What started on the northern slope of Peavine Mountain quickly spread over the crest to threaten homes in Somersett, in northwest Reno. It spread south, against the wind, but fell short of destroying houses in the community where we live. Around seven hundred people battled the blaze, a fire that eventually grew to 15,000 acres.

By evening, this was the view from our backyard. Yikes!

Wildlife came down from the mountains and sought refuge in our neighborhoods.

Poor Smokey

We moved to The Big Island of Hawaii back in the summer of 2021. The first day we had possession of our purchased house, we needed to buy food for the koi in the small pond at our front door. At the pet store, we met a dog and ended up taking him home with us. While in line to buy pet supplies one of the store clerks announced that a fire has resulted in the evacuation of a neighborhood only a few miles from our house.

On the way home, we encountered a roadblock. We informed the police officer that our house was only a few miles up the road. He asked for a drivers license to prove this, but we had not yet gotten replacements for our California documents. I pulled up emails from the house closing and he let us continue down the road. Our house was full of smoke and that’s how we named our dog: Smokey. I threw the “e” in there because of Smokey Bear and Sheriff Buford T. Justice from Smokey And The Bandit.

When the scary part of the fire passed, Smokey had not slept and was dealing with an upset tummy. He spent that entire next day sleeping on the couch. Every couple that had cared for him over the past year of our travel sent notes to ask how we were doing. Actually, they checked in on Smokey, with two sets specifically texting, “He’s such a sensitive little boy.”