A few days ago, I believe, there was at least two fires started by lightning in the Big Horn Mountains – my back yard so to speak. As I understand it, the Forest Service was watching them, but allowing them to burn since they were burning slowly and not threatening any dwellings. Mid morning, Sunday, the wind picked up and the fires began to spread quickly. The wind has subsided, but the fires are now large enough, and burning hot enough to create their own wind.
It’s been decades since there was a fire of any consequence on the eastern slope of the Big Horns so there is a lot of fuel. Add to that the rugged, steep terrain, and it’s very difficult to fight. There are a lot of homes in the foothills, and I don’t suppose we will know for a while how many of them were destroyed.
One of the areas involved was the Little Goose Canyon, which I had blogged about earlier in the year, and it’s one of my favorite spots to just hang with nature. The thing is though, fire is a natural part of things and renews the forests and grasslands.
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