Tahoe Rim Trail Association crew leader Shea Imgarten, right, brings material to help mask a social trail at Van Sickle Bi-State Park in Lake Tahoe. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
Lopers, picks, shovels, mallets, McLeod’s, saws, carts and other items dotted the hillside. Instead of this lineup of tools being employed to build something, they were used to decommission 1,300 feet of social trails in Van Sickle Bi-State Park in June.
Finding a shortcut seems ingrained in human behavior. In nature this means creating trails in places that weren’t meant to be walked on.
Fifty-five volunteers alongside a slew of Tahoe Rim Trail Association personnel set about creating a landscape that no longer invited people to get off the designated route. After several hours the user-created trails were no longer visible. It went beyond just not being inviting. No evidence of their existence could be seen.
Normally slash piles are disposed of by fire. Not so this summer. Nevada State Parks crews left them for the Tahoe Trim Trail folks to use in June.
Using picks, shovels and McLeod’s, holes were dug to “plant” logs like they were mini trees.
“Ice-berging is a more permanent way to decommission switchbacks,” Shea Imgarten, a TRTA trail crew leader, explained. “They can last 20 years. It’s better than throwing logs and needles on the dirt.”
Rocks found by volunteers helped stabilize the planted log, with dirt filling in the hole.
Eileen Mosse, from left, Andy Rothman and Seyil Yoon stabilize a log in the ice-berging process of trail decommissioning. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
Manzanita—some from the slash piles, some trimmed from plants growing slopeside—were replanted. Not whole bushes, but trimmings. This propagation really works.
“I’ve done a lot of landscaping. There is a lot of crossover with this work,” Andy Rothman, a trail leader, said.
Other debris from the slash piles were scattered about in a semi-methodical way to look as natural as possible. Only plant material found on-site and hand tools were used.
These trails were about seven-tenths of a mile in from the main parking lot; in between the initial vista point and the waterfall.
Some worked from the top, others from the bottom. At the end, looking up or down, only those who were there June 6 would likely be able to know where the work occurred.
In the end, TRTA Executive Director Lindsey Schultz declared this was the best those trails have looked in 20 years.
Land and water
When hikers create their own trails it can lead to unintended consequences like trampling sensitive habitat and the inevitable destabilization of the ground which creates erosion problems. This in turn can lead to sediment reaching Lake Tahoe.
Sediment is a major reason the lake’s clarity isn’t what it once was. Clarity is worse in the summer compared to winter readings.
The annual Lake Tahoe Clarity Report released in June shows the annual average clarity remains at a plateau.
“In 2025, as in previous years, the seasonal decrease in water clarity appears to be well correlated with the seasonal peak of particles,” the report states. “Given that water clarity has not shown an overall trend toward improvement in several decades, we suggest that understanding the nature of the particles is a priority area for research to identify the current drivers of water clarity.”
Jim Large, recipient of the TRTA Peak Award for volunteer work, helps with digging a trench for a log. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
Why this day?
American Hiking Society launched National Trails Day in 1993. It is always the first Saturday of June. Organizations across the country put on various events with the goal of getting community members to be trail stewards.
“What is really cool is people will go up there in the next years and won’t know what each of you did today,” Schultz told the group before work started. “But you’ll know. That will be inside of you forever.”
She reflected on her first trail day as a 9-year-old when her dad took her to Mount Rose. It’s moments like those when you don’t necessarily know the impact you are having on one’s life, she said.
“You might get a small human in your life to know the importance of conservation,” Schultz said. She was once that child. This was her 15th Trails Day.
Eileen Mosse remembers reading a Sunset magazine article in the 1980s about the Tahoe Rim Trail that lead her to declare she would be part of it one day. Now that she lives in the Carson City area most of the year with husband Leon she is a guide in training. Last year they did the 165-mile trail in segments.
On this particular Saturday the couple was doing everything asked of them and then some: digging, lifting, hauling, burying, sawing.
