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As development creeps into the foothills the potential for wildland fire involving housing increases.
west edge of Pleasant Hill, from Briones RP, CA (1990).
Lookouts on mountaintops have traditionally provided early warning for firefighters.
summit of Mount Eddy, Shasta NF, near Weed, CA (1992).
Fireworks, now illegal in most parts of California, account for a high proportion of urban-fringe fires.
Rifle Range Road entrance, Wildcat Canyon RP, Richmond, CA (1990).
Efforts to fight a fire in this chaparral area did more damage to the ecosystem than the fire itself.
Mitchell Canyon, Mount Diablo SP, CA (1992).
Fires every few years in chaparral on steep terrain produce a distinctive mosaic pattern.
Bear Creek, near Briceburg, Mariposa County, CA (1985).
The devastating Oakland hills fire of 1991, viewed here from six miles away, destroyed 2200 houses.
Point Isabel, Richmond, CA (1991).
Wildfires under the worst conditions can destroy every tree in the forest.
Highway 299 near Hatchet Mountain Pass, CA (1993).
Intentionally set fires in park and forest areas, used to reduce fuel levels, produce many false alarms from concerned citizens.
Calaveras Bigtrees SP, near Murphys, CA (1985).
A century of effective fire suppression has allowed many Sierran forests to grow up with a dense understory and huge accumulations of fuel on the ground.
Grouse Creek, near Chinquapin, Yosemite NP, CA (1978).