saw unplanted fields and saw the effects of the drought for the first time.
Next stop was Casa de Fruta, “Fruit House” in Spanish. When I was a kid, we’d visit family near Monterey during Easter break, and we’d always stop here for a late breakfast. It’s one reason why breakfast on the road is still my favorite eating out experience. In those days, it consisted of mainly a large fruit stand, a coffee shop, and gas station. But it has grown into a destination unto itself today. An RV park, plus multiple “Casas de.” Casa de Choo Choo (a small train for the kiddies to ride around the complex), Casa de Burrito, Casa de Vino, Casa de Coffee. Casa de Everything! (that one I made up). Plus a large gift shop and wandering peacocks just to add to the ambience.
This also was where I’d encounter another consequence of the extended drought and my third impression: wildfire was a serious and ongoing issue. In the Casa de Fruta parking lot were no fewer than ten Cal Fire trucks. I had been a seasonal firefighter with Cal Fire (then called California Division of Forestry) in the 70’s, working my way through college, so I knew that there was a serious undertaking nearby. I started a conversation with a crew chief named Baraka, who told me there was a fire on both sides of the highway ahead of me and to expect quite a delay. Great, I thought. But as we were talking we found out that the same fire captain who had trained him had been my fire captain from 1972-75. Small world.
That was just one fire spot this summer in the hills around home. From late July to early September, consider: In Oakhurst, the Junction Fire burned over 600 acres and 8 structures. At Bass Lake two weeks after I returned home, the Courtney Fire burned over 300 acres, with 56 structures burned, including 30 homes destroyed. A late July fire near El Portal, near the entrance to Yosemite, burned over 4,600 acres. The Bridge Fire near Ponderosa basin burned over 300 acres and forced multiple home evacuations. The Meadow Fire in Yosemite burned almost 4,800 acres and was one of the few not man-caused. An arsonist allegedly started another 13 fires in nearby Madera County, including the Courtney Fire.