Do you know how far it’s advanced this morning into the drainage?
Good news there is probably more resources coming into camp today to help. And resources they probably can use in camp if needed. IAP looked skinny this morning.
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@fyre Judging by the panorama view on Keller, and the angle on the map its near the mouth of bear creek and looks like it’s picking up some steam below lookout point. WD shows a similar perimeter
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Went to Keller Peak lookout Sat. Sept 7 to view the fire, was in the tower talking with the volunteer lookouts when the mandatory evacuation order came in and tower was closed. I believe these are some of the last images taken of the tower prior to it’s loss on the 10th. Had a weird feeling and decided to take some photos of the tower just in case… well the just in case happened. Bummed that the vintage Osborne Fire finder, in addition to the 98-year old structure and historic artifacts in it were lost.
And yes, that’s rain on the tower windows. Was hailing and 60 degrees when the tower was closed.
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Any updated intel on what the fire is doing in bear creek?
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Such a bummer , lots of towers lost in last few years
Hopefully the Osborne is found and maybe salvageable
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Thanks for the photos, it is sad, grew up on the mtn. Been there many times, I worked out of the Deerlick station at the bottom of the road up to the lookout on Hwy. 18 in the 70s’. Ray Redding was the lookout then, been there for years. When the Bear fire in 70 went over the top of Keller Peak he rode it out in his pickup parking inside the microwave compound below the tower. In the middle of the first night he lost his animometer at a gust of 105 he told us.
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I received intel that both the tower logbooks and Osborne finder from Keller Peak were evacuated before the tower was closed.
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Good news indeed.
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Good thinking
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Updated Firis map?
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How far away from Angelus oaks , is it holding behind constance peak thanks appreciate any update
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Thank you appreciate it
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A newer perimeter not available. Ship is oos tonight
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As the Line Fire extends itself up the Bear Creek drainage, I found it sort of appropriate to liken it to the only other known significant fire to haunt in this particular part of the San Bernardino National Forest– the aptly named Bear Fire of 1970.
The burn scar makeup of the Bear and Line Fire may end up being quite similar when all is said and done despite the two fires having two very different ignition sources and being influenced by much different weather conditions:
The November 1970 Bear Fire (allegedly started by an unattended campfire three miles south of Big Bear Lake) was influenced predominantly by Santa Ana winds that propelled the fire down the Bear Creek valley and into upper Highland. At some point during its burn, the Santa Ana winds subsided and sent flames up the mountain faces and into the communities of Smiley Park and Running Springs which led to the fire destroying 52 structures. However, once the Santa Ana winds largely diminished, it appears as though fire crews got the upper hand on it quite quickly if these old newspaper clippings of the fire are anything to go by.
What does this say in relation to Line Fire? I suppose, it largely says that there is a form of being able to box this fire into valley and to keep it there in so long as there is no significant onshore flow to thrust the fireline up over and into the denser forests above the valley like what unfortunately happened in 2003 with the Old Fire.
The unfortunate reality is that the weather influence of the strong Santa Ana winds was largely in upper Big Bear and Seven Oaks’ favor. As the winds forced the Bear Fire to keep away from Pinezanita and Seven Oaks area and down into Highland.
Meanwhile, the Line Fire has had the exact opposite wind influence, as the onshore winds continue to force the fireline to creep ever so stubbornly toward Big Bear. The Bear Creek Trailhead bowl area below Highway 18 and the widely unburned land beyond the Bear scar in the Seven Oaks area is going to be the real wildcard in all this.
It’s not possible to predict EXACTLY what a fire will do but seeing what previous fires exist in an area can tell us a lot about how they’ll burn in the future.
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In Handcrew speak, this is called “closing the back door” on wind events. The idea it to secure blackline/ handline construction on the lee side of the fire during the wind event so when the wind subsides and does a 180 ° back the other way you have hard containment line already cut in. We’re still about 4 weeks out from initially getting significant Foehn winds (Santa Anas) just yet.
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From this morning at 0309 hrs. Still concerned with it coming up and over towards Bluff Lake. But that whole plateau has had lots of fuel reduction work over the last couple years.
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