An Update on the Sieber Fire in McInnis Canyons NCA
Over the weekend of June 5-7, 2020, a lightning strike started the Sieber Fire - roughly 20 miles west of Grand Junction, CO in the McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area (NCA).
The Sieber Fire burned 1,094 acres, mostly on Friday night. A huge relief came on Saturday when it rained 1.6 inches; the rain amount was captured at the Little Dolores Remote weather station. In some places, the pinyon-juniper, sage, and grass are completely slicked off. In other places, the green bunchgrass is still there and just the cheatgrass burned, and there are even some pockets of sage within the fire that didn't burn at all.
The fire was close to the Utah line but all in Colorado. Most of the fire was outside the Wilderness Area on the parcel of land the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) bought from the Gores in 2000. It did burn one historic cabin on the property and burned 225 acres in the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness. The only Wilderness incursion was parking vehicles in the safety zone inside the gate at Jones Canyon trailhead. The rains negated the crews' need for chainsaws, dozers, or water/retardant drops in the Wilderness Area.
Much of the fire burned in Gunnison sage grouse habitat and BLM staff is currently developing rehab plans to attempt to avoid conversion to cheatgrass.
The crews and the team all tried new things to minimize the risk of COVID-19 exposure and conveyed that they learned a lot that will be passed on for future fires. Crews believe they were successful and there were no known/suspected exposures.
In the words of McInnis Canyons NCA Manager, Collin Ewing, “ I think everyone did a great job. It seems Mother Nature showed us all what she is capable of Friday night and again on Saturday. It's the 20th anniversary of McInnis Canyons NCA and this was the biggest fire we have seen in the NCA in my 10 years working for BLM and also probably the biggest rainstorm. They happened to both occur within a 24-hour period. I am thankful that everyone went home safely.”
Colorado Canyons Association is incredibly thankful for all of the hard work and resources that BLM, fire crews, and Mesa County used to suppress and maintain this fire. As we all venture onto our public lands this summer, please remember to abide by the fire restrictions in place and enjoy our NCAs responsibly.