fear the wifirenado

By: Cody Steele

The trip began as planned with six of our seven family members waiting in the car, ready to go, while I continue to check one last time for things I might have forgotten. The half-cocked heads and glazed over eyeballs staring out of tinted windows was a sure sign this trip had started off right. We are a family of seven, brimming with teenage angst. I entered the car and was immediately greeted with an overwhelmingly deep sigh from the bunch and a loaded question from my beautiful wife, “Do you have everything dear?” Ha-ha… “I believe so honey” I replied, but as we all know, that’s a load of shit because there is always something we are bound to forget. Whatever. Onward and upward. North to be exact, on an 11 hour journey from Solana Beach to a beautiful place called Lake Almanor.

So, we start our journey in my 2019 Chevy Silverado, which has now been modified, trunk to junk, in order to accommodate a trip of this magnitude. We looked like a vehicle straight out of the movie “Mad Max.”

We should have known this was a sign that things might be a little off, but we forged ahead.

Temperatures kept on pace and stayed extremely hot all the way to Lake Almanor. We finally arrived at our beautiful destination and started to unpack our Mad Max beast when a huge gust of wind nearly knocked us off our feet. The kids all held tightly to the tents we were trying to set while this unexpected wind whipped at our faces and challenged our concerted effort to set camp. Soon the wind would subside, and our unpacking would commence. We unloaded seven bags of luggage, two hammocks, multiple paddleboards, enough food to feed a small nation, and about eight thousand other things we managed to bring.

On the second day of our five-day adventure we saw the most amazing lighting storm I have ever seen. We were fortunate enough to witness this phenomenon from a very safe distance without knowing how much damage it was causing elsewhere. That night a similar lightning storm to the east of us light up the night sky all night and sparked a major fire in Lassen County. We woke to a haze in the air and a tingle in our lungs. We didn’t think much of it until we got out on the lake and saw a cloud of smoke breaking the atmosphere. Not one to wait around for bad news, my wife jumped on her phone to search fires in California and was shocked to see what was unfolding.

The lightning storm from the other night had literally set northern California on fire. Over 1,200 fires were now burning across the state and all the major ones within hours of us. Now if you have ever met my wife, you would know storms are not her thing and fire storms are downright apocalyptic as far as she is concerned.

Sit mama bear, stay.

That night, we found ourselves in an emotionally charged discussion about leaving our adventure early. I knew pretty quickly that if I ever wanted to see a warm smile from her again it would behoove me to not only acknowledge her concerns and fears, but to get us packed up and out of there as fast as I could manage. As day broke, we told the kids there had been a change of plans and proceeded to dismantle our campsite.

We headed home at mock speed with only a handful of stops for food, drinks, and pee parties. The drive home was ominous and hot, with temps reaching above 109 most of the time. The sky was filled with a dark smokey haze all the way home because we were surrounded by massive fires the entire drive. As reluctant as I was to leave early, since I am just a simple-minded, underly cautious man who thinks we can outrun the fire, or jump in the lake to safety, I will admit that I am glad we listened to my wife and left when we did.

The last thing I wanted or needed was a“firenado” of a relationship.

Our thoughts go out to everyone affected by the fires. If you are moved to help, donate now at the Red Cross https://www.redcross.org/donate/donation.html/

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