California is burning- new updates

I am correcting some things and updating this on 10/27/07 I am sorry I didn't write this all (this whole post I mean) sooner, but we have been under a tremendous amount of stress lately.
Here is our state from space. This picture was taken October 24th I believe. In blue, that's where we are. The red are active fires burning at the time of the picture. In yellow I approximated the area where two more have started.

None of the photos in this blog were taken by me. Whenever possible I have included photo credit.

For the last two weeks, I, along with the rest of California, have watched and read with shock and horror the tragic events that have been unfolding in our beautiful state.

Somewhere, here in our very midst are evil people.

People who's only thought is to cause mindless devastation, and inflict tremendous danger on their fellow men.

To me, it is unimaginable that one human being could be capable of causing such destruction to their own land, their own neighbors,

to their brothers and sisters.

Fires threatening homes in San Diego County

Current active fires burning as of today. Since the beginning of October, there have been 35 fires in California.

Of those 35, 23 are under investigation, and are believed, or are known to have been Arson.

Some of those fires were small, and out quickly. Others turned into unbelieveable infernos.

San Diego County I believe

Photo taken by: Redlands. I'm not sure which one this is, it looks like Orange County- but I now believe it to be Malibu.

Satellite image of smoke plume from space.

Photo by: Clodagh of fire in Canyon Country. My dad's former home is just South of this picture.


Photo by: Pooya of Sand Canyon. The above two photos are of either the "Meadow Ridge" or the "Buckweed" fire.

Photo by: Palony of Valencia, of the "Ranch" fire I think. This was the closest one to us.

Photo by Marenghi of the "Ranch" fire in Castaic.

The Buckweed, Meadow Ridge, Magic, Aqua Dulce and Ranch fires are all the closest to us.
800 square miles have burned so far. Some of these are 100% contained, or are expected to be within 24 hours. But there are still 9 actively burning fires.


1 million evacuations

2,000 homes destroyed


11 people dead....... so far


Here, we are okay. The winds have shifted onshore, helping the firefighters. Our canyon is filling with smoke from the San Joaquin Valley, as the wind sucks it all back this way.

The wind has been blowing about 30 mph every day here, over the weekend and Monday it was about 65 mph.
We are scared.
But, we are okay for now.

Thank you to everyone who has emailed us and left comments. Our church is very involved in the efforts to help those evacuees left with nothing. They sent down two semi trucks full of food to San Diego on Monday.
Pray for them.
Pray that those responsible are caught.
Pray for our firefighters, they are stretched so thin right now.
Pray that no more fires are started.

I love you all,
Rachelle

I am happy to say that winds dying down in the fire ravaged areas have helped fire fighters. The winds have NOT died down here in the mountains, in fact they have picked up considerably again. But, all the fires near us with the exception of the "Ranch" fire are 100% contained now, and we have cloud cover. The marine layer is moving in, and will provide welcome cooler temps and moisture in the air to help the firefighters.
My husband reports rain in Bakersfield this morning. Let's hope it moves up here, I am weary from holding my breath.....

Alpaca Introduction #1

But first, check out the smoke that moves in every afternoon from the Zaca Fire in Santa Barbara.

It is crazy!! We are rained on by ash, and are breathing this stuff every day and we are about 35 miles away from it..... Yucko. And, it is creeping closer every day. Poor folks in the middle of it!Now it is almost to Highway 33, and our mountain communities are on alert. It is only 75% contained, and is burning about 20,000 acres a day. 100% containment is not expected until the end of next month- perhaps.
God bless the firefighters who are battling this!!



And now, an alpaca who needs no introduction - Osita!

Osita- Aka: Dancing Girl - is my favorite alpaca. You might remember her from this post: http://pasturemusings.blogspot.com/2006/12/twas-night-before-christmas.html Where she was featured as the 'wise' alpaca. This is my very favorite post ever, because I got the chance to write from my Osita's perspective. I know she loves me! She is the one paca who runs to greet me every time I go out to the pens. She is the only paca to give every visitor a 'paca kiss' and she herds over her newest cria to meet me every year.

