Dry, windy weather pushed the Arnica fire in Yellowstone National Park to more than 8,000 acres Sunday, with spotting starting small fires within 1 mile of Bridge Bay on the west side of Yellowstone Lake.
Sparked by lightning, the blaze is is burning in a dense lodgepole pine forest. While helicopters were dumping buckets of water on the flames, roughly 120 firefighters on the ground were working to protect structures in the developed area at Lake.
Park officials said the fire was expected to burn actively Sunday under southwesterly winds, especially during the peak afternoon burning period when temperatures were expected to reach into the 60s. For safety reasons the road between the Junction at Fishing Bridge and West Thumb might at times be closed temporarily due to the fire’s proximity to the road, they said.
Smoky conditions were expected to affect air quality today and are likely on Monday. Individuals with weakened immune systems and those with heart and lung conditions could be most affected, park officials said.
Smoke and flames could be seen from the Grand Loop Road. Drivers were being advised to use caution and drive slowly as smoke could reduce visibility.
The Elephant Back and Natural Bridge Trails were closed due to fire activity in these areas. Visitors were urged to check at park visitor centers or backcountry offices for the current status of other hiking trails and backcountry campsites in the area.
No facilities were closed Sunday due to fire activity, with the exception of the launching of private water craft from the Bridge Bay Marina. Water craft could still be launched from Grant Village.
Comments
My son works at the Lake Hotel and said he thinks the fire is about 3 miles away.
What is the likelihood they will evacuate? Is it really that close to the Hotel?
I've never been there so I have no concept for where this is at.
Well, that is quite close, yes ... all the best information is found out by calling the 24-hour road information line at 307-344-2117, or the fire information line at 307-344-2580. The most updated Web site on this (and all wildland fires) is Inciweb; the page for this fire is http://www.inciweb.org/incident/1901/.
I hope your son will be fine; I wouldn't worry; if evacuation is necessary, I'm sure they'll do it in plenty of time.
Jim Macdonald
The Magic of Yellowstone
Yellowstone Newspaper
Jim's Eclectic World
We were there at start of this Sept, tenting in Bridge Bay campground. The Lake Hotel and adjacent Lodge are abt 3 miles NE along the lake. I can't see anything happening to the Hotel - it's hard up on the lake, and fairly separated from the forested region on the other (west) side of the loop road - and given the significance and value of the buildings, huge resources would be put into buffering it. Patrons could be asked to leave, if smoke became thick or services were disrupted, but staff will likely be needed, and are presumably well trained.
Fire is a critical part of the cycle. When my wife and I last visited, in 1993, much of the park was still treeless after the 87 fire. Although gray trunks and deadfalls still dominate huge swaths of the park, there is now a heavy growth of small to medium sized pine, pretty well covering most of the slopes that previously burned. However, the new stuff is much more dense than a mature forest, so there will have to be a lot of die-off as these stands mature over the next few decades. New fires will will certainly consume much of that material. The elk have done really well in the opened landscapes since '87. Apparently, the moose have not come back well, after their forage along the rivers got ruined after '87. I think this has something to do with winter overgrazing of willow by the resurgent elk, which the introduction of wolves (mid-late 90's) is hoped to help with.
yellowstone park is awesome even when its all burnt up (: