CALIFORNIA ON FIRE ...

Two shots of the lower deck here at Lake Almanor ... the 'clear' one was taken in May and the 'smoky' one was taken June 28th .. it hurts your throat to be outside for any length of time ...

800 fires caused by lightning in northern California .. smoke everywhere .. on the way up to Lake Almanor, I drove maybe 5 minutes with no smoke .. visibility on I-5 was maybe a mile and a half mostly. When I got onto Hwy 32, the firefighters were there in force .. we could see fires blazing in the canyons, among the crags and cliffs .. the highway was closed for a few miles, traffic had to park and wait ... in 90° heat .. traffic was piloted through, one lane at a time ... the firefighters were burning the
underbrush, right down to the road ...
When I arrived at the lake, it was still hazy but the lake was relatively clear. The next morning, the wind had changed and I couldn't even see the far shoreline of the lake, or the mountains on the far side. It was bright with filtered sun .. and it's supposed to be very hot today but perhaps the smoke will keep some of the heat at bay. Eventually, we'll have to close up the house and put the air conditioning on so we don't cough and sneeze too much ...