FIRE

[Jeff Eberle]

Over the summer some of the country I hunt burned up, it ended up being one of California's biggest fires. We have gone over 45 days with no rain or snow and it has been mid 60's and up in temp's and the woods are so dry you can't follow another truck within a100yds. So it got me thinking, Have any of you guys ever been out hunting and got caught in the middle of a fire with dogs out ???????? What happen ,What was the out come ??

[Jake Bell]

Haven't experienced that, but a good friend who was on the forest fire crew for years and then did a bit of forestry work said he got caught out in an old burn when a wind storm kicked up and said it was the scariest thing that's ever happened to him, tree's falling all over. I worked logging up in northern BC where the pine beetles had took hold, if it got windy you just sat in your truck in the clear cut because there where pole pine falling everywhere, can't imagine chasing my hounds out in that!

[Grzyadms4x4]

I was on top of a ridge line and the Forest Service was doing a burn-out about 5 miles away as the crow flies and a couple of ridges away. That smoke got damn thick and scared the crap out of me. Rounded up the dogs and got the hell outta there, only later to find out that I probably wasn't in any real danger.

I would think it would be very difficult to actually get caught in the middle of the fire unless you went out looking for it.

[FullCryHounds]

In the mid 80s we were chasing bears in the southern sierras out in CA. A huge fire blew up on the back side of the mountain we were on. We knew all the roads on that mountain so we never felt too threatened. We were told to get off the mountain but spent the night back on a back road no one else knew about. Next morning we helped the fire crews where to go and what roads to take. Had an incredible birds eye view of the air tankers dropping water and fire retardant. We watched deer and bears out in front of the fire running away. What was so amazing is that they waited until the fire was right on top of them before they decided to run.