Fires in northwest Wyoming

Both prescribed and wildfires are burning-

I think the Antelope Fire on Mt. Washburn is reburning the burn from 1988 or at least some spots immediately nearby that were missed by the big fire. I took many photos of the 1988 burn on the mountain, during and after.

Fires grab attention. Jackson Hole Daily. By Thomas Dewell, Jackson Hole, Wyo

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Late season fires sweep Wyoming. By Jeremy Pelzer. Casper Star-Tribune.
From a modest beginning a few days ago, wildfires have increased greatly in Wyoming and at a time  they are usually ending for the year.

11 thoughts on “Fires in northwest Wyoming

  1. The controlled burn up the Gros Ventre exploded on Satuday afternoon sending up a huge plume…good news it was burning within the 4,500 acre prescribed area which is part of 17,000 acres they hope to burn over several years.

  2. That is what I read as well, Ralph, it was heading up into the old burn area. A shame…those areas are making such a nice recovery.

  3. If those old burn areas burn again it will be low intensity and very beneficial to the wildlife. This years burned areas will be the greenest areas next spring and summer

    1. It takes two burns (second one…like in dog hair…. before cones form on trees) to make a meadow. The meadows formed by fire in Yellowstone are what allows for the diversity and edge affect so pleasing to the eye and abundance of wildlife etc. After meadows are formed it takes several hundred years for the edges of the forest to creep in to cover even a fifty acre meadow.

  4. This burn has not gotten into the areas of the Hunter fire of 1988 or the Row fire of 1992. The “big” part is over and from what we see it is a mosaic as they said it would be, with lots of sage and grass and some heavy, but old timber burned. Ugly as sin today, but hopefully great wildlife habitat next year…

    The fire people did a fine job!

    1. BOW,

      Hope you are being tongue in cheek. I know of no fire fighter doing any kind of beneficial “job” in ANY wilderness area. In these areas they are just androids of the Dark Ages govt. Mother Ship.

  5. This “burn” isn’t in a wilderness area, but is in the Mt Leidy Highlands, East Jackson Hole.

    The “boots on the ground” fire fighters have been terrific. A week ago there was a early evening BURST of 60 mph winds that could have blown the thing all the way to Yellowstone, but they kept it in bounds – in the dark.

    My ref is to the guys in the yellow shirts – nothing more.

    1. Just like in war it is the guys on the ground that become “brothers”…. thus the extension to others that feel the same way.

      But some wars and fires are based on “selfish” reasons that takes advantage of those lay people everywhere. Then it is the decision of those guys in the trenches to either stay with it or do something about it…if they feel it is wrong. Sadly, evolution has said it is good to have infrastructure, groups and organizations but all this was based on extended family groups.

      Thus we have strong infrastructure today (fire fighting and military) that is what guys on the ground evolutionary lean towards…but these structures are based on a dysfunction not found in those millions of years of evolution.

      Thus we have power bulls (fire leaders and administrators) who unnaturally apply their leadership skills over what the common good is. Therefore “we” fight fires that logically should be left alone. Ya thats it.

      1. Bob – you sound like you’ve been “burnt” by prescribed fires? (said tongue in cheek for sure)

        I will say they have spent a TON of money on this burn. Helicopter use alone over the last two years must be staggering as they are used to shuttle crews, to drop incendiaries, then water to contain the fire – a lot of air time! And there are lots of yellow shirts getting overtime and hazard duty pay. This over two Septembers…

        I understand it is paid for by some special grant involving several organizations. I wonder how us publics find out what the budget is and who pays for it?

        What I don’t understand is what “wildlife habitat improvement” was realized from the two natural fires that burned adjacent lands between 1988 and 1992. I don’t see critters flocking to winter on Shadow Mt. and Ditch Creek in the winter. Then again those areas get a lot of snow and an ever-increasing encroachment by snowmobiles. Back in the early 1990’s we did see elk wintering on the south end of Shadow Mountain, but not today.

        Here’s the PR release: http://gacc.nifc.gov/egbc/dispatch/wy-tdc/prescribed-fires.html

      2. Bob of Wyoming,

        Thanks for keeping us informed about this and past prescribed burns in the Gros Ventre area.

        I know you are on top of things.

        I noticed in July that the entire mountain behind Lower Slide Lake was starting to turn red. I told all the folks who were with me that in two to three years almost every tree on the mountain would be dead.

  6. Yes, it is going fast! I wonder if fire isn’t a solution to these kill offs as young lodgepole and white bark seem to survive?

    It is much worse in the Mt Leidy Highlands, Togowtee area where in vast stretches EVERYTHING is dead. We were at Double Cabin north of Dubois and it too is 90% gone. Very depressing.

    By the way here is a fine book for anyone interested in the Forest Service, and wildfire:

    Timothy Egan’s, The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America.

    About how TR started the Forest Service and the huge megafire that burned 1.5 million acres in the Bitterroots – in 48 hours! Ouch, bigger than Y-Stone and GTNP together!!

    A most informative read, with a few old photos!

    http://www.amazon.com/Big-Burn-Teddy-Roosevelt-America/dp/0618968415#_

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