El Capitan Canyon Resort Has Close Call with Scherpa ‘Sherpa’ Fire

In a close call at El Capitan Canyon resort, flames came within feet of the private resort Thursday night.

While embers made it onto the property, firefighters kept the cabins and resources safe and prevented them from getting damaged.

While it is still closed and losing business as the fire rages on the owners are relieved that firefighters were able to spare the property from being damaged.

“Firefighters did a great job of lighting some back fires up the canyon. It got very close and in some case I am told the flames got up to 30 feet high, and very close to our campground. But the entire campground has been saved. It makes me teary even to think about it. What they have done for us and the preservation of the canyon are absolutely miraculous so thank you, thank you, thank you,” said Terri Bowman of El Capitan Canyon.

The Sherpa fire made it’s way down the hills above El Capitan. Firefighters spent several hours aggressively working to spray water down on the cabins as embers flew upon them.

All that hard work paid off, as on Friday the resort was hardly touched. The trees and grass were still green and deer were roaming above the property but just beyond the property line you could see the intense damage from the night before.

While the resort was spared, the Sherpa fire did claim it’s first structure Thursday night – a water well and treatment facility on the California State Park’s property right next to the resort

“All the water that is provided down in the park for the showers the toilets, the drinking fountains it all comes from that treatment facility. We take the water out of the ground, we treat it to drinking water standards and then it goes out into the park. My staff is out there right now assessing the damage and trying to figure out what we are going to do. We are going to do everything we can to get the facility,” said Eric Hjelstrom with California State Parks.

Hjelstrom said El Capitan State Park and Campground depends on the water facility to operate so until it is replaced or a temporary one is put into place the campground will remain closed. El Capitan Canyon Resort’s water supplies were not affected by the fire.