Larry Green of South Tahoe works to decommission a user-created trail on the South Shore of Tahoe. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
For South Lake Tahoe’s Larry Green this was his 13th Trail Day. He’s a lover of working with rocks—building stairs in particular. The Lake Tahoe Community College math instructor admits he might be the only one out there using math to figure out the best build.
While stair building was not on the agenda this particular day, Green was seen with a variety of tools in his hands and seeming to never take a break.
Of the 750,000 people who use the Tahoe Rim Trail each year, less than 2 percent give back in terms of financial donations.
Grant funding is drying up, making donations all the more imperative. In fact, the Youth Backcountry Program, which serves several Tahoe kids, was facing a $90,000 funding gap going into this summer.
Also at Van Sickle on that first Saturday of June were 28 volunteers with the League to Save Lake Tahoe who picked up 137 pounds of trash in the park and Stateline area.
Hot air balloons in Sonoma County come to life. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
It didn’t matter that the marine layer prevented the hot air balloons from taking flight. Just watching the early morning ritual was spectacular.
The Sonoma County Hot Air Balloon Classic in July was my first hot air balloon festival. The two-day event at the fairgrounds in Santa Rosa featured about 20 balloons.
Balloons dwarf people roaming the fairgrounds in Santa Rosa. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
The three of us—me, Sue, Darla—arrived in time for the 5am glow. The bright balloons literally glow as the propane burners fill the insides and these marvels seem to come to life. Of course the brighter the fabric of the balloon, the prettier it was—at least to me.
The character ones—Yoda, a fish, a butterfly—were interesting, but it was the traditional ones I liked the most.
The announcer, who kept the crowd engaged during the cold pre-dawn start (gates opened at 4am), had the pilots do a twinkle—meaning they took turns firing the gas, which literally had the balloons twinkling one after another. It was quite the spectacle.
One year it would be fun to see the mass of balloons in the sky. Maybe I’ll have to go the Reno festival. One of the pilot’s handed out info about the Great Reno Balloon Race, which just marked its 46th year. It is the largest free hot air ballooning event in the world. Kinda sad I never went considering I lived so close.
A balloon pilot pulls the fuel trigger. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
And maybe one day I’ll even ride in a balloon. Being there made me think I might like to. Ideally, my sporadic fear of heights would not be triggered … but I digress.
On the same card about Reno it said the inside of a hot air balloon can hit 275 degrees. Just a hint of that heat would have felt nice that morning.
The first Reno event had 20 balloons and now has about 100. Makes me wonder if the Sonoma County event will grow that large one day.
I would think dawn patrol at any balloon event is the way to go. It really was magical.
A rattlesnake under the fence in Cloverdale in July. (Image: Jim the neighbor)
You know you’re on edge when a flag ruffling in the wind behind you makes you jump and the dog who loves spending her day under the bed startles you with movement.
Snakes. That’s what led to my jumpiness. I really, really, really dislike them.
I encountered two rattlers in less than 24 hours while dog sitting for friends in Cloverdale in northern Sonoma County this month. Both are dead. One thanks to a neighbor, the other at the hands of firefighters.
Luckily, neighbor Jim came over to warn me about the snake that was calling part of my yard (where his head was) and part of the next door neighbor’s yard (where his rattle was) home. He was a biggie. (Not really sure if it was a boy or girl snake; not sure how to figure out gender on these slithering critters.)
I’ve only seen a picture of him. That was enough.
Jim said the neighbor didn’t want it killed, but would call someone to come get it. He pushed it over to my side, then closed up the hole. At this point I thought he lived next door and it was his wife who wouldn’t kill the unwanted guest.
Jim patrols the yard while the neighbors are out of town and the dog sitter is wussy. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
I’m sure my eyes got really big when he said the snake was fully in my yard. I was so stunned I couldn’t say WTF! So, I said I guess it’s my problem now and I need to call someone.
