doing this to help your people there!
I did not go yesterday. A different crew was scheduled for Saturday and Sunday. I'll go back Monday if needed.
The fire is still zero contained. In Friday's unexpected growth, one front reburned through a previous fire burn from about 2015. Today the area grew to 100,000 acres. For perspective that's the size of Denver.
A firefighter captured this image of a fire tornado near Bishop's Castle.
I never saw one of these and never want to. From where we were staged, you could FEEL the heat from the fire- a good two miles away.
The fire is about 50 miles southwest of my house, so there is no threat or danger to it or me. While parts of it are advancing toward Pueblo, much of the prairie flat is cactus, sagebrush and short grass, so the city isn't really threatened either. However there are a few suburbs like parts of Pueblo West in the pinyon-juniper zone that could be threatened.
The fire is still zero contained and the sixth largest fire in state history. That position is certain to change.
The fire is burning in a front range called the Wet Mountains, and they're anything but. The range runs parallel, east of the Sangre de Cristo, which absorb moisture from the west... already greatly absorbed by the San Juan range across the very dry San Luis Valley. High point of the Wet Mountains is Greenhorn Mountain, 12,345'The valley south of the range, in which the town of Walsenburg sits, is from Greenhorn and the Sangre de Cristo crest, deeper than the Grand Canyon.
I went to City Hall for the No Kings Protest. It was loosely planned and loosely attended.
Your girls had heat exhaustion. I said nothing because I was dead tired and know you knew that, and they were OK. I am surprised their camp counselors weren't more proactive.
At Mt Rushmore violent weather cut short the felon's plans, and most prophetically the sculpted presidents appeared to cry from the torrential rain and hail melt pouring from their eyes.
His appearance at the Great American State Flop left many pissed off by his careless tardiness and lack of services, like food and drink. Some heat exhaustion occurred there. You can look away from a painting, but you can't listen away from a symphony
WOW, that is just getting worse by the day!
Posted by Sia on July 5, 2026, 6:13 pm, in reply to "Latest" ADMIN
Yes, they had heat exhaustion. Yesterday, so did I.
Trying to get ready for a huge family cookout at our house, I raced well past my huge limitations to where I could barely stand up and was essentiallyuseless.
Next thing I knew, the crowd arrived and I was down for the rest of the day with everyone waiting in me rather than me actually hosting. They all jumped up to help and do everythib, including clean up afterwards. My kids, husband, siblings, assorted nephews and nieces, friends, and neighbors. They were all incredibly supportive and understanding. I am so blessed!
My niece, Melissa, and her husband, Rob, did a wonderful fireworks show for us around 9pm. It was so fun!
I'm still resting today. It's going to be awhile before I'm back to my new normal.
Two more days helping with disaster relief. Southside of the fire was about 15% contained until this afternoon when a couple tongues crossed Hwy 165. Total burn is believed well over 100,000 acres, adding 10,000 more acres each night due to uncooperative weather. A few thunderstorms developed, but they were strong with wind and lightning and light on rain, so they made the situation worse.
This is the view from just east of Westcliffe, west of the fire at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo. looking east. From the east, the Wet Mountains are shrouded in a dismal pall of smoke, like LA on a really bad smog day.
Reportedly our sheriffs fined enough people for pre 4 July fireworks to dampen the nights prior. Saturday night appeared to be calmer and more orderly until about 90 when all hell broke loose. MAGA seem compelled to break the law when they want because the US Constitution protects their otherwise lawbreaking rights. Sometime someone's house is gonna burn. There were two fires in town, in a residential area. Both burned several full size trees, but were snuffed out before structure damage could occur. You can look away from a painting, but you can't listen away from a symphony
That's just terrible! I hope the rains come soon!
Posted by Sia on July 7, 2026, 11:39 pm, in reply to "& July 2026" ADMIN
Gains were made with the Aspen Acres fire. ~20% contained. Fire burned all around the town of Beulah. The Beulah Volunteer Fire Department saved all but a few homes, in an oasis in the middle of the burn. Amazing.
You can look away from a painting, but you can't listen away from a symphony
Great news!
Posted by Sia on July 9, 2026, 6:51 pm, in reply to "Fire got a handle" ADMIN
That's just horrible! Major KUDOS for you & yours for doing your part in helping
Posted by Sia on July 3, 2026, 12:10 pm, in reply to "Update" ADMIN
Good on you! Be safe!
Posted by Sia on July 2, 2026, 8:16 pm, in reply to "Colorado Burning " ADMIN
on July 2, 2026, 3:47 pm
