Fire!

The day after our hike we decided to come on home down the Parks Highway, which is the other route between Fairbanks and Anchorage. As soon as we got out of Fairbanks, we realized why our visibility had been so impacted the day before with haze.



We soon realized that we would be driving right through the burning area.







Firefighters doing their job





These firefighters are renewing their water from a river which you can't see in this photo. Obviously we couldn't stop, so these were all shot through the bug-splattered window of our truck. Thank God for the clone tool. :)




This fire was human-caused, someone carelessly dumping ashes from their burn barrel. Death threats have been made against the family. Charges were not brought against the firestarter, but the person making the threats has been arrested for "terroristic threatening." The fire started June 7, was at 15,000 acres the day we passed through, and is still burning today, 45% contained. It has now consumed over 107,000 acres.

I was so scared when I moved to Denver right before the big fires just west of the city. My house--a safe 40 miles away--was filled with ash, and the smell of smoke was everywhere. There are huge wildfires in Mississippi all the time, too. Your third photo is especially haunting and evocative of the smell.

I thought that was only a Miami thing.

Everywhere except in the White House, where we know they really are.