Then he said he could kill it if I wanted him to. Please do so. Then I asked what he’d do with it. He said put it in the trash. I said I could not handle that because I wouldn’t be able to take the trash out the next day or put anything in it. He just looked at me. I said, I’m serious! He said he could throw it over the fence into the open space. I said great because then some other critter could eat it.
I heard the shovel on the rocks. Jim showed it to me before he tossed it over the back fence. It seemed smaller than the picture. That’s something that rattled, pun intended, me and Jim. We both knew there were more snakes.
This big guy had me on edge because he was still out there. Were those friends, kids, other relatives who were exterminated?
Jim came over the next morning to patrol the back yard. There was another one, even smaller than the first dead one. He slithered along the fence line before going to the neighbor’s.
The neighbor was able to get a hold of the fire department. They killed it. They also propped up the shed on my side, but didn’t find any more unwanted guests.
I was so spooked I asked Jim to take the garbage cans to the street. I was worried a snake would be under the bins. He smiled and said not a problem.
Molly, the dog, is used to being able to run free in the back yard. We’ve sat out there together. She gets up about 6 a.m. and is let out back to do her business before getting a walk a little later. Once the snakes made their presence known I was up at that hour in my PJs taking her out front on a leash to pee.
I realize snakes don’t just stay in one yard and that it/they could travel to the front. Trust me, I was gingerly walking to the street with eyes darting everywhere.
It was paved trails from then on. Even then we saw a small dead snake on the pavement. I was too skittish to enjoy all the open space that is easy to get to without getting in a vehicle. Good thing I had several days of exploration with Molly as my guide before the snakes came calling.
Neighbor Jim, left, and Northern Sonoma County Fire crew members search for snakes in Cloverdale. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
The guess is the snakes are in these yards because of rodents that are feasting on the neighbor’s garden.
I tried to get a hold of Sonoma County Animal Control to no avail. I also left a message with the city of Cloverdale. Several hours later someone with the police department called. She suggested spreading coffee grounds around the yard. So I looked up that technique.
“Coffee grounds are toxic to many insects while the bitter scent repels rodents, which are both main food sources for snakes. Keeping the food source out of the garden is a great way to keep the predator out of the garden,” according to BackYardBoss.net. “While there is still scientific research to be done, it also seems that either the overwhelming scent of the grounds or the rough texture on a snake’s skin repels the slithery creatures from a garden. Snakes travel everywhere on their bodies, but coffee grounds have a rough, unusual texture that is unnatural to snakes, meaning they will want to get out of there ASAP.”
I’ll let my friends decide how they want to prevent intrusions from snakes.
One of the firefighters said it’s possible the big one is hunkered down in a hole. That’s not comforting. How many more are with him? And where is the hole?
I know rattlesnakes are pretty much everywhere in California—not just oak and grassy areas. They even call Tahoe home now. California has nearly 50 native snake species, including seven types of rattlesnakes.
I live in rattlesnake country—not just when I’m dog sitting. In fact the hospital in Oroville ran out of anti-snake venom in June after a man visiting the area was bitten twice by a rattlesnake. He needed 40 vials of antivenom during an 11-day hospital stay, according to news reports.
Reports this spring were that this was going to be a bad year for rattlesnakes because it warmed up so early. Usually there is one fatal rattlesnake bite a year in California. By April there had already been three. They occurred in Mendocino, Orange and Ventura counties.
I know this experience is going to have me a little paranoid for a time. Ideally, I’m just hyper-aware vs. scared. We’ll see.
Brokeoff Mountain, right, and Lassen Peak in the distance. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
Now I understand why people kept recommending Brokeoff Mountain to me. The changing beauty along the trail, the 360-degree view from atop the peak—well, it was worth the climb.
Lake Almanor in the distance from Brokeoff trail. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
The four of us finished the day going 7.4 miles, with an elevation gain of 2,429 feet. The minimum elevation was 6,635 feet and the maximum 9,235 feet.
