BTW, Fireman are geniuses....

And very good at their job. Back in the 80's my ranch did burn down... almost entirely. We had a couple of structures that were saved, however... that which we couldn't 'protect' we didn't lose because they were metal... like our holding corrals. To this day I marvel at the job the firefighters did to save not just our structures but EVERY structure on every neighboring ranch affected by the fire as well.... no big losses EXCEPT - many wood fence posts. Which, frankly, needed to be replaced anyway. Some of those dozer drivers could blow NASCAR drivers away. I saw them create fire breaks down slopes so steep it was all I could do to climb up or down them on foot.

My lesson in ecology. The fire that burned my ranch in the 80's took place just shortly after we had purchased the ranch. None of us, my partners, had ever before owned land in 'mountains'... we were ignorant, to say the least. At that time our ranch was used entirely for recreation and hunting. No cattle. We were terrified that the fire damage would destroy hunting and recreation for years to come. Our worry was for naught. Even while small patches of smoke rose into the sky the deer had already begun to return.... and seemed 'jovial'. What I mean by that is the larger mammals, all species of mammals, were seen out rolling and frolicking in the ashes.... which, we learned, helped to alleviate themselves of ticks. The following spring we were fortunate in that we got above average rainfall.... grass, oats, junipers, every growing plant on our ranch flourished. It was like the garden of Eden. A year after the fire our ranch was lusher than it had ever been.... not that there weren't changes - the dense dry brush that builds up after years of 'no fire' were gone... which, we were told, made for a healthier animal population albeit a bit more 'dire' for some critters who used the brush for concealment from predators.... but it didn't seem to hurt them, their numbers were greater than ever before.

All that said, I hope to hell the fire doesn't hit us this time. - JamesJM