Chino Hills State Park incinerated
Rowe crosses a damaged footbridge that spans a riparian habitat inside the park., which for more than 20 years has stood as an island of wilderness circled by freeways and untrammeled development. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
The park is home to 200 species of birds, bobcats, mountain lions, reptiles and threatened species such as the Least Bells Vireo. The park, now closed until further notice, is part of an important wildlife corridor connecting to the Santa Ana Mountains and foothills. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
A truck makes it way along an unpaved road that slices through the scorched parkland, which touches Riverside, San Bernardino and Orange counties and is within a half-hours drive of 15 million people. Old oaks, stately sycamores, bridges, rabbits and grasslands were incinerated by the wildfire, leaving little but ash behind. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
The park superintendent scans the horizon with his binoculars, looking for any signs of wildlife in the now desolate terrain. Before the wildfire, swaying grasslands and remote canyons offered solitude to hikers and bikers while rare plants and wildlife flourished. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
