Mt Adams area fire

[drm]

News reports at noon say that it has grown by 10 times and has burned 6000 acres. It's basically on the south side of the mountain (which I visited just last Tuesday) and headed generally towards Bird Creek Meadows. Road 23 and all roads and trails on the west side of Mt Adams are closed. If the winds shifted, it could head that way.

[fettster]

Here's a stitched photos (2 images) that gives a bit better perspective on the expanse of the plume. Looks a lot like a lahar!

Yeah, that's a pretty epic view. Wish we had a live web cam from there!

[Cattrapper]

News reports at noon say that it has grown by 10 times and has burned 6000 acres. It's basically on the south side of the mountain (which I visited just last Tuesday) and headed generally towards Bird Creek Meadows. Road 23 and all roads and trails on the west side of Mt Adams are closed. If the winds shifted, it could head that way.

Noooo, please don't let it burn Bird Creek Meadows! That's on my to-do list for this summer, and I was planning to head up there in a couple weeks.

[drm]

The fire will almost certainly burn across the road that goes to Bird Creek Meadows, if it hasn't already. It's hard to get exact information on where the fire is burning now, but the best info I can find indicates that it is a bit lower down than the meadows and the wind is pushing it east, which could spare the meadows. But north to the meadows is uphill and fires like to burn uphill. The fire is still 0% contained and the weather is not expected to cooperate any time soon. But there still may be snow at that altitude, though blowing embers can spread the fire int he crown.

If they do burn, the result will be even better wildflowers next year. Given all the diseased and killed trees, it was only a matter of time. They say that the fire started over a week ago and smoldered until the wind got ahold of it. That means that it was already burning when I hiked on the Shorthorn trail last week.

[pdxgene]

The forest around that road to Bird Creek Meadows is a tinderbox waiting to explode. It was amazingly dry. There's huge piles of dead trees in the shape of a bonfire pile that will go up in an instant. If/when the fire gets there, that area has no chance.. I'm glad we got out of there Saturday, that would've been pretty scary to be in there Sunday.

[drm]

Unfortunately, I have received information (a forwarded email) that the fire has "been at" Bird Creek Meadows, Mirror and Bird Lakes.

[adamschneider]

Here's a stitched photos (2 images) that gives a bit better perspective on the expanse of the plume. Looks a lot like a lahar!

Technically, it looks like a pyroclastic flow, not a lahar.

[OneSpeed]

Good thing the Pinchot NF is listing the fire danger as "Low" today!

Don't believe me? http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/index.shtml.

[OneSpeed]

Here is today's Oregonian story -- I wonder why they never say exactly where the fire is, like "It has burned Bird Creek Meadows" or it has not, or whatever. 11 miles northeast of Trout Lake means nothing -- unless you live in Trout Lake, of course! (Sorry if my grumpy former newspaper man side is showing.) That story, by the way, says there were two hundred climbers that had to be evacuated!

I have always wondered why we even fight these fires: it's in wilderness, it threatens no buildings, if we put it out we'll only have to fight another one there in a few years ... why not stand back at the edge of civilization, draw a big line between us and where the fire might go, and let it burn?

[drm]

Here's a map of the extent of the fire on Sunday evening. So it just shows where it started.