Drove north to Mt. Shasta today with my wife

It has been a long summer or as I call it "The summer that wasn't" (a summer).

So, since about July 7th I have been stuck between the San Francisco Bay Area and Santa Barbara unable to really go north because of the fires and a sprained knee which kept me from driving as well as just too much smoke to make it practical to drive north and to stay at altitude. So, my friends in Mt. Shasta have been breathing smoke almost continually all summer long, (even now) since about July 7th, 2018. By the Way the Delta Fire along I-5 is still burning in some places. I could see the flames as I drove north within about 10 or 20 miles south of Dunsmuir and Castle Crags. Most of the way north from about Lakehead is one lane in either direction now. I'm thinking this is because of so many trees burned up alongside both sides of the freeway now that could fall on drivers. A secondary reason would be that they don't want anymore cigarettes to start more fires so keeping people in the fast or center lanes might be helpful. And the third reason is it is safer for fire engines to then park in the slow lanes of traffic to help fight the fires because most of this area on both sides of the freeway is very steep and has no roads to speak of even dirt ones. So, it's mostly helicopter drop ships and Hot shots (firemen with Hoe Dads) or rake like or shovel tools covering over fires and creating fire breaks or back fires along the way. Because no engines can get close enough to this fire in this area to do anything really. But, my wife was really depressed so see all the smoke and fire and even more depressed to see the smoke in mt. Shasta too where we couldn't really see the mountain barely at all. My friend said that it was snow from about 10,000 feet to the summit from a rain storm this week so he is less worried about his 2 1/2 acres burning up this year at least from the nearby fires. He said the rain washed all the 1 1/2 inch ashes from his roof and trees and garden and was very helpful in making his land safer from embers that might make it to his land in the future of the Delta Fire if winds come up  bad enough to bring it any closer in the coming days or weeks.

If you are traveling south from Ashland, Oregon or Washington or Canada on I-5 be prepared for Forest Service Green fire engines on both sides of the freeway after you pass Dunsmuir too by the way on Interstate 5 to as far south as near Lakehead 24 hours a day now.