Crap. Here we go again.

[sunvalleylaw]

Local wildfires have kicked in again. http://www.ktvb.com/news/Fires-burning-near-Fairfield-have-been-destructive-219060401.html

The view from the airport yesterday afternoon.

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w92/sunvalleylaw/1003743_10151593496058553_500137244_n_zps1b839925. jpg

This one is not directly threatening the Sun Valley area yet, but is in Fairfield, ID, a ways to the south and west. The smoke may get a bit nasty though before this one is over. Seems like we are getting one of these close enough to cause smoke issues once a year now.

NWBasser is coming over, and things are safe in town, and the air is still good pretty much as the winds are to the north, and the fires are to the west. IT may get into some previously burned areas so it can be controlled, but it may just end up being watched until the rains come too. A little prayer for rain for us would be appreciated.

[sunvalleylaw]

Fire and Smoke Information
Smoke and Fire Update 8:00 am, Saturday August 10th
The Beaver Creek Fire and the McCan Fire near Fairfield have now been combined as one incident named the Beaver Creek Complex. The fire complex is now being managed by a Type 2 Incident Management Team. There has not been an update to the Inciweb site however both fires combined are over 26,000 acres as of 7am this morning.
The weather today calls for continued winds out of the south which will continue to push the Beaver Creek Fire to the north. We can expect to see a large smoke plume in the afternoon to our west. As a precautionary measure in the interest of public safety, the Ketchum Ranger District will be closing access to the headwaters of Deer Creek and the South Fork of Warm Springs areas today.
A Fire Weather Watch continues today through south central Idaho for extremely dry conditions. Stage 1 Fire Restrictions remain in effect. Campfires are restricted to developed campsites in campgrounds staffed by campground hosts. A list of campgrounds where campfires are allowed is available at the Sawtooth Forest website; www.fs.usda.gov/sawtooth
Please use extra caution travelling on our roads and highways in areas of smoke. Visibility may be reduced in the north valley today due to drift smoke. Further updates to the City of Ketchum website will be made as information becomes available. To receive Ketchum news updates and emergency alerts by email or text messaging please sign up under the Notify Me section of the City of Ketchum website at: www.ketchumidaho.org

http://www.ketchumidaho.org/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=105

[sunvalleylaw]

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/08/11/7eme8ady.jpg

The smoke is not as bad today yet. Hopefully they can make some headway, but it looks like this one might stick around. the smoke will billow up again after the afternoon winds and heat kicks up.

[sunvalleylaw]

And same view, a couple hours later:

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w92/sunvalleylaw/null_zps67da4a51.jpg

[Tig]

Yikes! :nope I wish I could send you some rain. We got 2" this morning.
The last 20 minutes of my road ride was in heavy rain, but it felt good so no complaints.

[Spudman]

There is a fire over at Lava Hot Springs too. Luckily, no smoke in the Tetons this weekend,

[deeaa]

Damn! Hopefully it won't cause too much trouble...

[sunvalleylaw]

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w92/sunvalleylaw/Firepic_zps5190ff99.jpg
fire update info at the link below for those interested
http://www.inciweb.org/incident/3609/

So this pic shows that although the smoke is pretty impressive, both fires that make up the Beaver Creek fire complex are quite a ways away. I live in Hailey, there to the right, and work up in Ketchum, where Sun Valley's ski mountain is also located. You can also get a sense of the terrain, with the high desert plain to the south, and the central mountains north.

They made some progress to the south containing things, though it does not show up yet in the "containment" numbers in the report. We have been fortunate that the winds have been to the north, rather than more toward the east or north east too. Hopefully the direction holds while they work on things.

Here also is a link to some great photos of what is going on, if you have FB. https://www.facebook.com/steve.dondero/media_set?set=a.10151501491197693.1073741828.68973 2692&type=1

[sunvalleylaw]

Some good aerial shots here: https://www.facebook.com/steven.garman.92

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w92/sunvalleylaw/1150412_10151502063181741_591512386_n_zpsa2c1551c. jpg

[tjcurtin1]

Pretty scary stuff to have going on right in your neighborhood - best of luck to y'all, Steve!

[NWBasser]

I've been too busy to post until now.

I hope you stay safe Steve. That is a huge fire!

Apparently, there are other fires farther to the north too. It seems that a lot of Idaho is burning.

We arrived on the 12th and did one ride on the 13th before the smoke got to be too much. We left for the Blue Mountains of NE Oregon for some biking there, but my son got sick and so we headed home early. Unfortunately, we didn't have enough time to go down to Pocatello to ride those trails instead.

Big thanks to Steve SVL and Steve Spudman for all the great riding advice and it's too bad that we couldn't even stay long enough to meet them. The ride on Corral Creek was heaps of fun and I look forward to going back when there are no fires.

[sunvalleylaw]

Hey Jason, thanks for checking in! We are still safe and well, and in our home in Hailey. We voluntarily left last Saturday until Monday due to smoke, and the fire getting really close to Hailey. But things are much more in control now, especially on the more south end of the fire near us. Still some spots way out on the western end and further north, but they are more and more confident. What a difference between the weekend and now! It is amazing to watch the firefighters work. If anyone is interested in tons of information about the fire and how it progressed, friend me on Facebook, (Steve Thompson, living in Sun Valley, and look for the one with a pic of a guy waterskiing in a pyramid of people. There is another Steve Thompson in the area too, and his pic looks like he is climbing or ski mountaineering).

You guys got out at the right time. Sorry your trip had to be cut short. But the trails will be great when you come back! Looking forward to seeing you next time!

[kidsmoke]

Amazing situation. Glad ya'll are safe.

[sunvalleylaw]

Thanks!


As for anyone who wants to connect on Facebook, my profile pic is now of me i mountain biking gear with a hat and sunglasses with my wife and daughter. I just changed it.