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Smoke City, August 2020
Fires continue to burn: A Photographic Log
28 August 2020
After we returned from a visit to Siskiyou County, back in Santa Rosa we endured record heat and back-to-back lightning storms. We seldom get thunder and lightning around here, maybe once per year at most. Each one of these storms fired off more lightning bolts than the total number of lightning flashes we've seen here in the past 30+ years. To have that happen in one storm was amazing. To have two storms like that on two consecutive days was unprecedented.What's more, thousands of dry lightning strikes sparked hundreds of wildfires across a wide swath of northern California. In remote, sparsely populated areas, some of those fires grew before anyone knew what was happening and before overstretched resources could be brought to bear. Ultimately, they spread and merged into several mega-fire "complexes" threatening towns and cities. From our perspective, the worst fires burned in Sonoma County, Napa County, and Marin County, although almost nowhere in the San Francisco Bay Area (and beyond) was spared the menace of uncontrolled wildfires.
After more than a week, the most anxiety-inducing flames in our county have been contained before we needed to evacuate. For the moment, it looks like the danger has passed. However, fire continues to rage through forested hills in the rugged and remote northwestern reaches of the county, and it's likely to take weeks before it burns itself out. That means unhealthy air quality will persist depending on wind, marine layer, and atmospheric inversions.
This morning the AQI (air quality index) looked reasonably decent at "moderate." Not having been out on two wheels in more than two weeks due to heat, fire, and smoke, I decided to cruise out the Greenway in order to determine if my legs still function. Smoke-filtered sunlight cast a hazy, yellowy pall over the landscape. Smoke blotted out hills and mountains in every direction. Each breath tasted like ash. But I managed to complete a quick ride and get home before the AQI deteriorated to something worse than "unhealthy."
I didn't take many photos, because I didn't want to stay outdoors longer than necessary.
Greenway under sunlight filtered through smoke.
Hills and mountains in every direction are obscured by smoke.
Smoked grapes don't make the best wine.
One of the few other bicyclists out and about zoomed through my shot, moving fast.
I didn't attempt to catch her.
Summary
Date: 28 August 2020
Time: 12:30 - 2:30
Weather: 75° F, smoky
Route: Greenway
Distance: 24 miles
Bike: Ogre
Riders: Solo
Comments? Questions? Suggestions? I'd like to hear from you.
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