Saturday, July 20, 2024 …. What Makes Big Fires?
…The Second Of Four Roadside Signs, Which Are Shown In The Previous Photo Of A Google Street ViewHenry Gurr’s 2002 WayPoint 264.

The Big Burn: Exploring the Great Fire of 1910 in Idaho and Montana.
…1910 Wildfires That Ravaged the American Northwest and Shaped the Forest Service

…As summer began, it was evident that trouble was smoldering in the Bitterroot Mountains of Idaho’s panhandle. The driest year in memory, the winter’s snowpack had melted early, and life-sustaining spring rains never fell. By August, what should have been swift-running rivers cascading down the northern Rocky Mountains were ghosts of their former selves, and many smaller creeks had simply ceased to exist, vanishing into the parched earth below. By late summer, some 9,000 firefighters were already at work trying to tamp out fires flaring up across millions of acres of kiln-dry forest. The Great Fire of 1910 was nigh.

… Click Here For The Complete WebPage = The Big Fire of 1910..
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NOTE: Starting at this “What Makes Big Fires” Sign, and traveling about 18 miles further West on US-12, the traveler will find => Colgate Lick Rest Area, Lochsa River Canyon, ID.
… In 1968, Robert Pirsig stopped here, and in his ZMM Book he says => Later the trees become scarce and spindly, with large areas of grass and underbrush between them. …... A display describes a fire burn that took place here years ago. According to the information the forest is filling in again but it will be years before it returns to its former condition.”
…And yes indeed, a sign there says => “A Huge Forest Fire Burned Off This Whole Area “In The Late 1950’s”, And Because This Area Of Idaho Is Always So Dry, The Forest Has Yet To Grow Back, Despite The Fire Was So Many Years Ago!

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