Davis Creek Park After The Fire

Living in Washoe Valley for 27 years we've always enjoyed Davis Creek Regional Park on the northwest side of the valley. It's been a place to enjoy a forest environment with a pond, creeks and towering pines in our otherwise high desert area.

On September 7, 2024, during a day of high winds, a park visitor let a cooking fire get out of control creating a fast moving wildfire that eventually burned 5800 acres and 14 structures to the north.

From our home in New Washoe City we experienced the huge smoke plume and devastation as the fire moved to the north from the park. The aftermath has been visible on the hillsides ever since. The fire even reached lower sections of Mt Rose Hwy (431) reminding us of a wildfires ugly legacy every time we travel that route.

So since the fire we have resisted visiting the park and seeing the devastation of a special place in Washoe Valley. This week, however, with spring in full bloom throughout the valley we got the urge to walk amongst the pines again.

Driving up the entrance lane from Old 395, the sides of the road are bare, with low grasses and bushes emerging among black trunks of burned trees that have been cut down. You can see on the hills to the right, the brown patches of forest that burned. In a pattern that is common in forest wildfires, The fire left patches of unburned trees within the fire perimeter. These trees will provide seeds to eventually fill in the burned areas. This is tempered by our dry climate and poor soils that will make the recovery slow and will take many years.

Back to the park drive, we see at this date the campground to the right is still closed as restoration is still underway. The road curves to the south and we were greeted with a welcome sight. Beyond this point, the park is intact as it was before the fire.

We parked and took the .7 mile Davis Creek Nature Trail that circles the pond in a clockwise direction. In the beginning steps you pass the fires destruction on the left. Green grasses, brush and bushes are coming up helping to cover the stumps and burned logs. On the right, wildflowers, willows and wild rose provide a lush view. the pond comes into view and today, a Wednesday, it was busy with ducks, geese and several fishermen trying their luck on the banks.

A really cool addition to the park is the wood benches and sculptures created from.some of the burned tree trunks.

Further on, you enter the area of tall pines and the creek and curve around back to the parking, picnic area and entrance lane. We noticed there are still grill stands amongst the scattered picnic tables. Hopefully the park will have developed a better method of enforcing burn bans on windy days.

Our eastern slopes have ben ravaged by fires in recent years and are now mostly burn scars in various stages of slow recovery. The 2004 Waterfall Fire burned from Kings Canyon to Lakeview, the 2016 Little Valley Fire west of Washoe Valley, the 2024 Davis Fire among others have left the slopes west of Washoe Valley with many visible fire scars. Only a section above the area of Bowers Mansion remains reasonably forested.

But in Davis Creek Regional Park you can still enjoy our beautiful forests. For more information visit the Washoe County Parks site for Davis Creek RP.