Osita is one of my best friends. She is sweet, gentle and kind. She is laid back, and yet spunky- the perfect alpaca. In fact, when we were investigating buying alpacas way back in 1999- we had already picked out who we were going to buy, and Osita wasn't on the list. After meeting her, we just had to buy her, so we scrimped and plotted until we could. And Osita is the one alpaca I will never sell, no matter what. Osita is a very easy keeper- a fatty (I can totally relate!) and is very content eating and sleeping :))

Here is Osita's first girl- Lady Galadriel - and her big (and I do mean BIG) entrance into the world! Lady G was huge- really. When I saw this head, I knew we were in for a big one- and she weighed in at a hair over 20 lb. Very big for an alpaca! Osita won't deliver unless I am outside with her. I am serious, she will wait for me. Out of seven crias, I have only missed one birth of Osita's. She lays right at my feet while in labor, and because of this I was able to help this giant get out while Osita lay calmly and let me do what was necessary to help her.

Here is Lady G at about 3 weeks old. Osita's crias have all been bouncy from day one- momma has plenty of milk, enough for three I think, and births without any trouble. Lady G is now three years old and pregnant with her first cria, due the end of September. Her girl cria already has a name- Narya! (I am thinking pink here.... LOL) She is much like her momma, but not as comfortable as Osita with humans. However, she is easily handled and likes us well enough.

Osita loves water!! She is a total water hog, and as you can see, between her and Hally (and now Hally's cria Rosie Cotton) there isn't any room at the watering hole until Osita is done- you can see the line! That is Lady G BTW in white there, can you see the family resemblance?

Whenever I am feeling down, I can go out to visit with my homegirl Osita, and I always feel better. She stands with me, blowing her cud breath in my face, and if I am sitting her favorite chair, she will sometimes stand behind me and put her chin on my head. If she could, she would climb in my lap. She also plays with me. I click and clap and run, and she leaps and clicks and runs too! I don't know what I would do without her. She loves scratches, on her chest, back and rump. I often take the grass rake out and she runs up, so excited when she sees it, knowing she is going to get a good scratch! She stands still and I run the rake over her. We also have a street sweeper brush mounted upright that everyone scratches on. Osita practically knocks it over!

We fully realize that Osita is one of a kind, and feel blessed to have stewardship over her. This year, Osita lost her cria. Whenever we have a loss, it is devastating. But to see my lovely Osita lose her baby, it is like a knife in my gut. She is such a good momma, and loves her crias so much- it was heartbreaking to have her go through this. She and I grieved together, and she showed me how to forgive myself.

While Osita is easy going most of the time, she is easily stressed when confronted with unusual situations like shearing in late term pregnancy, and heat, traveling off the ranch, etc. We are always mindful of that. This year she got too hot during a weird weather week we had early in May, and before we caught it- it was too late. She is being kept open and won't be rebred until the fall, so she won't have to deal with that again. I don't send her off the ranch for breeding, she stays here to minimize her stress. She really loves us so much, she does very poorly when away from home.

I hope you enjoyed meeting Osita, she would love to meet all of you I know, and give you kisses I am sure! I will go outside now and give her a scratch on all her favorite spots, just for you!Slainte~
Rachelle

Two days of Terror....

Well, it has certainly not been a boring summer.....

Here's the latest in my life. Saturday dawned like any other summer day, hot and clear. My son and I were going down to Bakersfield to see Harry Potter, and pick up the new book. Since I had already seen it with my daughter, she was going to stay home by herself.

Wyatt was in L.A. at the temple, and wasn't due back until about 4:30 pm. He was unreachable by phone. Codi's friend Olivia was here after spending the night, and we were going to take her home on the way to Bako.

