Mountains On The Moon

Here's a Ranger at the Mt. Wilson observatory's update on the Station Fire that has F'd the local mountains up beyond belief. The outlook is pretty grim.

The Angeles Crest Highway, California Highway 2 - a National Scenic Byway - is now mostly a path through utter desolation. Many have described it as a moonscape. The best I can describe it is as a landscape in a perpetual, ashen gray winter. There are places here and there where the whimsical nature of the fire has left an acre or two with chaparral in place, but what one mostly confronts - from the arson point a few miles up from La Canada all the way to the Red Box turnoff - is this eery, wintry landscape as far as the eye can see.

By contrast, the Red Box Road is mostly in good shape. In one sense, once this fire is history, we can expect for a very long time to have serious rock and dirt slides on the Angeles Crest, and I expect there will be massive slides during the forthcoming wet season.

And here's some additional great news from Caltrans...

More than 40 miles of the Angeles Crest Highway from La Canada Flintridge to Islip Saddle have been closed indefinitely because of the Station Fire, which has burned off road stripping and destroyed guard rails and signage along the scenic route, Caltrans officials said.

Judy Gish, a Caltrans spokeswoman, said the highway’s pavement remains largely intact, though further damage to the 66-mile road is possible as the fire continues. She said it was too soon to estimate the cost to repair the highway or when it could be reopened.


150,000 Charred Acres That Look Just Like This