Category Archives: Williams

South Zone fire managers to treat piles during predicted snow

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WILLIAMS — Fire managers on both the Tusayan and Williams Ranger Districts will be completing pile burns across the two southern districts of the Kaibab National Forest. The pile burns help remove fuel sources from the forest, and can be conducted while snow is on the ground to help mitigate fire intensity.

Tusayan Ranger District: Fire crews will treat 122 acres of piles adjacent to Forest Road 311, near Russell Wash, to the east of Tusayan. There are no predicted smoke impacts to Tusayan.

Williams Ranger District: Fire crews will be treating 233 acres of piles near the intersection of Forest Road 141 and Forest Road 102, south of Sherwood Forest, near McDougal Flat. Smoke impacts to Sherwood Forest are expected to be minimal.

All prescribed burning on the Kaibab National Forest is subject to approval by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality and appropriate weather conditions. For additional information on the Smoke Management Division of the ADEQ and to view prescribed burns authorized on any given day, please visit www.azdeq.gov/environ/air/smoke/index.html.

Additional information, photos and maps are available through the following resources: InciWeb inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4112/ and inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4113/; Kaibab National Forest Fire Information Phone Line (928) 635-8311; Text Message – text ‘follow kaibabnf’ to 40404.

Writer’s Association meets this Saturday in Williams

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WILLIAMS — The Northern Arizona Authors Association will meet this Saturday, November 14 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Wild West Junction on Route 66 in Williams.

Icy roads and walkways order of the day

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640-15-11-05-04WILLIAMS — While people like to picture a winter wonderland as depicted in the photo above after a winter storm, they forget about the icy roads and walkways.

We would like to remind everyone to take care while driving and walking in our picturesque, snowy setting. The National Weather Service has issued warnings about freezing temperatures overnight. Ice could be a problem tomorrow, as well.

Bill Williams socked in by fog this morning.

Bill Williams socked in by fog this morning.

It is predicted to be sunny, today, with a high of about 40 climbing to around 50 by Monday.64015-11-04 003

Grand Canyon open Free for Veterans Day

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640-grand-canyon-veterans-1GRAND CANYON – On Veterans Day, Wednesday, November 11, the Grand Canyon will be open on a free-entry basis.

Grand Canyon’s South Rim sits at approximately 7,000 feet. As a result, visitors should be prepared for winter weather and driving conditions, and should be aware that road closures and temporary suspension of shuttle service may occur with little or no notice if winter weather passes through the area.

Dogs must be on a leash at all times.

Williams gets 3-inches of snow

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64015-11-04 005WILLIAMS — According to the weather report from Channel 3 news in Phoenix, Williams received three-inches of snow with Flagstaff receiving 4.5-inches.

While Williams received only a dusting overnight, snow began to fall at about 8:45 a.m. and has been falling steadily as of this writing.

Webcams around our area do show the impact of the storm that moved in Monday. The first image shows a view of the central campus. The camera view from the Weather Service in Bellmont shows a view of the San Francisco Peaks and the ADOT cam shows a view of I-40 around milepost 190. No significant snow fall appears at the Grand Canyon. These images are all from about 9 a.m. this morning.
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Travel from Williams to Flagstaff may be hampered by snow and ice. A winter storm warning has been issued until midnight tonight. This means, of course, ice and we advise taking your time on I-40 and around Flagstaff.

Williams receives some hail with the rain

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Hail-15-11-03-03WILLIAMS — Rain has been pretty constant since about 10:20 this morning and is expected to continue throughout the afternoon. The city also received a dose of hail and some thunder and lightning.

The rain is expected to give way to snow this afternoon and throughout Wednesday.

A high wind advisory has been issued through 6 p.m. tonight.

Tourism Cares visits Williams

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640tourism-cares-01WILLIAMS — As you wandered around Williams the past couple of days you might have noticed the “sprucing up” of City Hall and the Williams Visitor Center. Steve Dudley of Williams sent us this report.

