The Willow Fire, burning in Monterey County's Ventana Wilderness in the Los Padres National Forest, remains at zero percent containment early Saturday evening, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. Forest Service.
The Willow Fire has grown to 2,066 acres, according to the U.S. Forest Service late Saturday evening, and firefighters are transitioning to an indirect strategy and establishing a base camp in King City.
The fire, burning in Monterey County's Ventana Wilderness in the Los Padres National Forest, remains at zero percent containment late Saturday evening, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. Forest Service.
Lynn Olson of the U.S. Forest Service's Monterey Ranger District Unit office, told Bay City News that the incredibly steep terrain where the fire is burning is creating a serious challenge for firefighters.
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"We're staged, and we're ready once we can get to it on the ground. Right now, we're putting on quite an air show," referring to air support's assault on the fire with fixed-wing air tankers and water-dropping helicopters battling it from above.
Nearly 350 firefighters are battling this wildfire.
The fire started at 8:10 p.m. Thursday. It is currently burning in the Ventana Wilderness northwest of the Arroyo Seco Recreation Area, not far from the Tassajara Zen Center and Hot Springs.
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The fire is burning in steep, rugged and brushy terrain that is only accessible to firefighters by hiking in.
"This fire is deep, deep into the wilderness," Olson said. "From Big Sur at the coast, the terrain rises very rapidly to the 5,000-foot level. It's very steep."
Residents near the fire zone have been evacuated from Tassajara Zen Center to China Camp. There is an evacuation warning for areas north of Arroyo Seco Campground to Anastasia Canyon, west of Carmel Valley Road and east of Tassajara Road.
The cause of the fire is unknown.
