Hi Neighbors,

This Saturday from 10-3 is the Stove Prairie Elementary Fall Festival. Typically it is a Winter Festival, but due to Covid its been moved to the fall and will be held outside. It is the largest fundraiser for the school and all proceeds directly support students and staff. This year, the silent auction is being held online at: https://app.galabid.com/fallfestival2021/items
Please support your local school and spread the word!

Flyer:


We hope to see you there!

In preparation for the 2021 RCVFD Annual Meeting on Nov. 6, please review the 2020 Annual Meeting minutes which are posted on the RCVFD website, select "RCVFD Annual Meeting Minutes" from the "About RCVFD" menu. These minutes from last year will need to be approved this year.

Anyone with questions about the 2020 meeting minutes can email the RCVFD Board Secretary at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Below is a message from Matthew Champa of the US Forest Service.

Ignitions will be conducted today (Oct 5th) and continuing through the week on the Magic Feather RX, north/east of Dowdy Lake and Red Feather Lakes. Briefing on-site at 0900 with plans to light shortly thereafter. Main unit ignitions planned to occur in UNIT 1. See attached map (pdf) for more details.

Based on this message, residents can expect to see smoke in the area of the prescribed burn today and through the rest of the week. Any questions or concerns should be directed to:

Matthew Champa
NZ Prescribed Fire and Fuels Specialist
Forest Service
(970) 692-3654
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The State of Colorado, in collaboration with the US Forest Service, is conducting a pilot project to put internet-enabled cameras at key fire lookout locations around the state. This pilot is intended to test the ability of the cameras and this software to enhance situational awareness on wildfires. The cameras are not capable of doing automated detection of fires on their own, but can be used by a fire manager to get clarity on smoke reports and to monitor fire behavior. RCVFD has just been notified that two of these cameras overlap with our area and are available to the general public, so feel free to check them out!

From the FTS 360 site, you can watch any of the cameras that are in place. For your convenience I have put direct links to the two cameras that are of most interest to Rist Canyon below. In timelapse mode, an hour's worth of still images are run in a loop in about 30 seconds. Use this to see changing conditions over time. In live gallery mode, the camera will auto-update periodically (about 30 seconds) with a new live image. Use this mode to monitor ongoing conditions. DFPC can mask out private structures visible in these cameras, so if you see your house and want it blurred out, let me know and I will forward the request.

• Buckhorn Mountain
• Horsetooth Mountain

Thanks goes to Colorado DFPC, Larimer County, and the USFS for this major addition to the safety toolkits for our community.

Volunteers needed who can move books on 9/9 Thursday afternoon would be greatly appreciated. Meet at Fire Station 1 at 1:00 pm. All strong and muscular men are welcome. Women also welcome.

Carolyn Stanley

Join us for the Rist Canyon Mountain Festival to raise money for the Rist Canyon Volunteer Fire Department. The festival is located across from fire station 1 at 11835 Rist Canyon Road, Bellvue CO. We need help Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to make this event happen. Click on the link below to sign up. Thank you!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0A4BA9A823A2FF2-rist

Trisha Johnston

It's Festival time and Baked goods are needed for the Bake Sale Tent. This is a great way to get the entire family involved in supporting RCVFD. PIES are the most requested item every year. Cookies, Brownies, and Breads are always on the request list too. Whatever you love to bake we would love to sell! Please package your baked goods in quantities that are easy to sell, ie: 1/2 dozen cookies, one loaf of bread etc. It is very helpful if you list ingredients especially the high allergen items such as nuts. I will be at the tent by 7AM the day of the festival so you can drop your items off anytime that day. If you need to make other arrangements or have questions please don't hesitate to contact me, Lisa Diederich H 970-472-8426 C 970-215-6904 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Thank you in advance for your generosity. Our Fire Department deserves the very best! See you at the Festival!

Lori Hodges, director of Emergency Management for Larimer County, has published an update on recovery efforts underway for the areas affected by the Cameron Peak Fire last year. The six-page PDF document covers the following topics:

• Hazardous Tree Removal
• Sandbags
• Community Well-Being
• Big Thompson Watershed Coalition volunteer event on 7-Aug
• Pro Bono insurance legal help clinic on 25-Aug
• Black Hollow Flood community gathering 7-Aug
• Monsoon Season and other weather considerations

Lori can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or (970) 619-4900

The following messages are taken from the Larimer County Sheriff's Facebook page. Follow them there or on Twitter, and sign up for reverse 911 at LETA 911 for more timely information. LCSO also describes a text-back service below.

