02-Sep-2013 -- I spent the US Labor Day holiday visiting this remote confluence point in far northern California. I had originally planned to visit this point a year ago (en route to a vacation in Oregon), but at that time a large wildfire was raging in the area. So I was looking forward to visit this point - one that I had yet to visit - to see how the fire had affected it.

Driving northeast from Redding, I turned onto "Pit 5 Road", near the small community of Big Bend. This road crossed a river (the Pit River) next to a power station, then turned into a narrow, winding dirt road that meandered up a steep hill, down to a creek, then up a hill once again. (The road is very steep in places, and quite loose and dusty, so I recommend 4WD.) I ended up parking at 41.00087°N 122.00498°W, about ¼ mile from the confluence point, which lay down the hill.

As I hiked down the hill towards the confluence point, the effect of the wildfire - and the battle to control it - became apparent. Several large trees had scorched trunks, and several more trees had been cut down and removed. Scattered among the cleared trees were several empty drinking water bottles, presumably left behind by the firefighters.

Farther down the hill, the terrain got steeper and harder to hike. (The soil here was very loose, as most of the ground cover had burned away.) After a very slow, arduous hike/slide down the steep hill, I reached the confluence point, and - after some time - was able to get 'all zeros'. All around me were burned tree trunks.