The Lake Fire burned through some forest recreation areas, but popular spots such as the Figueroa and Davy Brown campgrounds had relatively minor damage, according to Los Padres National Forest representatives.
After visiting the area Sunday afternoon, forest spokesperson Adrienne Freeman said grass burned, but a lot of live vegetation still remains. She didn’t observe any major damage to those campgrounds.
“We’re not out of the woods with this fire; there is a possibility to reburn,” Freeman said.
The 33-site Figueroa Campground “actually looks really good,” according to Freeman, who noted that fuel treatments nearby caused the flames to burn mostly around the recreation site.
The Figueroa Lookout is undamaged. The interpretive trail on Figueroa Mountain had scorched vegetation, but some living trees remained after the fire burned through the area, she said.
Fuel reduction work likely helped some of these areas have lower fire severity, she added.
A few cabins in the Figueroa Mountain Recreation Area burned, according to Noozhawk photographers who witnessed the damage.
The blaze had not burned to Nira Campground along Manzana Creek as of Sunday. Nira is a popular trailhead for hikers and backpackers entering the San Rafael Wilderness.
Fire crews were proactively wrapping historic buildings such as the Manzana Schoolhouse, located in wilderness along Manzana Creek, near the confluence with the Sisquoc River. The foil-like material should protect the structure if flames get close.
Forest Closure Order
The Lake Fire had burned 38,430 acres as of Monday night, and Los Padres National Forest expanded its forest closure order this week.
It will remain in effect until Aug. 18, and can be continued beyond or rescinded before that, depending on conditions.
“There is a lot of tree mortality along the roads,” and forest officials will need to do a lot of hazard tree work before reopening, Freeman said.
“At the moment it seems like there’s some positive news about the recreation sites, but I still wouldn’t anticipate a quick lift on the closure.”
Lake Fire Update
Lake Fire officials credited cooler weather with helping firefighting conditions Monday. They reported 38% containment with full containment by estimated by the end of July.
More than 3,500 personnel are assigned to the Lake Fire, and incident command is handling the fire with a North Zone and a South Zone.
They mentioned in the Monday update that the two fire base camps cannot accept donations, although they appreciate the community support.
Santa Barbara County officials have lifted some evacuations and road closures as crews make progress on containing the fire.
The Air Pollution Control District lifted the air quality alert for the Santa Ynez Valley on Monday, but an air quality watch remains in effect countywide.
