The Hills, They Are Burning

 

Ok so what we said about the hills, don't take to the hills right now. They are either on fire, about to be on fire or filling with smoke. We woke to the sound of our UPS beeping as it kicked in during a power outage while we were sleeping a week ago. The house was otherwise silent and of course pitch black but I had a bad feeling the outage was due to the storm we'd heard was on the way. Dry lightning is the enemy of anyone who lives on the West coast of Canada or the US. Late summer heat and dryness in the forests makes for a dangerous place for a strike to land. In 2008 we were here for the last dry lightning event in California and it was pretty catastrophic. 

I looked out over the valley saw in in distance some flashes of  lightening and when I stepped outside the dry hot wind kicked up and started to pull on our awning over the deck. The air smelled like sulfur. Joel got up and began manually cranking in the awning which is very difficult without the electric motor. The storm rolled closer and some drops of rain started and I had to run outside to cover the generator with tarps and huge rocks to hold them down dodging flying branches. Our phones lit up with alerts about fires from the storm that had started in Mill Valley, Pt Reyes, Forest Knolls/San Geronimo (very close to us) and I believe there were a few other strikes spots around the Muir Woods side of Mt Tam. Even with the rain starting we knew there was enough build up of dry tinder, these fires were not going to be easy to attack. I sat up with my phone and our wireless hotspot (the only way to get a signal in an outage here because we are just out of regular cell phone company range).  Our local firefighters heroically put out all the fires overnight except for the one in the Pt Reyes National Park which they could not reach. That is the one that is now nearly 3,000 acres and now drawing resources from Montana. 

 A week went by with over 650 fires raging across the state from the lightning event and then we had advance warning of ANOTHER lightning complex coming our way and were advised to be ready to evacuate if a strike were to land near us. So, along with all our friends in the area, we began to organize the plan for evacuation and pack up essentials in the car. A massive Red Flag warning covering most of Northern California was declared. Extra resources started to pour into the state. Luckily when the storm hit it has mostly dispersed at sea and there were just a couple of strikes near existing fires. Our Red Flag was lifted and life returned to our strange normal.  

Fairfax with unhealthy smoke levels still had a concert in the parking lot and diners sitting on patios

It's hazy out there but the sun makes it through. We usually have clear air in the afternoon & evening.

We're so fortunate to have central air conditioning (powered by our solar array) which pulls in fresh air from outside, cools it and then filters it before sending it around the house. Very little smoke gets inside. We had the system updated just a couple of years ago and are very glad we did. It has saved our lungs and sanity the last few years. 

Giant pumpkins and hot summer days

I'd nearly forgotten how spectacular the weather is in Marin, especially in the Autumn. Downtown San Francisco is pretty clear this time of year too making for some beautiful ferry rides and brilliant sightseeing days though it's a little colder down there. Our days here are averaging in the high 70s to high 80s (or high 20s and low 30s celsius).

Life is sort-of settling in. We've been here for five weeks and Joel has been on business trips every single week. He's seen more airports than open houses. I've got our new nanny working with Austen and I'm juggling all the household stuff, house hunting and working on my contracts. The house hunt is going very slowly. In the areas we are looking there are only a couple of houses for sale at any given time and the stampede of offers on each one is amazing. Houses are going for 25% or more above the list price and sellers are preferring all cash offers (which are plentiful). We've got this furnished rental covered till new years so the pressure is on to close on a home before then. 

Austen is doing great. He's continuing to astound us with his physical feats (insert some minor heart attacks here too) new words and phrases. He's potty training already (yay!) so we're just thrilled about that. Having half days with his nanny and afternoons with me suits him fine. He's thriving and everyone is happy.

That's all for now! I'll update when there's something to report like... maybe a home. Fingers crossed everyone. 

Arrival in Marin [again]

Well here we are! Waking up back in Marin after a four year hiatus. Joel walked down to the ferry this morning to go into work and Austen and I are about to go fill up the fridge at Good Earth. 

evening walkabout in Fairfax

evening walkabout, a set on Flickr.

It's hard to imagine leaving here this year. I was out this evening with my neighbour and pro photographer Stacy Ventura just trying to capture the ordinary things along our street and walking trail we take behind our house.

Stinson Beach in Summer

Our closest sandy beach is Stinson and in the Summer it gets really busy especially if it's a clear sunny day along this usually foggy stretch of coast.

Trails of Marin County

Marin is mostly park land with a small network of towns scattered along the coasts and through the valleys where the former rail line used to be. The older homes are craftsman cottages whose early owners were probably from San Francisco and likely used these in the Summers. Many of these places were never insulated and don't have proper foundations. The next influx of development was in the '50s which spread the California bungalow style through the area with the slanted roofs and hardwood floors and giant floor to ceiling windows. Lots are small and most back onto steep hillsides. For many people in Fairfax, San Anselmo, Mill Valley and other quaint little towns, residents have direct access to hill top trails that connect and spread out across the county. The trails are actually fire roads and once on these roads you can get all the way out to the coast if you just keep going.

Many of our neighbours are long distance trail runners, mountain bikers and road cyclists. I'm not much of a runner but I have started to do a walk/run on one of our closest trails. I took my brother up this hill on his visit at sunset. Not a bad view!