Yep, here it is. That gap between the 4th of July and Labor Day is the
hottest part of the summer and everything seems to go on all at once
for us foresters. Here at home, I see and hear things common to the
dog days of summer. Today I heard many airtankers coming and going to
a fire somewhere to the north and east of me. I'm also seeing the
"drought stress" in our ponderosa pines and incense cedars. Some of
the pines are only holding on to one or two years worht of needles.
The cedars are losing many of their inner "sprays", making them look a
little "transparent". Bug trees are commonplace though not as bad as
southern California.

I've signed up for one of TEAMS new services. BAER deals with the
immediate emergency post-fire effects like erosion control, culvert
problems and roads access. Fires are a pretty big "cash cow" for us
and I've certainly seen my share of fires, big and small.
Unfortunately, Congress can't act quickly enough for the USFS to
reduce fuels and fire severities quickly enough for the American
public. Fuel loads that have been building up for decades cannot be
reduced significantly in the next 5 years but, we do have to start
somewhere.

Those alarmist preservationists keep screaming that their sky is
falling but, since Bush has been in office, I have yet to see massive
clearcutting, old growth liquidation and rivers of silt rushing to the
oceans. You'd think that this part of the year would be ripe for
preservationist's blatherings towards a fickle public but, there will
soon be big fires raging across our forests again. The LA area forests
are ripe for fire storms never before seen by man, with drought,
insects and summer heat bringing a new meaning to the word
"tinderbox". Those LA forests are even trying to hire timber people
for the first time in many years. Too little, too late is the way I
see it.

Anyway, try to enjoy your summer.

Larry,