Forest fire burns roughly 1,000 acres in Cumberland County; fire not under control
- Thread starter Teegate
- Start date
I finally got around to driving five minutes down the road to check out the fire.Ackley road is now open and here are the perimeters of the fire I could find by road.Here is the northern extent along 555 https://online.boydsmaps.com/#16/39.3279/-75.0770/njgin24k southern extent along same https://online.boydsmaps.com/#16/39.3043/-75.0986/njgin24k southwestern extent https://online.boydsmaps.com/#16/39.3052/-75.1063/njgin24k and western extent along Ackley https://online.boydsmaps.com/#16/39.3161/-75.1080/njgin24k
The fire burnt an area that was already pretty cooked about five years ago and it does not look much worse then it did from the previous fire. Most areas i could see appear to have had flames ten to twenty feet high but jjst about all living trees oak and pine appear to have survived,even areas of young pine were browned but appeared to be alive. Now the already dead trees are anohter matter.Most trees that were obviously already dead are burnt to the tops,even fifty foot tall dead snags are burnt to the tops but the undrgrowth and brus appears to be mostly intact .It appears to me to be a ground fire with no crowning of trees except the dead ones and along 555 much of the burn appears to be drip torch fire set at the road because further in the trees look almost untouched so maybe they caught it west of the road though I saw no new roads cut in off of Ackley.The existing road at the western edge has obviously been torn up and several gates into the WMA that should be closed now are still hanging open. I did not ride down Shaws mill rd though i could have so I don't know if it burnt that far north or not. This could be a dangerous area to explore especially if there is any wind.Like I said all the dead snags no matter how big are thoroughly charred to the tops so the next windstorm could be interesting if your out there in it.
The fire burnt an area that was already pretty cooked about five years ago and it does not look much worse then it did from the previous fire. Most areas i could see appear to have had flames ten to twenty feet high but jjst about all living trees oak and pine appear to have survived,even areas of young pine were browned but appeared to be alive. Now the already dead trees are anohter matter.Most trees that were obviously already dead are burnt to the tops,even fifty foot tall dead snags are burnt to the tops but the undrgrowth and brus appears to be mostly intact .It appears to me to be a ground fire with no crowning of trees except the dead ones and along 555 much of the burn appears to be drip torch fire set at the road because further in the trees look almost untouched so maybe they caught it west of the road though I saw no new roads cut in off of Ackley.The existing road at the western edge has obviously been torn up and several gates into the WMA that should be closed now are still hanging open. I did not ride down Shaws mill rd though i could have so I don't know if it burnt that far north or not. This could be a dangerous area to explore especially if there is any wind.Like I said all the dead snags no matter how big are thoroughly charred to the tops so the next windstorm could be interesting if your out there in it.
T
Toothy Critter
Guest
Didn't go that far west.Started somewhere near the sand plant and burnt eastward,the pond is good but I have seen more people out there in the parking lot then ever before.It was a crowd out there.Fishermen elbow to elbow.As long as it didn't mess with Shaws Mill Pond
Bob I think it would look more like this.I did not drive shaws mill rd because i was not expecting the gate to be open and was already past it by the time I seen it but the burn extended mush further north along the western boundary since I could look up that road from ackley and seen it was burnt as far down it as i could see.I think this would probably be more accurate.maybe tomorrow I"ll ride shaws mill id the gate is still open.
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By the way several monuments some shown on map and some not got toasted and a few of those had stones,one a fairly nice one.
Thanks Al. You don't have to go out again.
Those woods look nice when driving them on Google.
Those woods look nice when driving them on Google.
used to be nice open oak/pine woods but brushed up after last fire with a lot of young pine but looks to be cleared out a bit again
Not yet Al. I want to see the plants that come up by September. Plus, I'm working on the house. Thanks anyway.
Does the growth after a fire provide plants that whitetail deer eat? Or just reduce cover for them?
I'm not just looking for rarities. Burns open up the forest floor to sunlight, and maybe that awakens some dormant seeds. I love seeing the regeneration too.
Yes oaks resprout from stumps and put out good acorn crops several years after a fire and the sunlight will promote leafy green plants deer love. Also the rodent population will i ncrease due to food availabilty which in turn increases the snake population which is a definite plus for me! M wife on the other hand hates fires because for some reason I never plan to go into them and always seem to be wearing good clothes and get suckered in unawares because their so open and all the briars are destroyed I think "I won't rip my clotes on briars" and I forget that I"m going to go in in jeans and a t shirt and come out wearing camo tiger stripe.Momma says that crap won't wash out and what do you know! she was right! I have done this many times.
I buy my "work in the yard" clothes in thrift shops; that way when they're really grubby they become garden rags.
Your wife is very tolerant.
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She tolerates me acting like a kid and I tolerate her talking to me like I"m one.