It was 11:30 am, and we were about to leave. The house had been open to catch the morning coolness.... we never close all the windows in the summer, we have a deep fear of fire, and smelling smoke is always our first warning.

Until Saturday. I came out from the back of the house to get my purse, and smelled smoke. I went outside, and the entire canyon was billowing with smoke. I stood there in shock. Every time we have had a fire nearby, and there have been many over the years, I have smelled smoke long before it has gotten close. We start the fire chain here with our neighbors, and we have plenty of time to act. This time it was right below us before anyone in the canyon caught it. There was no wind....

The fire below our neighbor's place immediately below us, and the brave pilot.

Immediately I went into controlled panic mode. The first thing I thought of was watering around the house and the pens, like we always do..... but we have no water. Okay, a little more panic and less control here.....

Got the kids, told them to get the animal carriers and round up the animals. Told them to pack their emergency bags - quickly. Called my neighbor with the extra trailer she said we could use, she didn't answer. Called my friends in Frazier Park and asked them to locate a trailer for the animals. I was crying when I talked to Jackie, I was terrified. With only me and the kids home, it was all up to us to do everything, without strong dad- with my back...... Our trailer is big enough for five animals, and we can put four or five in the back of the truck in the camper- but only if the car is here to load up the kids, dogs, cats, and our emergency bags, and pictures.....

First and foremost, my family.

Having been through a few scares with fires, the kids are now pros at packing their emergency bags. Everyone knew this was different though, the fire was right here, not something seen in the distance. We got the female pacas up in the front of the 'safe pen' in preparation for the boys to take the lower half. The safe pen is the one in the middle, with no big oak trees nearby to burn.

Thank God our friends were able to get here in time. Right after they arrived, they closed the road to our canyon and didn't let anyone up. Jackie and her husband Brian, and their son Brady came with their big Yukon and a carrier trailer. No, it wouldn't hold my animals, it was a slat sided flatbed. I called the fire department while I was waiting for them, and the lady on the other end said, yes, they were evacuating Digier Canyon.... wait, no they weren't? Just a minute, she said..... no, they were not evacuating at this time, but to be ready, they were in fact fighting three fires in the area. If the Sheriff and CHP showed up, we would have to leave immediately.

So, I had to decide. Who would go with us?

The fire as it crept up the left side of the canyon and along the ridge, closer to our house.

It was a given, the four cats, the two dogs, but which alpacas? We have 22 right now. I had a two day old cria, and one pregnant female due this fall. The stress caused by transporting them was a serious concern. Taking a new baby to another ranch would expose her to all kinds of bacteria she would be weak against at her age. I started my ranch evacuation phone chain. But no one was home. There was no answer at any of the four ranches I called near me. In the mean time, the fire is creeping closer and closer.... and the wind was picking up. Blowing right up the canyon towards our home. Codi's friend was very scared.

The phone was ringing madly. I had my cell phone in one hand, and the walkabout in the other, talking on both at the same time. Calls from friends in the area who heard there was a fire, could we see it?? Boy, I had to laugh.... yup, I said. Then a call from a friend very close by, we could take the alpacas to her place and put them in the backyard if we had to. Relief.... not a perfect solution, but far better than having nowhere to take them.

Our neighbor above called us and offered her six horse trailer. She has wild mustangs, and said she would not be able to get them out, we had first dibs on the trailer if we wanted it.... my heart leapt and said yes! I could get everyone out then! But then, I had second thoughts, what if she really needed it?? I said I'd get back to her. She assured me she wouldn't need it, but I felt differently. Bless her heart.

Then the phone rang, it was my friend who lived up in Lockwood with alpacas. She said she had been sick and was sleeping when I called, of course I could bring the pacas to her place. Relief....

The smoke through the trees

It was decision time. I had to decide who I was going to take, and who would have to stay behind. At a time like this, you have two forces driving the decision making process. Your head, and your heart. My heart said I couldn't possibly leave my boys behind. My head said the girls were by far the most valuable and had to go first. If there was time, I would come back and get the boys. If there was time...

