A wildfire burning near Newhalem, Washington, in the North Cascades National Park Complex has prompted park officials to close the Upper and Lower Goodell group camps and Newhalem Creek Campground due to the close proximity of the Goodell Fire.
The lightning-caused Goodell Fire, detected on August 10, is an estimated 80 acres, according to park officials. In cooperation with Newhalem Fire Department, there are two Incident Command staff, a 20-person hand crew, two Type 6 Engines and one helicopter working the fire. Smoke and flames are visible along State Route 20.
The Newhalem Creek Campgrounds holds 111 sites, while the Goodell group camps can hold about 150 campers, total.
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And, I woke this morning to a text from my wife, the NOCA curator, that she was spending the day in Newhalem evacuating the cultural resources artifacts. Yeah - I'm having an anxious day.
I drove through southeastern Oregon day before yesterday. Visibility less than a mile in smoke in many places. Drove through a recent burn in grass (BLM fire? State? Private?) that went on for miles and miles alongside the highway. Still a few hotspots smoldering. Saw fire crews from White Mountain Forest in New York, Dixie in southern Utah, and loads of military vehicles filled with troops.
The rain forests of Olympic appear to be green, but the moss is dry and anything underfoot is crunchy. Many towns have severe water restrictions because they depend on rivers for water supply. They can't keep their water tanks full.
Ugly.
My Mrs. made it home safely, but I just read that we lost three front line firefighters in the Twisp area, details at http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2015/aug/18/winthrop-twisp-evacuated-...