My hiking has been rather limited of late—for no good reason—and elevation is definitely no longer something I’m accustomed to. My calves were talking to me the next day.
Brokeoff is in Lassen Volcanic National Park. While the mountain is not as tall at Lassen Peak (10,457 feet), the trail is longer because it starts lower. Brokeoff is definitely a more scenic hike—and the one to do if you have to pick between the two.
Brokeoff gets its name from having broken off from Mount Tehama when that stratovolcano started erupting about 600,000 years ago.
Lassen Peak is prominent from the top of Brokeoff Mountain. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
“Mount Tehama was about 30 times larger than Lassen Peak. It contained roughly 30 times the amount of material even though it was only about 1,000 feet higher. The footprint of Mount Tehama was much larger than that of Lassen Peak,” according to the National Park Service.
One of the striking views along the Brokeoff trail is of the Mount Tehama caldera. One can only imagine what this area looked like thousands of years ago as an intact mountain.
Delightful lilies at the start of the hike to Brokeoff. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
This is still an active volcanic region, with Lassen Peak last eruptions in 1914 and 1917.
Fortunately, the only eruptions on this first Sunday of July were bouquets of wildflowers decorating the trail. The most vibrant were at the start of the hike, though there were flowers near the peak as well. Lower elevation wildflowers usually peak in July, while the summit wildflowers peak mid-August.
Some of the flowers included lupine, Indian paintbrush, arrowleaf groundsel, delphinium, red columbine, yarrow, Columbian monkshood, lily, sanddune wallflower and Castilleja.
The trail leading to the rocky Brokeoff Mountain. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
I was glad to have poles as there were enough spots with soft dirt and rocks so that the added support for balance was welcome—though I did slide and fall twice, but they were no big deal—just dirtied my pants.
The start of the hike is through a forest. Fortunately this side of the highway was not burned in the devastating 2021 Dixie Fire. It opens up at times to meadows with pockets of water. Those will likely dry up as summer goes along.
Plenty of water in early July below tree line along Brokeoff trail. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
At a couple points it’s necessary to cross small streams. Walking on the logs made the hiking poles valuable.
Just before reaching the summit the rocky finish line is in view with Lassen and Mount Shasta also part of the picture. The cloud cover and haze made snowcapped Shasta a bit fuzzy.
At various times Lake Almanor also makes an appearance.
Brokeoff is usually a hike to do in later July and into the fall because in a normal snow year the white stuff can block the route. I saw one semi-large mound of snow off trail on the way up, and then several pockets scattered about the park were visible from the top.
Milled wood at Kirkwood with the downed timber behind it. (Image: Carly Mangan)
What Kirkwood Mountain Resort is doing with actual wood is turning heads nationally.
The National Ski Areas Association this year singled out Kirkwood with the Innovation in Sustainability award.
“Kirkwood Mountain Resort’s wood mill exemplified how local material reuse, ecological stewardship and guest‑facing improvements can meaningfully intersect within a mountain‑resort environment,” Tonya Riley with NSAA said. “This wood mill operates as a creative sustainability initiative that supports forest health and wildfire mitigation work by repurposing fallen and hazardous trees into usable lumber …. This approach keeps wood material on-site and in active use, reducing waste while improving guest and employee amenities and enhancing safety around mountain infrastructure.”
The mill became operational in 2021. It’s the only Vail Resorts property with such a facility.
The concept was developed to meet Kirkwood’s sustainability goals, which include:
Strengthening forest health and supporting wildfire mitigation efforts.
Reducing material waste and eliminating emissions associated with transporting timber offsite.
Improving mountain safety and long-term environmental resilience.
Advancing a circular approach to resource management through keeping and using materials locally.
“Each spring, hazard or fallen trees are removed as part of ongoing forest management efforts. They are transported to the on-site wood mill where they are turned into lumber and fabricated into durable, practical products such as signage, decking, ski racks, benches and more,” Carly Mangan, Kirkwood’s spokesperson, said. “These products are installed across the mountain, supporting both the guest experience and day-to-day operations.”
