Then the next weekend the 4th of July.We went camping up tucker, everyone but Grandpa Archuleta. And we invited Kevin and Carie. They all but us and Kevin and Carie had gone up the day before, and that night mom had called me and asked if we could bring up some extra water and a rake, so we could rake a spot out to put our tent. So I told her I would. Well its the 4th of July and I want to be up to the camp spot by noon. But by the time we get the car loaded stop by the store, meet up with Kevin and Carie to fell up the extra water jugs up at the peterson's, put them in the car and leave it is noon. So we start driving up the canyon and turn towards tucker and start heading to where we are going to camp. About half way up I notice so smoke and I turn to Randy and say, that sure looks like a lot of smoke, do you think the mountain is on fire? So I keep on driving and as we go along the smoke is getting bigger. Then we come around a bend and we notice something in the middle of the road on fire. what is it I ask randy? He thought it was a couch. So I pull the car over and we get out and walk closer and then we see it is a truck in the middle of the road fully engulfed.
And then we notice that the mountain is catching on fire. A couple of guys following behind Kevin and Carie asked if we had shovels and I told them no but we have a rake. So we get it out and they take it, trying to put out the fire on the mountain. I told them that we had a whole bunch water in the back of our cars. We had 2 7 1/2 gallon containers and couple3 gallon containers so we hand them up to then and they start poring it on the mountain. I the mean time people started showing up with fire extinguishers and shovels the try and put the fire out on the truck and it goes down and then it comes back. After we think the fire is not burning on the mountain anymore we start throwing dirt on the truck.
After a bit we get all but the engine out. So a couple of guys try and open the hood up with shovels and it won't open, so some else comes with a crowbar and they try and open it, just about when they have it open the guy with the crowbar, the crowbar slips and he fell hand first on the hood. he rolls of the hood to his left but it wasn't fast enough. He said he was fine, but i was thinking he has to have 2nd or 3rd degree burns on his hands and arms. A few minutes later it started hurting him. I asked everyone there if anyone had a first aid kit and no one but Carie and I had one. I asked Carrie if hers was easy to get to, because mine wasn't. She got it out but didn't have anything for burns. I knew at one time I did so I dig through the car and got it out. But the burn cream I had was gone. But I had ointment that said it was good for burns and cuts so we cleaned his hands and then put the cream on then and then I started to put a bandage on it. This lady cursed me out about wrapping them up so i lightly covered them. Well your probably wandering where the fire and rescue are. Well when the fire and first started someone went down the mountain and called and told them it was up starvation side and some else told them it was up tucker. We could her there sirens on the other side of the mountain, they had gone up starvation and then realized it was on tucker so they had to turn around. By the time they showed up the fire was out on the mountain and in the truck. It had taken them 1 1/2 the get there by the time we had gotten there.
Did I mention that we where the first ones on the scene. They pulled out there hoses and made sure there were no hot spots and to cool the truck down so a tow truck could pick it up. The water from the hoses tracked a lot of butterflies and Tyler caught one.
The whole time this was going on I was wandering if Mom or Amanda was going to come and see what was going on. Amanda and Steve showed up after the fireman had came. But the couldn't let anyone up or down the mountain tell the tow truck picked up the truck. So it meant we would have to go to the rest stop and wait and we fill our water jugs. So Randy and Kevin and Carie went back down, and the boys and I hoped into Amanda and Steve's car and went to the camp spot the make lunch. While we waited for them to come up I was able to tell them my side of the story and come to find out the guy who's truck was on fire was camping next to us. So they told me there side.
It took Randy and them longer to come back up then what i would have thought but come to find out the story did end. They get down to the rest stop and ask the park rangers if the have a hose they can use to fill up the water jugs. They told them they didn't and the closes place to fill up is 7 miles up the road at a gas station. They continue to tell them that they used all the water on fighting the fire on the mountain, that they said well for you we have a hose you can use to fill up your jugs. They aren't for public use, but because we use or water on fighting the fire, it would be their honor to fill up the jugs. I think that my Mom was touched by the spirit to tell us to bring water and a rake, and that us running later than planed was part of us being in the right place at the right time. Because everyone else who was up there was not prepared to fight a fire to help a burn victim. Randy meet up with he at the rest stop while he was getting checked out by the paramedics they told him he had 3rd degree burns on his hands. I hope that we can all remember to take the Lords counsel and be prepared. For what ever may happen in the future. I know that We are trying to be more prepared. We recently got 4 55 gallon containers for are water supply. It makes me fell good to know that we are trying to heed the Lords commands. I am thankful that he kept us all safe that weekend. And let us have a new kind of firework show. We all Had a great time relaxing and camping The boys built a Hut like they have learned from watching Bear Grilles from Man vs Wild. It was really neat.
I hope we all can do some more camping next summer.
I will post more about our fun summer later when it isn't so late. So tell next time.
