Need Firefighters

Local friends – if you know someone who might be interested in driving for a wildfire team, drop me a message. I was just called to go out on another fire but had to pass on it. There seems to be a real shortage now.

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We are remodeling our bathroom. We demoded everything out but suddenly everything’s getting hard. The vanity we ordered arrived with freight damage and the company has stopped making this model and any other “labor intensive” models.

I think I need to stay here and help sort things out. Getting work done has really gone downhill these days with shortages in skilled labor and materials.

Salt Flats

I left the Jacob City Utah fire and I’m headed to the Wells, NV to another fire. A man was injured and broke his tooth. Will see how he is doing or if he need me to step in so he can go home.

I heading west in Interstate 80. I stopped at the Grassy Mountain Rest Area to take this picture.

I stopped at the Salt Flats rest area to take picture of this expanse.   When doing so, this Indian girl asked if I would take a couple shots for here.   

The Salt Flats seem endless and it’s hot here. There were people hiking way out there behind this girl. If I didn’t need to get to Ely, NV as soon as possible, I might enjoy hiking out there a bit myself, just to see what it was like.  

Got to Nevada, found my man and he was doing OK and wanted to stay but he needed some help on some paperwork and the math. After about an hour in a cool McDonalds, we got all of that sorted out. , I headed north and made it back to Idaho and got home late that evening. I think I have spent way to much time in this truck for a while.

Fire Getting Smaller

Still here on the Jacob City Fire but we are getting the fire corralled. The current rumors are that we may be finished and heading out next week.

When heading out, knowing it was really hot down here in Utah, I grabbed this ball cap. I got it from Hawk Consulting, a company owned by friends of mine. I even worked for them awhile after I retired.

Toward the end, I happened to learn that several people thought the Hawk ballcap indicated I had worked previously with one of the aircraft or helicopter fire teams. Most of the teams have kind of cool names so Hawk would have fit right in.

Several times people came up and asked me questions about planes and choppers and I had answered them. In addition, I did become friends with several of the fire team pilots. Having a commercial aircraft and commercial helicopter license helps.

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I made it to the main Jacob City Fire camp. It’s set up by an elementary school in Toole, UT.

Here they are loading my truck from a truck full of supplies that just arrived.

I am all loaded and ready to head out. My main thought at this time was that I hope that there will be someone there to help me unload.

The road up required 4 wheel drive and a prayer you would encounter anyone coming toward you. The road down wasn’t much more fun.

The fire has gone from a level 3 fire to level 2 in very short time. Hot Shot Teams are arriving from all over the country. Everyone is sleeping in tents. That’s my tent just to the right there. Most people chose to set their tents higher up the hill but I knew the coming and going of trucks wouldn’t bother me.

Heading out

After a 540 mile drive yesterday back from Niles’ place in Washington, I got a call that there is a man who at a huge fire in Utah who needs someone to replace him. The guy I’m replacing is from Boise so I am driving his car down to him so he can go on from there.

So I’m off again. I will be camping out there so I have my tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, hatchet, lantern and all that typical camping gear.

It’s really hot down there so I’m also bringing a little cooler for ice and cold drinks. In addition, I’m bringing some storm gear as they get some terrific thunder storms and so forth.

Back to Boise

Mission accomplished. Cared for the grandkids New baby was born and made it how. We had a great time. And now we are heading back to Boise.

We decided not to follow the I-205 into Oregon due to the traffic at this time of the day so we stayed on the Washington side of the Columbia River.

Driving on the Washington side of the Columbia River we always like to look down on this little farm near Cape Horn. It looks so nice. We like to cross back to Oregon at the Bridge of the Gods.

It’s a beautiful day for our drive home.

Digitalis

Took the Niles’ dog on a 2 mile hike from their place in Lacey and saw lots of these plants along the side of a little gravel road . Someone said they were called digitalis. Anyone familiar with them?

This was another variety just down the road. I guess the heart medicine is made from one of the varieties

Eli Arrives

The grandkids were excited that their new baby brother, Eli Clifford Motschenbacher, born on July 8, came home today. And so are we.

Eli

Oma is happy to hold baby Eli. He is two days old.

His sister Madi reads him a bedtime story that was one of her favorites when she was little.

We are enjoying our time in Lacey, WA

Tolmie State Park

We are doing lots of hiking and exploring with the grandkids. I carry the snacks and drinks so they don’t wander too far. Here we are hiking in Tolmie State Park, which is near Dupont, Washington and heading for the ocean.

I carry the backpack with all the snacks and goodies so people don’t get to far away from me.