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Heavy smoke continued to clog Lake County's skies, with the smoke coming from fires in Mendocino County's Covelo and Anderson Valley regions, according to Cal Fire spokesperson Tracy Boudreaux.
Cal Fire reported that nearly 400 fires were burning in its units around the state, from Northern California south to Fresno and Monterey counties.
In Mendocino County, Cal Fire reported 90 fires had been reported and have burned more than 5,000 acres. The Orr Fire is 200 acres and has evacuations of the Orr Springs Resort and 20 homes in the area; the Navarro Fire is 1,400 acres and 5-percent contained; the Foster Fire is 60 acres with 0-percent containment; the Table Mountain Fire is 1,000 acres and 5-percent contained; the Mallo Pass Fire is 600 acres; and the two Juan Creek fires are at 100 acres each. Cal Fire said there are eight additional fires at 30 acres each.
In the Sonoma-Lake-Napa Cal Fire Unit, five fires had been reported burning near Napa, west of Fairfield. All but one of the fires was contained. The fire had burned 3,500 acres Sunday, and was 35-percent contained.
In the Mendocino National Forest, lightning over the weekend caused at estimated 50 fires across the forest's three ranger districts, according to Forest Service spokesperson Phebe Brown.
The largest of the fires is a 50-acre blaze on the Upper Lake Ranger District, said Brown.
Some structures in the area are threatened, she said, although there are no evacuations ordered yet. Fire equipment is on the roads and people are advised to be careful if traveling in the forest.
Most of the fires are small, and some already have been contained, Brown said.
Smoke jumpers are working on some of the larger fires, said Brown.
Containment across all of the fires is estimated at 10 percent, she said.
“We have requested more equipment and crews,” said Brown.
Although the forest has been getting much of what it's requested, Brown added, “The crews are pretty scarce.”
The push around the state was for more personnel, with officials reporting a shortage of available firefighters. Over the weekend, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger deployed the California National Guard to assist with firefighting, according to the Associated Press.
Lake County Air Pollution Control Officer Bob Reynolds reported Sunday that the fires were resulting in smoke, haze and degraded air quality for the area.
Reynolds explained that smoke is trapped in the cooler marine air layer and transported inland, causing the present smoke impacts. At times smoke can be transported to sea within a circulation cell, and then return back over Northern California in a wide band of smoke filled air.
He said the smoke and sunlight cause chemical reactions in the air that further reduces visibility by forming secondary particles aside from the smoke. These particles draw the moisture out of the air, growing in number and size, making the haze even worse.
Many areas, he said, are being affected more severely than Lake County.
He said that, although health standards have not been exceeded, levels are abnormally high, and it is suggested that persons sensitive to respiratory irritants or who have a respiratory illness stay indoors and avoid unnecessary exercise. Place air conditions on “recirculation” mode and consult your physician if you suffer from asthma or pulmonary disease, or have other health problems, and are experiencing difficulties.
Reynolds said the residual haze and particulate from the fires can be expected to continue throughout the northern part of the state until the fires are out.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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Cal Fire reported Saturday that 339 fires were burning across 12 of its units in Northern California and south to Fresno and Monterey counties, aided by this year's extremely dry conditions and, in some cases, by winds.
In Mendocino County alone, Cal Fire received more than 100 fire reports beginning at about 6 p.m. Friday and stretching through Saturday night, said Tracy Boudreaux, a fire prevention specialist with Cal Fire's Mendocino Unit.
“We're still getting reports of fires,” Boudreaux told Lake County News Saturday night, all of them resulting from lightning strikes around Mendocino County.
Total acreage estimates weren't available, although Cal Fire reported that the fires ranged in size from one to 125 acres.
Crews and equipment “from all over” – including local government, Office of Emergency Services, out-of-county Cal Fire units, some of them from as far away as Southern California – were battling the fires, said Boudreaux.
Strike teams from Cal Fire's Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit also were on scene, she said.
Many of the lightning-sparked fires were in remote areas of the county, such as the Orr Springs area. Boudreaux said there also was an ongoing fire at Navarro, and an evacuation advisory in the Flynn Creek area, where some individual structures were threatened, not a local subdivision.
Another fire was burning in Anderson Valley near Boonville, she said.
“We're basically tapped for resources right now,” said Boudreaux.
The Associated Press reported Saturday that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had ordered the California National Guard to assist with the firefighting effort.
Red skies loomed over the Anderson Valley and Ukiah areas Saturday, said Boudreaux. “It is overwhelming.”
Heavy smoke was visible around Lake County all day, with residents reporting that it was so thick in some areas they could no longer see Mt. Konocti.
In parts of Lakeport Saturday afternoon and evening, ash was reported falling.
Boudreaux said the smoke coming through Lake County was coming from two sources: lightning fires in Covelo and Anderson Valley.
Anderson Valley is inundated with smoke, Boudreaux said, and a marine layer of air is pushing the smoke into Lake and Sonoma counties.
In nearby Napa County, Boudreaux said lightning also sparked a fire that had reportedly burned 750 acres by Saturday night.
Boudreaux said the challenge for Cal Fire was prioritizing all of the fires in order to best use its stretched resources.
“Right now I think we're looking at several days of firefighting before we can actually get containment on most of them,” she said.
Boudreaux said Cal Fire is urging everyone to be prepared in case of fire during this busy fire season. Readiness includes having documents and personal possessions in an easy accessible location, and having plans for where to take one's family, pets and livestock.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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The California Highway Patrol reported that a solo vehicle collision occurred along Highway 20 near mile marker 33. The initial call was dispatched at 9:16 p.m.
The vehicle's male driver had been ejected and was lying in the roadway bleeding, according to the CHP.
