The Rim Fire, sparked on August 17, 2013, ultimately consumed 257,000 acres, including large patches of intense burn. (Mark Andrew Boyer/KQED)

Maria Benech of the U.S. Forest Service surveys a severely burned patch of forest. Almost 40 percent of the fire’s area looks similar. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)

A sugar pine cone is scorched on the edges, but could still have opened to release seeds after the fire moved through. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)

Trees with some green pine needles have a chance to survive the fire, but ecologists say California’s historic drought has made it tougher. (Mark Andrew Boyer/KQED)

U.S. Forest Service ecologist Eric Knapp spots a small pine seedling in the Stanislaus National Forest. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)

Oak trees sprout from the bases of their trunks, giving them a head start over pine trees and other conifers. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)

With few winter storms this year, soil erosion, which had been a concern for water quality in Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, has been limited. (Mark Andrew Boyer/KQED)