The morning of August 16, 2020 saw a lightning storm of unprecedented power and scope (Portola Valley)
Two days later, a towering thunderhead of smoke signaled the beginning of the inferno in the Santa Cruz mountains (Portola Valley)
By that evening, the fires cast an eerie red glow over the hills (Portola Valley)
A few days later, the smoke from multiple fires combined with fog to produce an eerie, apocalyptic pall, making the Sun rise deep red over West Old La Honda Road (Woodside)
A few months later, the damage caused by the fires to the vegetation was stark (K&S Ranch, Pescadero)
Knobcone pines (Pine Ridge, Santa Cruz)
(K&S Ranch, Pescadero)
Young coastal redwoods stood straight but stripped of all their needles (K&S Ranch, Pescadero)
Douglas Fir & coastal redwoods (K&S Ranch, Pescadero)
The intense heat charred multiple layers of bark (K&S Ranch, Pescadero)
The charred remains reflect stark beauty (K&S Ranch, Pescadero)
(Gazos Creek, Pescadero)
Winter brought much needed water, feeding the rebirth (Pine Ridge, Santa Cruz)
(Pine Ridge, Santa Cruz)
Coastal redwoods display their resilience by sprouting fresh shoots from otherwise black trunks (Gazos Creek, Pescadero)
(Big Basin)
