The week that was in fires: Not enough rain to quell blazes

Evacuations. Closures. Smoke, and even a little rain. Wildfires in the region continued to wreak havoc with travel plans and trees over the past week.

The largest of the lot, the Howe Ridge Fire in Glacier National Park, grew to about 11,100 acres over the past week, stoked by high winds over the weekend which blew the flames to the west toward Apgar. It’s the largest fire in the state.

It is now about an eighth of a mile from the Inside North Fork Road, burning downed timber and lodgepole pine. The area previous burned in the Robert Fire in 2003. Rain Monday briefly cleared the smoke from the valleys, but it wasn’t enough to stem the blazes. It rained .06 inch in West Glacier, but Polebridge didn’t get any. Farther south, more rain fell. Missoula saw .52 inch.

By Tuesday morning, smoke was filling the skies again. While the east side of the Park is open, it’s very smoky most days.

On the north end of the Howe Ridge, firefighters Monday set burnouts to clean up the line, straightening it so if it does advance, it’s easier to contain, said fire information officer Diane Sine.

The hope is to keep the fire to the north of the Going-to-the-Sun Road and out of the road corridor. The Sun Road is closed from Apgar to Logan Pass. The Lake McDonald Lodge and Hotel Lake McDonald are closed for the season.

On Saturday, all campers and Park Service employees were evacuated from the Fish Creek Campground and the Fish Creek Campground Road has been closed from the Camas Road junction, while an evacuation warning has been issued for areas north of the Quarter Circle Bridge Road, including Apgar, the Grist Road and all areas accessed from Quarter Circle Bridge Road. Trails off the Camas Road are were closed as well.

Evacuation warnings were also posted in the North Fork near Whale and Moose Creeks and along some small neighborhoods west of Essex. The problem in the North Fork is the Whale Butte Fire, burning north of Polebridge. It’s listed at 338 acres. Near Essex, the Paola Ridge Fire is burning just south of the Half Way House, not far from the U.S. Highway 2. While it’s been active, the east winds helped keep it from the highway. It’s listed at 364 acres at presstime. There’s heavy equipment and fire lines on both of those blazes.

Crews are also cutting a line off the Inside North Fork Road, Sine said, using logging equipment.

This week promises to be warm and dry. The next chance of rain is expected Sunday into Monday, with cooler temperatures.

In other words, it will probably be a long haul, park officials and fire managers are saying.

“Our opportunities to put out a fire once it has started here at this time of the season is rare. These are fires that we are going to sit with until the snow flies. That’s what we have learned over time,” Glacier National Park Superintendent Jeff Mow said during a public meeting Saturday. “Our ability to address that is dependent on resource availability and, as you know, resources are scarce right now.”

The first snows of the season typically come to higher elevations in September, while low elevations don’t see snow until October.

The region remains in Stage II fire restrictions, with no campfires and smoking outside of a vehicle or building allowed.

The Hungry Horse News will provide daily updates on the fires on its website, www.hungryhorsenews.com