Kirkwood riders return food trays to a structure made from trees that were once on the mountain. (Image: Carly Mangan)
Kirkwood was also a finalist in NSAA’s Climate Change Impact category along with Wisp Resort in Maryland, while Jay Peak Resort in Vermont took top honors.
Among the environmental initiatives at Kirkwood that led to its recognition are:
Using dumpster monitoring and waste audits to better understand what people toss.
Turning organic waste into compost.
Replacing most single trash cans with waste-sorting stations.
Limiting single-use food and beverage products.
“We have also expanded circularity through our hard-to-recycle programs for materials like snack wrappers and soft plastics,” Mangan said. “Together, these efforts help divert material from landfills, which is one of our core sustainability goals.”
“Kirkwood is also focused on reducing energy use and emissions through vehicle idling-reduction practices, daily energy checklists and end-of-season shutdown procedures, (and) the integration of electric vehicles into its fleet.”
All of these practices are steps to help Vail Resorts as a whole to achieve zero net emissions, zero waste to landfill and zero net operating impact on forests and habitat by 2030.
As officials try to figure out what to do with the charred hull of the Bidwell Mansion in Chico, a tree on the site has been deemed a state champion.
It is being recognized as the largest southern magnolia in California.
This southern magnolia in Chico has been deemed the biggest of its species in California. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
This southern magnolia that is just steps from the mansion has a circumference of 226 inches, a height of 92 feet and a crown spread of 65 feet for a total of 334.25 points.
This is 55 points more than the previous champion southern magnolia.
According to the California State Parks and Recreation, “The California Register of Big Trees uses the American Forests organization’s points formula to determine if a tree is a champion. This formula includes the trunk circumference in inches plus the height in feet plus a quarter of the average crown spread in feet to achieve total points.”
While Chico is known as the city of trees, the southern magnolia is not native to California. Even so, the one in front of the mansion was planted by John Bidwell when the mansion was being constructed in 1865. This makes the tree 161 years old.
“It sustained some damage from the arson fire in December 2024 that destroyed the mansion, but the tree has put on new growth and has been recovering nicely. … the tree will be carefully monitored as remediation efforts within the historic park take place,” State Parks said.
South Lake Tahoe firefighters defend the neighborhood above Holiday Market on Iroquois Circle in Meyers the night the 2021 Caldor Fire jumped Christmas Valley. (Photo: Jim Drennan)
With the three main factors of wildfire being fuel, weather and topography, fire officials are worried this could be a bad year.
Fuel moisture is a biggie—even for pine trees. It’s one thing when grasses and other low growing vegetation dry out, it’s another when trees have little water content—which is the case this year—because a crown fire could be devastating.
“Regional and national fire activity is already on the rise with resources being mobilized early this year. The fire season is year-round and LTBMU firefighters actively respond to incidents throughout the year,” said John Chester, acting fire management officer for Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit.
Historically, fire season was May-October, though now it’s year-round—even for Tahoe firefighters. This has more to do with personnel and equipment being sent to out-of-area blazes.
Lake Valley Fire Protection District Fire Chief John McNamara, who worked 20 years for Reno Fire, said the worst fires there were in October, November, December and January. Plus, the town of Paradise in Butte County was wiped out on a mid-November day in 2018.
“The National Interagency Coordination Center predicts significant wildfire potential outlook starting in June for our area. The heat wave we experienced in March was well above normal temperatures and it diminished the already low snowpack,” said Keegan Schaffer, wildland fire and fuels division chief with Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District. “Predictions say we will also enter back into a drought this summer.”
Justin Collins, National Weather Service meteorologist in Reno, said the Climate Prediction Center forecasts above normal temperatures and below normal precipitation through June for the Lake Tahoe Basin.
