So we took a very anticipated trip out to the Ranch to see the wildfire damage. The wildfire happened the week my mom had her shoulder surgery, so we were in Waco with her and DJ was at the ranch watching the fire crews do their work. The fire started on a ranch in Ireland (that's Ireland, Tx Ha!) and spread across a few properties including Brock Morris's and ours. Luckily no one lost a home. Thank goodness for Steve Dunn!!! He was out at the ranch and called us, dumped water around the house, and helped get the fire crews to where they needed to go. There were 3 different departments out on the ranch and helicopters dumping water from the large lake on the ranch across the road. Very impressive since it was just land, and a few houses, uncomparable to the 1600 homes lost in Bastrop. We did lose a lot of oaks and in the process of driving across the ranch to get to the fire, the firemen drove through the Indian corral. I still haven't seen the remains of the Indian corral b/c I can't really remember where it is. Mandy and I would see it on our walks across the ranch, but I couldn't tell you how to get to it. We would wonder upon it, but who knows which direction we were coming from. It's a corral made of rocks that was built by the Indians (who knows how we know this). There was very little left of it and now since the fire there is not much left.
The fire reached the ranch on Wednesday and was put out by late that night. DJ said the fire trucks were funny looking, not your normal city firetrucks. These firetrucks have to go across creeks and rocky terrain. We are very fortunate the fire only destroyed the land on top of the bluff. Luckily it didn't come anywhere close to the house. Steve said that if the wind had not changed it would have destroyed more of the ranch and possibly the house. The fire crews were on the ranch until 3 am and were back out the next day to look for hot spots. They also had bulldozers to prevent the fire from spreading. Everyone says this, but the fire truly would burn one tree and not the one directly next to it.
The pictures do not do it justice. It was a sad sight to see. DJ's pics are better b/c they are from the next day. His pics look like we just had a snow and the ground is black. Two weeks later, our pics show most if the black soot has blown away and you see brown dirt. The true hot spots are still black and the trees are black.
Baby trucking across a downed fence. Some association will help with replacing fences due to wildfire damage, so that is why we have pics of the fence.
Hotspot
Poor Dada's blind. We went to the ranch for Labor Day and he spent hours working on his blind getting it ready for deer season. Not much is left of the new tin that he replaced or the new wood for the roof, just a metal stand is all that is left.
Sad trees
All that is left of Dada's chair in is deer blind and some nails.
The girls waiting patiently to go swimming.
Baby hanging out in the old deer blind.
Looking up to the bluff where the damage was.
accidental repeat photo
He made it to the top without us helping. He said if Dada is climbing over then I'm climbing over too!
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