Caching Fire #4 - Polhemus Prescribed Burn

The Polhemus Prescribed Burn was conducted in October/November of 2001, about 7 months before the massive Hayman Fire, the largest fire in Colorado history. The prescribed burn was in planning for 8 years and only proceeded in the fall of 2001 when there was a small break in the 3-4 years of drought conditions preceeding the Hayman Fire. The Polhemus Prescribed Burn covered 8,000 acres and cost $800,000. It may be the best money the Forest Sevice ever spent on a prescribed burn, as it established a beachead for the fire fighters to stop the advance of the Hayman Fire towards Denver's southwestern suburbs.

Park at the parking coordinates and begin hiking up the steep (former) jeep road to the east. The beginning of the former jeep road is marked by a pair of small Forest Service (no motorized traffic) signs and can be traced uphill by the deliberately-placed logs placed perpendicular to the former road. The beginning of the road is the steepest section, and the most difficult to see. Follow the road up the ridge. When you see a large outcrop with seasonal springs on the left, you are close.

The hike to the geocache takes you along the boundary between the low intensity prescribed burn, to the right (south) and the moderate to high intensity Hayman Fire scar to the left (north). The difference is quite striking. The prescribed burn area, in which the geocache is placed, is somewhat more open than typical second-growth Ponderosa Pine forest, but the only vestiges of the fire are the singed trunks. The Hayman area, by constrst, experienced almost total devastation. The jeep road itself was used to bound and work the perimeter of the prescribed burn.

The container is a camoed 16" by 4" ID PVC casing. Should not be difficult to find when you are close. Continue further up the ridge another 3/4-mile to another in the "Caching Fire" series.

Additional Waypoints

P07V8GF - Parking (turn-out)
N 39° 13.553 W 105° 11.432
shoulder/turn-out with room for 2-3 cars