“We are going to see extra dry fuels heading into summer,” Collins said. “All the ingredients coming together are not good.”
Tahoe’s topography—being a basin—can be problematic. Fire loves to run uphill. So, depending on the ignition point and initial winds, it could be devastating.
“I think everybody is on edge just based on the low precipitation we have had,” South Lake Tahoe Fire Chief Jim Drennan said. “All of us are paying close attention to fuel weather and predicted weather coming in.”
The scar from the 2002 Gondola Fire as seen from Rabe Meadow in Stateline. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
Prior Tahoe fires
Wind was a huge issue when someone threw a cigarette from a Heavenly Mountain Resort gondola car between towers 11 and 12 on July 2, 2002. This became the 673-acre Gondola Fire that threatened 550 structures and forced the evacuation of hundreds of people.
The June 24, 2007, Angora Fire was wind driven from the get-go; wiping out 254 homes in the Upper Truckee neighborhood in a matter of hours and charring more than 3,000 acres.
Drennan said there was one red flag day last year, but expects several this summer. These National Weather Service alerts warn firefighters, land managers and the public to conditions that are ripe for fire ignitions and their rapid spread.
Schaffer said the norm is to have about 15 red flag days a season; an increase since the Gondola and Angora fires when a half dozen was common. Tahoe Douglas flies a red flag at its stations on these days, and has info on its website for the public to access.
The rise in red flag days is one reality of climate change. Decreasing snowpack and increased rainfall are other indicators.
Until the 2021 Dixie and Caldor fires, most experts believed the Sierra Crest would be a natural barrier. Mother Nature proved those people wrong. Wildfires are getting bigger and more destructive, turning most everything in their path to ash.
“I never thought in my wildest dreams we would have a fire like that move into the basin. It was a real eye-opener,” McNamara said of Caldor. While he has only been with the Tahoe department since December, for two weeks he worked the Caldor as a member of the Reno Fire Department.
The Gondola, Angora and Caldor fires were all human caused, though no one has been held accountable for any of them. Scars from these fires are still prominent on the South Shore.
“When the Caldor Fire burned into the Tahoe basin, it already had a lot of energy, which is evident from the fire scar that spans the hillside. The Angora Fire was the same type of wind-driven fire which accounted for its rapid spread,” Chester said. “This year, wildland fuels are ripe for burning sooner due to our dry winter and low snowpack. We can expect wildfires to be more difficult to control, and we will rely on more resources to suppress them.”
California Department of Water Resources reps find little snow to measure near Echo Summit on April 1. (Image: Andrew Nixon/California Department of Water Resources)
Preparation matters
April’s snow survey on Echo Summit near the entrance to Sierra-at-Tahoe was the second lowest April measurement on record at that location. The lowest was in 2015 when there was no snow on the ground, whereas a few patches existed this April.
Beyond what this means for water users in the flatlands, it’s a foreboding message for Tahoe fire officials who know this means fuels will dry out so much sooner at lake level and in the higher reaches of the basin.
These folks are doing what they can to prep for this season, but also want residents to do their part.
South Lake Tahoe Fire brought its fuels reduction crew in in April, a month earlier than normal. This was a team of four and is now eight. Three defensible space inspectors are being hired. Funding for these positions comes from outside the normal fire budget.
Tahoe Douglas has wrapped up its seasonal hiring with more than 30 on board.
The local Forest Service office is bringing on additional first responders, with annual fire training under way.
“LTBMU fire staffing is comparable to previous years, and we expect to fully staff our fire engines, Tallac Hotshots and prevention crew,” Chester said.
Shelter drills, hands-on training and more prep work are all part of each agency’s protocols. Lake Tahoe Regional Fire Chiefs is a group that meets regularly, as do teams specific to California and Nevada.
Lake Valley this spring applied for a federal grant that would go toward the purchase of more equipment.
“The LTBMU will closely coordinate with the Northern California Geographic Area Coordination to preposition shared resources at the airport when available as we have done in past years,” Chester said.
