DNR Burn Crew
April 14-May 23, 2008
Photos from Ellen Fuge, Burn Boss
Rainy day in April, raking firebreaks at St. Croix Savanna. Left to right: Bill, Luke, me, Chris, Michael.
Raking firebreaks in oak leaves
Burning at Grey Cloud Dunes near Cottage Grove
Headfires (fires moving with the wind) coming together at Grey Cloud. We typically started on the downwind side with backing fires, then once the lines were secure we lit headfires towards the center.
There's a lot going on in this picture. The ATV and truck are wetlining (spraying a line of water on the firebreak to keep the fire from crossing it), Bill (front) and Russ (back) are lighting with drip torches, and I (far back) am toting a pump can and watching the firebreak. The truck has just blown a transmission line and is inoperable, but we were close enough to the end of the burn that it didn't stop us.
DQ blizzards after a long day of burning. Left to right: Bill, me, Chris, Russ, DJ, Michael.
We burned this beautiful bluff prairie overlooking the Cannon River near Red Wing.
River Terrace SNA (Scientific & Natural Area) in the Cannon River Valley. The unburned area is a kittentails (Besseya bullii) research plot.
Our largest burn unit - 100 acres at Kellogg-Weaver Dunes in the Mississippi valley south of Wabasha.
"Mop-up" - cutting down and putting out burning timber. We had mop-up at most sites, especially near houses where we couldn't leave anything burning. That's Chris on the saw cutting on a red-hot basswood snag.
Burning at the Umbanhowar prairie near Northfield. This was a wet, smoky burn with a lot of green brome grass in the unit. That's me and the Umbanhowars' cattle, who seemed to enjoy the smoke and the taste of my fire clothes.
Me + cows + smoke again. My job was to keep the fire out of the pasture and to prevent wooden fenceposts from catching fire.
A fox snake I found heading toward the Umbanhowar fire.
Photos from Bill Alexander, Line Boss
On top of the steep hill at Spring Creek. Left to right: DJ, Michael, Luke, Russ, Chris, half of me
In action at Oronoco Prairie near Rochester
The full crew at Oronoco. I am wetlining from the truck, Ellen is lighting, Michael and Kane are watching the line with pump cans, and Luke is in the rear with the ATV as a last defense. This was a hot fire with shifty winds, so we had to move fast.
Fire ripping through cattails near Ortonville
Hot fire!
Mark and his hose
Laying flank fires at Yellow Bank Hills near Nassau
Looking west along the north firebreak at Yellow Bank Hills
Fire on the Prairie Coteau! (looking south from the northwest corner)
Burning under the wind turbines
Looking through the smoke at Prarie Coteau. The vehicles are not in danger.