Dangerous flooding is occurring on County Road 27 south of County Road 44H south down to Bobcat Ridge. Immediately reach higher ground by any means necessary. Avoid areas subject to flooding including dips, low spots, ditches, etc. and do not attempt to cross flowing streams or creeks. If driving, be aware that the road may not be intact under flood waters. Never drive through flooded roadways - turn around and go another way. If your vehicle stalls, leave it immediately and seek higher ground.

To view a map of the affected area, please visit NocoAlert.org. For updates, text the word LCEVAC to 888777 from your cell phone. We will communicate evacuation information to that key word as needed. You may also text the word FLOOD2021 to 888777 from your cell phone to receive information on flooding in Larimer County. Please do not call 911 unless you are in danger

8:30 PM [July 30] Flooding Update
Since 3:30 PM, there has been heavy rain in the Cameron Burn Scar. During this time, there have been numerous closures and evacuations.
At the time of this release, the only complete road closure is for County Road 44H between County Road 27 and Pennock Pass.
Heavy rain has subsided. The Larimer County Sheriff's Office and Larimer County Office of Emergency Management will conduct more assessments tomorrow morning at 7 AM.
At this time, there are no other closures or evacuations. Heavy rain may still occur in the burn area. If you are in the burn area near the river, creeks, ditches, or drainages please remain vigilant.

Rain conditions are changing quickly. Since 3:30 PM today [July 30], heavy rain has effected the Cameron Burn Scar. Based on current conditions the following closures/evacuations are in place:
County Road 44H west to include Pennock Pass are IMMEDIATE DANGER from flooding. Anyone in this area needs to SEEK HIGHER GROUND.
Hard road closure at County Road 44H and County Road 27. Anyone in the area of County Road 27 to Masonville are in IMMEDIATE DANGER from flooding. Anyone along the river in this area should SEEK HIGHER GROUND.
Highway 14 at Highway 287 (Ted’s Place) has a hard road closure and is only open to residents.
Highway 14 from mile-marker 80 to mile-marker 92 is under VOLUNTARY EVACUATION.
Highway 14 at County Road 103 has a hard closure to Rustic.
County Road 43 to Glenn Haven is closed to drake from Highway 34 and from Estes Park.
MANDATORY EVACUATIONS are in place for Glenn Haven/Dunraven/The Retreat Area.
Heavy Rain is expected through the next hour. Expect changes.

Message from Reghan Cloudman of the US Forest Service:

Firefighters on the Canyon Lakes Ranger District of the Roosevelt National Forest are monitoring local conditions to begin prescribed fire operations as soon as June 21, 2021, on the Magic Feather Prescribed Burn to improve forest health. The wildfires of 2020 are a somber reminder of the importance of proactive fuels management and forest restoration.

This burn is located east and southeast of Red Feather Lakes. Burning operations next week could include two units totaling 1,046 acres, located north of County Road 74E (Red Feather Lakes Road). Work has already taken place in the area to prepare for ignitions, including tree cutting around the perimeter and within the interior of the project. Crews have been in the area over the weekend preparing for Monday.

Appropriate, localized conditions must be met before ignition of prescribed burns can take place. Fire managers have been carefully monitoring these conditions, including favorable weather forecast (temperature, wind, precipitation, relative humidity), fuel moisture, smoke dispersal and staffing. Fire managers have been waiting for fuels to dry out enough within the project area in order for fire to carry and meet the prescribed burn objectives. Weather is monitored throughout the burn and burning will be halted if conditions fall outside of the required conditions. In ideal conditions, as many as 500 acres could be burned in one day.

Residents and visitors in the area should expect to see smoke when operations are taking place. Temporary closures of the Mount Margaret Trail should be expected. Please follow all signage. Smoke may also impact those using the Dowdy Lake and West Lake campgrounds and day-use areas.

To get added to the email notification list for when burning begins in this area, please send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with the subject line “Magic Feather.” Additional information may be found on Inciweb. Prescribed fire smoke may affect your health. More information about smoke impacts is available at https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdphe/wood-smoke-and-health.