Fire Location Graphics:
General Fire Location Map
Half Moon Fire Map
Triangle Fire Map

Earlier fire updates:
Thursday, August 17, 2000
Wednesday, August 16, 2000
Tuesday, August 15, 2000
Monday, August 14, 2000
Sunday, August 13, 2000
Saturday, August 12, 2000

Revised B-T fire map 8/17/00
Western Wyoming fire map 8/17/00

More Bridger-Teton fire Information available at:
www.bridgertetonnationalforest.com

Fires at a Glance - Forest-wide open fire ban takes effect.

Summary: The Half Moon & Triangle fires have been combined for management purposes and are under control of a Type II Overhead Team. Half Moon is expected to be 100% contained by tonight. The Triangle fire is burning within its perimeter within the Wilderness Area in very steep country. Today is the first day action has been taken on this fire with a helicopter being freed up to do bucket drops on the fire to keep it from creeping over into the timber on the west side. Four 20-man crews are on the ground working on the Half Moon fire, bringing the total force on the fire to approximately 123.  Sandy Beach Picnic Area on the south end of Fremont Lake is being used as base camp. The Special Closure Order is still in effect for the Half Moon & Triangle Lakes fire areas. Only authorized firefighting personnel are allowed into the area. Visitors are being evacuated as they are encountered. A forest-wide ban on all open fires took effect today.

Closure Map - Revised 8/14/00 at 8 am
Closure Order

Half Moon/Triangle Fires
(Bridger-Teton National Forest, not in Wilderness Area)
Approximately 1,206 acres 
Half Moon is being called 70% contained, Triangle is 50% contained
Half Moon hoped to be called 100% contained tonight 

Half Moon Fire Location: On northeast end of Half Moon Lake on both sides of Pole Creek drainage, up to the west side of Fayette Lake, up to the Sweeny Creek Pack Trail.
Triangle Fire Location: Within the Bridger Wilderness between Long Lake/Upper Long Lake & Triangle Lake, approximately 2 miles east & 1 mile north of the head end of Fremont Lake.
Status: Four 20-man fire fighting crews (80 people) are now on the ground on Half Moon fire  focusing on getting the perimeter mopped up and trimming out the interior so fuels burn up to minimize the risk of the fire flaring up later. Triangle fire getting some helicopter bucket drops to control spread on the west side.

A forest-wide open fire ban took effect today which covers the entire Bridger-Teton National Forest and bans all open fires, including campfires in campgrounds. The exact wording for the restriction hasn't come down yet, but basically it will mean no open fires on the Forest. Liquid fuel only for stoves. FIRE DANGER IS EXTREMELY HIGH. 

Fires all around us are exploding, but the firefighters have thankfully got a pretty good handle on ours here. That doesn't mean, however, that they are under control. The Forest Service says that they hope to be able to call the fire 100% "contained" by tonight, meaning it is staying within a perimeter they are comfortable with and allowing it to consume fuels within those boundaries. 

This fire will continue to smoke and smolder probably until the snow flies. Given the right conditions, there is still the possibility it could rear up again if not taken care of now. The terrain is very rough and uneven, with lots of pockets of Quaking Aspens and fir trees for the fire to move through. "All it would take is a pretty good breeze for this fire to spot again. These are the kind of fires that sneak back around and get you." commented Cindy Stein of the Pinedale Ranger District. The fire is not burning cleanly due to the patchy nature of the tree stands, uneven terrain, and rocks. Firefighters aren't able to put in hand or dozer line because of all the rocks. "This is basically a water show." said Stein. Crews are working with "wet line" put in with helicopter buckets and by hand. "Obviously the waterline eventually dries up." said Stein, "The rough country is what is taking up so much energy on this fire."  Crews are working from the containment line in to knock the fuels down into the fire to consume anything with potential to create a pocket that might flare up again later. If everything looks good by Saturday's evaluation, it is possible that some of the additional firefighting crews might start to leave in a couple of days. Mop up by local crews will continue for 1-2 weeks.

Other Area Fires
The Blind fire, located about 20 miles south of the Hoback Junction and east of Alpine, is currently at approximately 8,000 acres and growing. A Closure Order is in effect for the Blind Trail area including Telephone Pass, Deadman Mountain Lookout, Roosevelt Meadows and Little Greys Creek. Eight people and 2 engines are on that fire awaiting the arrival of a full team.

The Boulder fire, in the Gros Ventre Wilderness near Granite Hot Springs is approximately 30% contained. Gusty winds have created holding problems along the fire lines with active burning and torching being observed. Containment of the fire may allow reopening Granite Creek Road by early next week, but the area closure will remain in place indefinitely. Granite Hot Springs and the campground will be opening up, but the wilderness and trails to the wilderness will be closed.

The Fontenelle fire west of LaBarge on Commissary Ridge is still making long range runs and spotting into active fires. This fire was at 18,000 acres today from 8,000 yesterday.

So where can we go?
We're getting lots of calls from folks trying to plan their trips and wanting to know when/if Elkhart trailhead will be open by next week or the end of the month. "We'll reassess on Saturday. It's day by day. No promises." said Stein, "When we're confident things are less hazardous, then we'll lift the Closure."

The big concern is over the extreme rate of spread of the fires happening all around us. The Forest Service wants to discourage people from coming now, even into other areas of the wilderness that don't have fires, because of the extremely high potential for new fires to start anywhere. The Bridger Wilderness is extremely rugged terrain (which is why people like it so much), which makes it potentially hard for hikers to escape and find exit points from these fires that are starting up and moving so quickly. The 1988 Fayette fire demonstrated that these wilderness fires keep going all the way to the Continental Divide. "We don't have high confidence hikers can find safety zones." said Stein. Some hikers think that they will be able to be rescued by helicopter if fires get close. The reality is that the all helicopters and resources are committed to all the fires in the area and the Bridger Wilderness gets 15,000 visitors in a season. Visitors are being discouraged from going into the wilderness areas at this time, and should be aware that the wilderness could potentially be shut down at any time, just as the Teton Wilderness has been. Even when these two fires are controlled, new ones can start up at any time. You're taking a BIG risk going into the wilderness at this time with the fire danger at extreme with the current conditions.

Having said all that...the answer to the question of when can we get back into the wilderness is: Everything is day by day, but if things look good by tomorrow's reevaluation, it is possible that the Closure might be lifted by early next week opening up wilderness access via the Elkhart Park trailhead. MAYBE. 

As we write this update, a big lightning storm has rolled in and is thundering overhead. Three hel-attack firefighters have left to check out a couple of smokes...

To date, there have not been any fire related accidents for either the Half Moon or Triangle Lakes fires. Anyone with concerns can contact the Sublette County Sheriff's office at 307-367-4376, or the Pinedale Ranger District, 307-367-4326. Hikers in the wilderness who may have cell phones and can get a signal out can call 911 and ask to be routed to the Sublette County Sheriff's office if they have concerns.

Because of all the fire activity going on, we have created a new site that has broader information about what is going on with fires on the Bridger-Teton National Forest. www.bridgertetonnationalforest.com We are working very closely with the Forest Service on the information on this site and updating it frequently.

More area fire graphics:
National Interagency Fire Center Large Wildland Fire Map
National Interagency Fire Center web site (ww.nifc.gov)