Labor Day travelers leave Shaver Lake as Garnet Fire burns nearby

FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- As the Labor Day weekend wrapped up, visitors leaving Shaver Lake made a final stop at Cressman's General Store to fuel up.

The grill churned out tri-tip for hungry travelers. The sweet scent of one of Cressman's signature foods worked to overpower the strong smoke from the Garnet Fire.

Directly behind the grill, the foundation of the new Cressman's building sat fenced off. The owners are still rebuilding five years after the Creek Fire destroyed the storefront.

Owner Ty Gillet isn't worried about the flames reaching his business this time, but he knows firsthand how destructive the flames can be.

"We're always concerned for the rest of our forest. Blue Canyon could go just like Jose Basin did five years ago. So that's always a concern," he said.

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Further up the hill, the old saw mill off Dinkey Creek Road is being used to station equipment and firefighters.

Deputies blocked off nearby McKinley Grove Road to everyone but first responders, as it led directly into an evacuation area.

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Dinkey Creek Campground remained open on Monday, but campers emptied out as orange smoke settled in.

That's where Michael Rehbein and his wife were cleaning up their cabin to head back home to Stockton.

The couple arrived just before the Garnet fire sparked and say the smoke wasn't really an issue throughout their trip.

As they packed up on Monday, they thought back to evacuating from the Creek Fire.

"It was a little scarier than right now because it seemed like it was a quicker, quicker sense for us that we needed to get out," Michael said. "We're getting ready to head out. We thought about staying until tomorrow, but I think with it being down in the Dinkey Creek basin, we're just ready to say we're ready to go."

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