Not so hot.

On a hot day in July ...

So says the sign beside the parking lot at Elk Falls. It seemed a bit out of context this week.

Campbell River Fire information sign.

Sign text: "On a hot day in July 1938, an ominous smoke pillar near Gosling Lake signalled a forest fire which was to ravage 115 square miles of logged and timbered land. Over 1500 firefighters battled grimly for weeks to save timber and communities. Costs and damages were enormous. Reforestation, intensified by the Forest Service, helped to heal the black scar. Province of British Columbia 1966"

Some fire damage is still visible on older trees farther down the slope towards the falls.

I walked down as far as the first bridge over the ditch where the old wood pipeline carried water from the dam upriver.

First bridge, with dog walker. And dogs.

Crossed the bridge and followed deep footprints up to the edge of the forest.

Looking back to the parking lot. The building just visible is the park information centre.

The footprints went on into the forest. I didn't.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fue un dia caluroso de julio ...

Así proclama un letrero al lado del estacionamiento de las cataratas Elk Falls. Esta semana parecía un poquito fuera de contexto.

Foto: el letrero, con la nieve apilada alrededor.

Texto del letrero: "Incendio de Campbell River. En un dia caluroso de julio de 1938, una columna de humo amenazadora cerca del lago Gosling señaló un incendio que iba a destrozar 115 millas cuadradas de bosque y areas ya cosechadas. Más de 1500 bomberos lucharon fuertemente por semanas para proteger los bosques y las comunidades. Los costos y los daños fueron enormes. La reforestación, con la asistencia del Servicio Forestal, ayudó a sanar la negra cicatriz. La Provincia de Colombia Británica, 1966"

Todavía se ve quemaduras en algunos de los árboles viejos en la bajada hacia las cataratas.

Yo seguí el sendero hasta el primer puente, que cruza la zanja donde antaño el conducto de madera llevaba el agua saliendo de la presa.

Segunda foto: el puente, con paseadora de perros. Y dos perritos.

Crucé el puente y subí el cerrito, siguiendo unos pasos bien hundidos en la nieve hasta el borde del bosque.

Tercera foto: mirando atrás, hacia el estacionamiento, y la casita de informes del parque.

Los pasos seguían para adentro del bosque. Yo no.

Old burn

In the summer of 1938, Vancouver Island sweltered through the longest drought seen for over 50 years. Sparks from logging operations set off dozens of small brush fires. Smoke hung over the hills.

Fire broke out in a log pile on Menzies Bay, just north of Campbell River, and leapt into the forest. A couple of days later, in spite of the 400 firefighters trying to quench it, it was burning over several thousand acres of timber. By the third day, it was threatening Campbell River, and racing up-river, past Elk Falls. The smoke rose two kilometres into the air, and covered almost two-thirds of Vancouver Island.

The fire headed south then, passing Campbell River, racing towards Comox, and east up the mountainsides to Mount Washington. 2000 men fought it, hopelessly. 470 square kilometres of forest were in flames, and the wind was picking up. At times, it reached 150 km/hr.

And then the rain came. The blessed, drenching West Coast rain, pouring down steadily for weeks. In the ancient forest off Elma Bay, these days called the Miracle Beach Provincial Park, the roaring blaze sizzled into damp coals.

Some say that's how Miracle Beach got its name.

Today, many of the older trees in Miracle Beach Provincial Park still wear the scars of that fire.

Survivor, still green up top.

Older Douglas-fir bark is thick and deeply grooved, providing habitat for many insects and nesting sites and groceries for birds and small animals. And old, damaged bark is even more hospitable. This old tree still retains some old scorch marks; it looks like most has been riddled by insects and then birds collecting insects.

The crevices go deep into the tree; I tried to light the bottom of several holes with the camera's flash, but the light didn't reach that far.

Near the centre of the section above, if you look closely, you'll see a white circle. I moved in to get a better look.

"Come into my parlor ..."

A spider hole, wide enough for a chickadee to wander in.

From another angle

I can't be sure; is that a spider lurking deep inside, or just blotchy patches in the bark? I didn't risk sticking a finger in to find out.

For comparison: a pair of unburnt Douglas-fir trunks. Grooved, but much neater.

And the remains of a smaller tree, after the woodpeckers have eaten their fill.