Ignis Quo

So it's that time of year again. When precipitation and humidity decrease, heat and dryness levels increase, and these variables combine in orchestration to create the ideal conditions for rapid oxidation leading to combustion, i.e., wildfire. Nothing new here, this region is notorious for it. The fact is though, these conditions have been significantly heightened by the recent drought and by those severe effects in which it has had on the land locally, and on the entire American West.

While it only burned 760 acres, the recent fire in May of the Hunter Falls area marked an early start to fire season in the Reno/Tahoe area and gave a heads up as to what this coming summer might hold in store. We are currently under a red flag warning due to the weather and multiple conditions holding high potential for extreme fire behavior. Be attentive out there.

The Hunter Creek Trail has been reopened since the fire and is accessible for your recreational pleasure. It's a popular location for local hikers, runners, bikers, and equestrians. The trail, varying in spots from smooth to rocky, gradually wanders up through the base and walls of Hunter Canyon, alongside Hunter Creek, and eventually leads to Hunter Falls in the Mount Rose Wilderness.

The vegetation filling the canyon includes a variety of fir and pine trees, quaking aspens, willows, mountain alder, low sagebrush, rabbit brush, and some scattered cottonwood and mountain mahogany trees. You're likely to spot a variety of birds, including red-tailed hawks, ravens, Stellar's Jays, mountain quail, sparrows, wrens, and possibly an eagle at the right time of year. Other animals to spot are black-tailed jackrabbits, cottontails, a myriad of ground squirrels and chipmunks, coyotes, mule deer, and if you're lucky, a bobcat.

Not only do the fires threaten it as a favored recreational spot, the Hunter Creek area surely provides important habitat for wildlife as well. Luckily, there are dedicated citizens out there who have been working hard to maintain and keep healthy this esteemed spot in our backyard.

In particular, they have been focused on eradicating the invasive weeds that have established their way into the area. These weeds include the Musk thistle, an aggressive, biennial herb that dominates and eventually replaces the native grasses and forbs of the area. This growth compounds considerably after a fire, and turns around to create an environment which fosters conversion to a non-native landscape and ultimately increases the risk of future fires occurring.

The eradication of these invasive species is a timely process, but considering what is at stake, it is a meaningful one. Here's a glimpse at some of the stewardship efforts being done in the area to help prevent future fires. And here's a link to more info on how you can lend a hand with local efforts: Volunteer

Take some time and learn to understand the dynamics of the land, what it needs and what it doesn't, how it's effected by various conditions, get to know the wildlife that depend on it, and realize how much these natural resources provide for our own livelihood. Be grateful for those open spaces we have available, practice sound stewardship, reap the benefits, and pass the land down honorably to future generations.

“Protector and destroyer were two sides of the same coin. Who knew which one would come out in a toss-up?” - Mina Khan (American author)