Today, about 150 volunteers of Tourism Cares blew into Williams and spent the day painting the town. From City Hall and the Visitor Center to National Forest signs, the all volunteer group fanned out across the city and gave everything a fresh coat of paint. Tourism Cares’ mission is to preserve the travel experience for future generations. They protect the heart of travel by uniting the travel and tourism industry to tackle shared priorities with our collective might! Tourism Cares is the charitable arm of the travel and tourism industry. After a full day of hard work and a job well done the group had dinner at Wild West Junction.

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Our thanks to the group for making us look even better.

Amateur Radio Relay League sponsors National Parks on the Air

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NPOTABeginning on January 1 and running through December 31 of 2016, the Amateur Radio Relay League will sponsor the special event National Parks On the Air (Facebook). This event does not begin until January 1, so amateur radio operators have time to register.

Since the 100th anniversay of the ARRL ended in 2014, amateur radio operators have pushed for another year-long event . The ARRL responded to the requests with this year-long event coordinated with the National Parks Service to celebrate their 100th anniversary. There are several awards and certificates available for this event, but HAM operators must register through the ARRL special web site.

Ham operators conduct several events throughout the year to earn certificates and awards. One is called contesting where an operator attempts to contact as many other Ham radio operators around the world as they can in a specified time. Ham operators set up in remote locations and send special cards, called QSL cards, to Ham operators who contact them.

A recent example is the 2015 Route 66 On The Air event. They even made a stop and broadcast in Williams and Flagstaff.

Ham radio operators will “activate” radio units in various parks, such as the Grand Canyon. “Chasers” will try to contact these Activators all year long to collect certificates. Regular paper logs will not be accepted for the event. Amateur radio operators will have to register in the ARRL Log of the World

The history of amateur radio extends to the days when radio transmissions began. Most contacts were made through morse code (called CW or continous wave in Ham radio) transmissions. Today there are a plethora of different radios and contact methods. You are encouraged to learn and use CW, but it is no longer required to obtain a license from the Federal Communications Commission.

Those “activators” will also demonstrate the capablity of Ham radio for uninitiated visitors to the park. They will answer questions and advise people on how they can become licensed Ham radio operators.

If you are interested in learning more about the Amateur Radio Service, how to obtain a license and participate in this event, you can check out the ARRL web site.

Spooky happenings in Williams

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Friday 2015-10-30 012WILLIAMS — Even before the ghosts and goblins began appearing on the streets for trick-or-treat, the Grand Canyon Railway made a scary transformation.

They decorated for Christmas.Friday 2015-10-30 013
Williams has put on its Polar Express face with the standard sleigh in the park and lights along the railway. They were even playing Christmas tunes.

The Polar Express begins running this Friday, November 6 on the weekends with some special runs over the Thanksgiving period. They will have several runs through December ending with a run on January 2nd and 3rd. This is the big event for the winter, in Williams, and tickets usually go fast. Make sure that you get your reservations made now.

The Grand Canyon Railway also asks families to submit photos for their annual photo contest. See their web site for details or ask before you board the train.

Weather moves in this morning

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Weather will shut down Zipline until Thursday.

Weather will shut down Zipline until Thursday.

WILLIAMS — Clouds from the incoming storm front darkened Williams this morning pushed by cold, gusting wind. Wind could gust to 30-mph through Wednesday. Flagstaff can expect about the same forecast.

As we published this article, the rain began at 10:24 a.m.

Rain is likely today turning into snow showers overnight. Snow levels are expected to drop to 5500′ overnight and up to 2-inch could fall on Williams. Up to an inch more could fall on Wednesday. The overall expected snow fall is 1 to 3-inches above 6000-feet and 3 to 6-inches above 6800-feet.

The Weather Service has issued a wind advisory through tonight which could affect high-profile vehicles driving east-west routes. The Weather Service recommends securing loose objects on your property.