CHP reported the vehicle itself was on fire, and the highway's eastbound was shut down completely.
Emergency personnel transported the man to Santa Rosa Memorial, where a CHP unit also was dispatched for a test to check if the man had been driving under the influence.
A flatbed tow truck was called to the scene to remove the vehicle, with the eastbound lane reopened at 9:42 p.m.
No other information, including the man's identity, was available from the CHP Friday night.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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Their estate is in the Red Hills Appellation in Lake County, a rocky, hilly area with red volcanic soil, and Sol Rouge has been producing quality wines for the past three years.
Around the Kanes' patio was a decorative pillar with the Egyptian sun god Ra on it, and there was a small clay sun in another area so I assumed, “Sol Rouge” meant “Red Sun” and these little accents are charming tie-ins.
But no, as I found out with a (very) little research.
Although “Sol” means “sun” in Spanish, in French it means “soil”; therefore the name of their winery means “Red Soil,” which is apropos as the vineyard is in the “Red Hills Appellation.”
Ah, now it’s starting to make sense to me. Luckily, I’m a person who tries to keep my mouth shut until I can’t any longer. This time I kept it shut and did not display my original ignorance to anyone. So don’t tell anyone.
The gathering was small, intimate and casual, more like a cocktail party for friends than a business function. The Kanes themselves are open and welcoming, and with one of their sons enthusiastically acting as bartender/flamboyant host, it added a factor of fun and charm.
But atmosphere aside, we were there to taste their new releases. Sol Rouge is relatively new in Lake County, so I was excited to see what new items they had to offer.
The wines that were being tasted and released were Viognier, Rosé, Grenache, Gypsy, Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon. About half of the wines are made from grapes grown here in Lake County, and I have to say these were my favorites.
The Sol Rouge ’06 Viognier is made from grapes grown in the Russian River Valley and it was what you expect from a Viognier. It has bright fruity flavors, nice and crisp with a nice citrus/grapefruit nose. The ’07 Rosé was a surprise. I generally don’t buy Rosés because I find their flavors and characteristics to be all over the map; you never know what you’re going to get. But this one was nice. It was tart, and drier than most Rosés.
Next on the tasting menu was the ’06 Grenache. This wine was very smooth, with rich flavors and lots of cherry and blackberry notes. After that came the ’06 Gypsy, which had a rich, velvety feel. Very full-bodied, but not heavily tannic. When my wife asked me which wine I liked the best I had to admit to her, “I snuck a second glass of the Grenache.”
Now, I’m not a big fan of Zinfandels because they sometimes can be so full of tannins that they make your tongue feel furry. It’s become a habit for us when we go wine tasting that my wife will try a Zin first and then tells me if it’s something I would even want to try. Her comment after trying the Sol Rouge ’06 Zinfandel was “You will not be offended.” She was right. The tannins are very well balanced, allowing the full black cherry flavors of the Zinfandel to come through.
The ’06 Cabernet Sauvignon was my least favorite, but only because I’m not that big a fan of red wines. Not that I didn’t like it, but it was like trying to choose the least hot Charlie’s Angel. Someone’s gotta come in last, even though they’re all hot. The Cabernet stopped shy of being too tannic for my palate, and my wife (the red wine drinker in the family) thought it was very good. It had a lot of body and deep notes of cassis and black cherry. Usually in wine tastings you finish with the Zinfandel because it’s got the most tannin, but in this case the Cabernet took the final spot and it was well chosen.
Sol Rouge focuses on grape varietals from the Rhone and Bordeaux regions of southern France. This is information that you can get from their Web site at www.solrouge.com. The site is still being developed, but it is fun to click on the Google earth view of the vineyard and you can learn about ordering their wines and joining their wine club.
I was very impressed by the personal welcome, the relaxed atmosphere and the impressive selection of wine. This is definitely an up-and-coming label to watch.
And just for the record, Cameron Diaz was the least hot of Charlie’s Angels.
Now before we wrap things up, I need to give a little back story to my day at Sol Rouge. The day of the release party we left our house and arrived in Kelseyville having completely forgotten the Sol Rouge address at home. Luckily I remembered that during the Lake County Wine Adventure last summer the wine shop “Focused On Wine” had hosted the winery at their shop, so we made a quick detour to Focused On Wine to ask directions.
Stephanie Cruz-Green, the owner of Focused On Wine, is an enchanting person who seems to have eternal smile affixed to her face. She is a certified sommelier (which is not an easy accomplishment), and so I felt a little guilty reducing her to the level of gas station attendant by asking her for directions, but she gave us the necessary information with friendliness and charm, and we made it right on time.
Speaking of Focused On Wine, some Sol Rouge wines are available there along with an astonishing amount and variety of other wines, including local, regional and imported wines. There’s also a variety of spirits, beer, gifts and cigars.
Focused On Wine is beautifully decorated with a relaxing atmosphere and an attentive friendly staff. There is a wine bar where you can go in and enjoy wine by the glass or enjoy a tasting flight of several wines, so this isn’t only a place where you can buy wines, but a place where you can sit down, relax and enjoy drinking a great wine. Personally, if lived on the west side of the lake I would stop in there daily to relax after work with a glass of wine before heading home for the evening.
When you are finished reading this you should head to downtown Kelseyville and stop by Focused On Wine. Introduce yourself and sit down and have a glass of wine. It’s open Thursday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, and Monday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The shop, which is closed on Tuesday and Wednesday, is located at 3940 Main St.
Ross A. Christensen is an award-winning gardener and gourmet cook. He is the author of "Sushi A to Z, The Ultimate Guide" and is currently working on a new book. He has been a public speaker for many years and enjoys being involved in the community.
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