First the forest closes and then I have friends either get sick or get called into work in the last 12 hours. I have lost half the party. So I am rescheduling the party to July 22nd as a pre-Made in Shade tasting. It will hopefully make it a little easier on folks. I wanted to do this when we first heard about the forest closing but since the date was set I hated to reschedule. In the end if I kept the date today the turn out would be unimpressive and I'd rather it be a success than a flop.

That said the guest list is open, I have enough wine from our friends at Stormhoek it shouldn't be a problem. Sheskabob will be on the menu and it will be a light hearted start to a day of tasting, first wine and food, then at Made in the Shade beer. So if you are in the area drop me a line and come to the party.

With the closure of the forest it looks like I'll need to find another location for the picnic Sunday. Location update today or tomorrow.

Windy day again in Flagstaff, but the fire has died down. From the few times I have driven past the area, there are small fires burning under close watch of fire crews, but they are letting smaller undergrowth burn itself out. Like I thought yesterday, it does not look like this section of forest had been thinned. Having lived in Northern Arizona for a number of years I can tell thinned forest looks like and this is not it.

Flagstaff got lucky. But the Monsoons aren't here yet, so while we can breath a sigh of relief today, we need to keep watch on the forests.

Let's hope the forest stays like this...


PS - Forgot to mention, I spoke with someone who lives in Railroad Springs they are back in their homes.

First sign we knew something was wrong at work was the power went out. So I got up and wandered around the building hoping it would kick back on, the usual mix of confusion and annoyance was on people's face. After a few minutes I noticed smoke beyond our parking lot. Not unheard with the Interstate 40 just North of our building sometimes cars have engine problems.

Then I realized it wasn't a car, it was the forest on the other side of the freeway. And it was close, close enough I could see the flames clearly from the window. It had me worried, while the wind was coming from the Southwest it was blowing strong today with gusts over 20 40 mph (Local weather just corrected me @8:24pm). It would not take long for homes to be threaten.

Since the power was cut my work day was done I headed home. I tried to take a back road to get around the fire but police had already shut down the way due to smoke. In the end, I took I-40 into town and up Milton into Downtown. Until I realized the whole Westside was without of electricity, traffic was snarled without traffic lights functioning. I stopped around Route 66 and Milton and took these pictures of the fire.

Since taking these pictures and based on the news reports it seems like they have it under control. Overhead I hear the constant drone of aircraft and I am thankful for the sound. A friend with a nearby fire department has confirmed they are sending more resources to ensure it stays contained.

The fire started just North of the I-40 Freeway between Flagstaff Ranch Road and Woody Mountain Road. It seems so far to be contained South of Route 66. I drive past this area every day on my way to work and while AZ fire experts on tv talk about it being part of the thinned section of forest but I don't believe so. I don't think they had gotten to that section as of yet. In fact I was a bit worried about the potential for a fire in that location. Luckily the area due East of the fire had been recently cleared for new home construction, which I suspect helped in gaining early containment on the fire. If the trees in that area hadn't been cleared, like last year at this time, I think the situation would have been far worse.

To speculate I suspect the fire was started by a cigarette from a passing car, but that is just my guess based on how close the fire was to the roadway.

Last and certainly not least a big thank you to those firefighters out there helping to protect my favorite mountain town. I appreciate their efforts. Thank you!

Flickr Picture Feed


Updates - While reports continue about power outages most of the town has had electricity back for a while (around 6pm), but I am not sure about where I work.

Good fire coverage over at the Irish Trojan Blog

Current television report says occasional spot fires North of Route 66, but no structures have been lost as of yet.

Current evacuated neighborhoods are Railroad Springs, Hidden Hallow, and Woody Mountain Campground. Pine Springs was evacuated with the other neighborhoods.(Pine Springs Update 9:10pm)

I can smell the smoke from the fire coming into my house with the breeze.

TV Update - APS says the Woody Mtn power station was not damaged by the fire, contrary to television reports.

NBC Photos and if you look closely at photo 2 and 7 you can see what I said about how close the fire was to the I-40 roadway. (Hattip Brendon)

Yes, I have heard and I even saw it very close to work....more details to follow shortly.



Says it all right now.

I often enjoyed the Pizza Picazzo in Sedona while I lived there. I found the food and the service to be excellent. So I was pleased when I saw they were opening a new location in Flagstaff I hoped for the best.

I got a work in progress.

I mean that in the best possible light. While I saw short comings, I saw a similar spark that endeared me to the Sedona location and hope I'll see improvements to continue in this Flagstaff location.

The Food
The pizza crust was a bit flat, not quite the same chewy texture I was used to in Sedona. I know it can be done here, Fratelli's crust is excellent. Considering that Flagstaff is at a higher elevation it may take them a time to adjust to the elevation difference, after all Tempe and Scottsdale are far different in elevation.

The Service
Here was the spark, the helpful and considerate staff was a sign I recognized from Sedona. My initial order had a problem and they immediately offered to refill my drink while they made a fresh order. It shows a deadication to quality to customer service and quality.

Other Thoughts
Location, it can't be improved unfortunately. The location made a great pool hall 12 years ago, but it's been so boxed by the new layout it doesn't reflect the openness or light that we get in Arizona. One aspect I loved in Sedona was the view of the Red Rocks. A view of the Peaks would have been similarly stirring. Even without the current construction just North of the restaurant views will be few and far between. It's Arizona, show me the light! Furthermore, it's bad marketing to give people pizza boxes without the location you bought the pizza from on the box. It may have been a cost savings issue, but they could have been used at other locations until they ran out. Flagstaff's location should be listed on their box. It only makes sense for future buisness.

In the end I see hope and the potential for yet another great Flagstaff restaruant.