Brian was great, he said, "Rachelle, tell us what to do, and we'll do it." So, I did. We took all the cats in their carriers, and all the bags, guitars, and the computer modem out of my truck and out them in his and in their trailer, freeing up space for alpacas in my truck. I had to decide what to take out of the house. What do you take? I looked around my house with a feeling of complete exhaustion.... what did I want to take? It was only two hours later, but it felt like many, many hours had passed... The pictures on the walls came down and were loaded. The handful of loose pictures I had in my room were packed. Where were the rest of the pictures? The ones of my precious children when they were babies? They weren't in albums, that was something I had always said I'd do later, why didn't I???
The scaredy cat we couldn't find, she had to stay in the house. Tears.

Then we waited...... We watched the fire as it burned along the top of the ridge, then raced down the canyon wall towards our home. We watched the brave pilots maneuver throughout our narrow canyon. It was amazing. The boys went up by the water tank with shovels and caught the burning ashes, smothering them with dirt before they could spark a blaze. We could hear the crackling of the flames now.

Codi's friend was terrified. I shared with her that I had prayed, and in my heart I knew we would be okay, that after my prayer, a feeling of calm came over me, that I knew WE would be okay, safe.

Then the fire trucks arrived to protect the house. The fireman asked me what we planned to do. My heart sick, I asked him what he would do. He said if it were his home, he would leave, and leave now.
So, no more time. They started working around the house, planning their strategy for saving our home. We loaded up the girls, I kissed them and told them to be calm.

We moved all the boys into the safe pen, the firemen agreed it was the best place for them.
We moved my two llamas up to the pen connected to the house. We left the chickens. We left the scaredy cat. We left the water turtle in the house. We left 13 male alpacas, my nanny llama lady, my precious boys..... and our home. I knew we would be safe, but what about them?

Jackie asked me if there was anything else I wanted to take..... I remember looking around and saying, it's only stuff, right?

My daughter and I cried together, and..... we left.

The burn along the canyon wall to the left and below the boy's pens.

We drove out to Lockwood Valley to drop off the girls. After getting them all unloaded, I remember being unable to think. It was complete and utter stupor of thought. Brian asked me if we were going to come to their house. Several folks had graciously offered their places to us, and I had scatterbrainedly said yes to about three of them, while talking with 911 on the other phone, you know.

I just started crying, I said "I can't leave my new baby! What if something happens to her? Where will you put the cats? I think I'm going to take the cats and dogs and go home." I wasn't thinking very clearly, obviously. And I said so. From then on Brian took charge. He said, "You're coming to our house. We'll put the cats in the garage, the dogs in the yard, and you inside." And so we did.

The burn to the left of our house, as it ran up the draw and back over the ridge.

I spent about half an hour calming down our big fat cat Shadow (AKA- Fat Boy) who is about 12 years old, and never been away from home. He had ropey strands of saliva, had thrown up, and was breathing with his mouth open, totally stressed. He calmed down in my lap, we both did.

My neighbor had to use her trailer. I knew it.

Finally, Wyatt called. He was frantic. He got on the phone with our neighbors below, and called me back. He said, "I just talked with Bill and Shelly, the fire burnt half the house." !!?? What!! I screamed.

The burn as the fire got sneaky and came back over the ridge behind our house.

Wyatt said, "The fire burnt past the house!" Relief.

Long story, I know. The end is short. The house is fine. The boys are fine. We dodged a big bullet. When we returned we found that the fire had gone up the draw to the left of our house when it got to the "V". If it had gone up the right, we would have lost everything. Blessings.

We watch the skies for smoke, and sleep a little lighter. We don't leave the house alone.

My family is safe. The girls are home. My baby is fine, as is the pregnant female due in September. Here they are:

Lessons learned. Picture organization, now! Prayer works! Thank God for good friends!! We love our firemen!!

Thank God for you! I love you all!

Slainte~
Rachelle