STATE OF SMOKE | 5 SEPT
I have never witnessed so much smoke, lingering for days from the fires that are engulfing the state. A fire started from something as unpredictable as lightning is one thing. It is difficult to see our beautiful lands burn, but...it is nature. However, the recent fire in Eagle Creek was completely preventable—suspected to have started by a careless teenager throwing a smoke bomb in the forest. Fireworks. In the forest. During high to extreme fire risk. In the hot summer!
Diamond Creek Fire | ACTIVE | Human Caused | 105,000 acres
Eagle Creek Fire | ACTIVE | Human Caused | 30,929 acres
Norse Peak Fire | ACTIVE | Lightning Caused | 43,482 acres
Jolly Mountain Fire | ACTIVE | Lightning Caused | 24,514 acres
RIGHT: Near Coulee City, WA on the way up to the North Cascades.
Fire is sweeping through the beauty of Columbia River Gorge, changing the landscape forever. The air is thick with the smell of fire, ash coating the ground in many parts of the state.
On Tuesday I drove up to Hwy 20 with no concrete plans, unsure of what the air quality was going to be like. As miles went by, the air remained thick with smoke, a warm glow setting in as the sun grew higher in the sky. There were no signs of the smoke letting up anytime soon. As I reached Methow Valley, remnants of recent fires stuck out against the dry background. The roads were still fairly busy with lingering Labor Day traffic.
At Washington Pass the spires of Liberty Bell were barely visible, and even less so was Kangaroo Ridge.
ABOVE: View from Washington Pass on a cloudy day in early 2016 and yesterday
Even the North Cascades could not escape the smoke from the many fires. The thick air created even more layers in the surrounding mountains. It was surreal, almost as if I was looking at a painting.
As the day moved on, the sun peaked behind the spires of Liberty Bell, creating the illusion of a colorful sunset. The image below was taken around 4:00PM, hours before sunset. For the majority of the day, the sun was a sharp and dim reddish-orange ball. It was as if your were looking at the sun through eclipse glasses.
Since moving to Washington in a year and a half ago, I joined an amazing group of strong and fearless women. I have learned countless skills and lessons from these women. Their adventures has help empower me as a solo female hiker, even without meeting any of them in person (yet). They have showed me that I can do more, all I have to do is get out there and try. The women in this group started a Go Fund Me for the recent fires. The cost of one coffee adds up to a huge amount to support those protecting our lands and risking their lives.
“As most of you know by now, wildfires are raging throughout the PNW. Professional and volunteer firefighters are working tirelessly to get things under control, but they can’t do it alone. If each member of our group gives just $5 (the GFM minimum), we can raise over $90k to support both the Washington and Oregon volunteer firefighter associations:
https://wsffa.org/about/
http://ovfa.org/
As our own way of giving back, we will match your donations up to the first $500 through September 19, 2017.
So, if you have a few bucks so spare, please consider giving to this worthy cause.
To give to the Oregon campaign, please go here: https://www.gofundme.com/PNWOWgivesbackOR”