Last Saturday the powers that be opened Forbes Park up for 4 hours for home owners to come in and view their properties.
With La Veta Pass closed the line started in Fort Garland. Cars were lined up on the roads and packed into parking lots waiting to be let in. We showed up 45 minutes early and it was quite the crowd. I have never seen this many Forbes Park people all in one place.
It gave neighbors a chance to compare notes and ask about the conditions of homes.
Once we made it to the entry point we had our RapidTag badges scanned in order to keep track of who was entering and if they were allowed. The RapidTags are badges that confirm property ownership in the evacuation zone. It helps to keep looters and the press out.
The drive from Fort Garland to the gate at Forbes Park is about 15 minutes. With the pass closed we had the road to ourselves. They escorted us up in groups of 25 - 30.
Turning off the highway. It felt like it was a long, solemn funeral procession.
Filing through the gate
After the gate we started to see the effects of the fire. The managers office was saved but the fire came awfully close.
The firefighters had been able to protect the Forbes Park Community Center and there they had the Red Cross set up handing out supplies for clean up and support.
We started to see the remains of burn cabins.
The red on the trees is the remains of fire retardant, assumably dropped by helicopters or planes. See the mountains behind?
The deer were still around.
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