After being blissfully lucky so far this year, fire season has hit southwest Montana hard this week. There are now four wildfires burning around the area, and high winds and record high temps aren’t doing much to help matters.
Most of note to fishermen is a fire burning along the Lower Madison. Word on the street is this fire is human caused, and has shut down fishing, floating and any recreational activities from Warm Springs to Blacks Ford. Here is a video taken yesterday showing the fire burning toward Cherry Creek. (video from KBZK Bozeman News)
According to InciWeb the Bear Trap fire is now at 2,300 acres. Wow.
Another fire around Pony, Montana has caused campground closures, evacuations, and damage to structures. Going by InciWeb’s reports, this fire is now at 2,500 acres. The other two fires in the area are both listed as under 1,000 acres. Fire weather is expected to continue.
So what does this mean for fishermen? For those of you from out of state, probably not much. For us locals, it means be ready for a smoky summer. Please be careful out there. If you have a campfire, make damn well sure it’s out when you leave. If you smoke, don’t toss your butts out the window of just into the grass.
With the 4th of July coming up fast, be really careful with fireworks. And I mean Really Damn Careful.
Fire season is really just beginning. It’s going to be an interesting summer.
