Boulder Fourmile Canyon Fires

Well, for most of us in Boulder, Labor day did not exactly turn out the way we imagined. Around 10.20 a.m. I smelled something funny, like campfire. I looked out the window from my home, which is just about 1/4mi east of the Boulder foothills, and I could see a slight white color coming from behind the hills, standing out from an otherwise clear blue sky. It took the news about 30min to catch up and then I finally saw what I expected: something was on fire.

view from my place about an hour in

view of the smoke moving east across Boulder

Throughout the day the cloud of smoke grew and the smell of burning wood increased. Ashes started flying all over town and anxiety grew. Still remembering last year's grass fires that got super close to homes in a neighborhood up the road, I didn't experience ashes and the extreme smell of burn, so this was going to be way more serious.

the red dot is the sun

24 hrs into the fire, it was at zero percent contained and eating up homes in the Gold Hill area and sunshine canyon, a favorite destination for mountain runs/rides. It has since turned into a national emergency and will be Colorado's worst ever property damage fire. As of tonight, the blaze has torched 140 homes (and counting) and thousand of acres of land. I live pretty much in the path of the smoke so the air quality has been less than ideal for the last few days. Depending on where the wind blows, it can smell like campfire inside the home, despite having all doors and windows closed. I have noticed my eyes and throat burning, and even have felt some tightness in my chest/lungs. The air inside is stuffy, especially without air conditioning and pretty warm outside temps. (If I were racing Kona, this would be great prep...)Not ideal training conditions, that's for sure. However, it does not compare to the pain those who lost their homes are experiencing. I cannot even imagine leaving everything behind and running out of my home with just the clothes on my back, maybe grabbing a few heirlooms and pets. It has been heartbreaking to read/watch some of the stories that have come out of this.

a piece of tree bark in the form of ash in my street

huge ash several miles away from fire

Seems like alot of people want to help out any way they can, volunteers have signed up by the hundreds. I myself wanted to do something to feel like I wasn't just standing on the sidelines, while people were losing their homes and the brave fire fighters relentlessly fighting the blaze. Lots of Boulder athletes (myself included) have been dropping off donations at designated spots around town. I dropped off a few boxes of Sport Beans and it felt really good handing them over to the Fire chief at one of the stations. He was very grateful and I told him "thank you" for what his guys were doing.

eerily pretty sky at Lee Hill and Broadway on first night of fire

Lee Hill/ Broadway at 5 p.m. Monday night. You can see blue sky to the very left.

view from neighborhood

view of Boulder on smoky and hazy day 2

Slurry Bomber planes dropping fire retardant to help reduce heat of fire

 We are now at the end of day three and fires are still 0% contained. The air quality in North Boulder is very bad, even after a much awaited rain soak tonight. Tomorrow is forecast to be hot and windy, a perfect recipe for the flames to grow. I want to believe that progress is being made, right now even the smoke is barely visible. However, the constant smell of burnt wood is a reminder that we are not even close to putting an end to this. Predictions are 10 days to several weeks for the fire to be contained. I am not sure I want to hear that. Where is it going to go during that time? Although my place is a couple miles down the slopes from the fire, and within city limits, it is still stressful to think about what could be. For now, I am just grateful that the fire fighters are able to save at least a few of the homes in the mountains, and keep the fire away from the city. We will take this one day at a time. The town of Boulder has come together to help out those affected by the fire, and that in itself, gives hope in what seems like a hopeless situation for many.

Today we got some clouds.

And after everyone doing a rain dance, we got a nice soaking, followed by a double rainbow, which I did not catch on camera. Unfortunately it did not make a huge difference in fighting the fire :(

 Here's to hoping that things will get under control soon. Big appreciation goes out to all the brave fire fighters risking their lives to help put an end to this. When situations like this happen, it puts life into perspective and makes you appreciate what you have and makes you so grateful for all that is good. Now bracing for tomorrow, which could get interesting. All fingers and toes crossed.