Page 23 - Walks In The Black Range, Vol. 4

THE FOREST: For most of the route, the trail passes through heavily burned forest. Although there are a few spots with a significant number of living trees, the overall impression is one of standing charcoal. On the east slope of Sawyers Peak it is possible to looking through the charred trees to the completely devastated slopes on the west side of Drummond Canyon.
that last year there were not nearly as many as there had been in the past, our hopes were high. And our hopes were rewarded. The lady bugs numbered in the thousands, not the tens of thousands, but they were everywhere (a few are pictured to the right). They were swarming more than I had seen in the past, so much so that we vacated the summit for lower elevations where they were not present so we could eat our lunch.
AND APRIL 2020: Although there is still a lot of burnt wood along the trail it has recovered well and trail maintenance has improved.
JUNE 2021: Small fires along the trail have changed it in an undetermined manner.