The Forest Service and CalFire move equipment, especially aerial apparatuses, around as warranted. Sometimes it’s precautionary, other times it’s to fight a fire.
“From the prevention side, we provide numerous services and education to our community members regarding preplanning for evacuations, home hardening, defensible space and how to build their situational awareness during fire season,” Tahoe Douglas interim Fire Chief Bryce Cranch said.
Lake Valley crews in May met with fire adaptive communities in the Meyers area. When these neighbors have work days, the plan is to send an engine so personnel may answer questions about mitigating the spread of fire.
Fire officials want locals to work on creating defensible space where they live and work, clear pine needs from roofs and gutters, have a go-bag ready and heed evacuation notifications early.
“You need to anticipate you will not be getting any help. The worst case scenario is your house needs to survive without a fire engine in your driveway,” McNamara said. “Defensible spacing does wonders.”
It’s also encouraged to download the Watch Duty app, sign up for notifications like reverse 911, bookmark the Perimeter Map website and have an evacuation route thought out ahead of time.
And when there is a fire—because it’s not an if situation, it’s a when—don’t fly a drone. The USFS reported 218 drone sightings above wildfires in 2025. The seven prior years there were a total of 125. Airspaces have to shut down when drones fly, so that means fire suppression is on hold.
The other thing is to become educated about is fire restrictions whether it’s at a residence, campground or in the forest.
What might prevent an exaggerated local fire season is doing snow and rain dances early so the dry terrain isn’t a tinderbox well into the fall.
The Caldor Fire burned above the enclave of Meyers without burning a single structure in 2021. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
Fuel reduction projects work. That is the conclusion of a study of the Caldor burn area—specifically Christmas Valley and Meyers on the South Shore of Lake Tahoe.
Results of the research by Hugh Safford, a UC Davis forest ecologist, and Saba Saberi, a doctoral student in Safford’s lab at Davis, were published this spring in Forest Ecology and Management.
“More than perhaps any other USFS unit in California, the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit has been proactive in reducing fuels and forest density in and adjacent to the (wildland urban interface),” the report states. “… these fuel reduction efforts were widely credited with the ‘miraculous’ events of Aug. 30 and 31, 2021, when not a single structure was lost when the Caldor Fire entered the (Lake Tahoe Basin) at Christmas Valley and Meyers. Firefighters recounted how fire intensities dropped markedly when the fire encountered treated fuels and how fuels conditions on the ground allowed safe and rapid response to ember-generated ignitions.”
The study’s main take-aways about fuel treatments prior to the 2021 Caldor Fire include:
Trees were three times more likely to survive fire in treated areas; fire severity was mostly lower in treated vs. untreated areas.
The widespread presence of unburned fuel piles led to higher than expected fire severity and tree mortality in some areas.
The most effective fuel treatment was multiple entry mechanical and hand thinning plus mastication, without burning.
Hand thinning and fuel piling followed by pile burning was also an effective treatment.
“Generally, the treatments were very successful at increasing the resistance of forest to wildfire, but the major hiccup at Lake Tahoe is the big backlog of unburned fuel piles,” Safford said in a statement. “The presence of thousands of fuel piles in the Caldor Fire caused higher fire severity than we expected to see.”
Most of the treated areas had been part of the South Shore Fuel Reduction and Healthy Forest Restoration Project, which began in 2012.
Treatments reduce the chances of a crown fire, produce lower intensity fires and flame lengths, and reduce spot fires.
“Overall, our results add the Caldor Fire to the growing list of fuel treatment success stories in the Western U.S., but at the same time highlight the growing urgency of proactive forest and fuel management and the importance of resolving long-standing capacity constraints in the U.S. federal resource management agencies,” the report says.
The study was funded by the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act, the League to Save Lake Tahoe, Tahoe Fund, UC Davis and U.S. Forest Service Region 5.
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