Maple Fire September 10, 2016

Fire Activity Dwindles In Yellowstone National Park

Fire activity continues to dwindle with the coming of autumn in Yellowstone National Park.

According to a Yellowstone press release, unless there’s a significant flare-up in the coming weeks, the 2016 fire season is more or less in decline, especially as crews take advantage of the downturn in activity to rehabilitate control lines and shift structure protections.

Officials caution, however, that fire danger remains high in Yellowstone National Park, and will stay high until cooler, wetter conditions become the norm.

None of the fires in Yellowstone have shown any growth since our last update. Below is the acreages for each fire and when they were last updated:

• Maple Fire: 45,425 acres (as of September 16)
• Buffalo Fire: 12,693 acres (as of September 14)
• Fawn Fire: 2,706 acres (as of September 13)
• Central Fire: 2,129 acres (as of September 19)

Another reminder: The Slough Creek road is open for the first half-mile up to the gravel pit. In addition, while the following trails (Mount Holmes, Grizzly Lake, Winter Creek, and Trilobite Lake) are open, their trailheads are inaccessible due to road constriction. For information on how to access these trails, please call the Backcountry Office at 307-344-2160.

According to a Yellowstone press release, crews continue to work on projects associated with the Maple Fire and continue to patrol the fire’s perimeter.

Around Buffalo Fire, meanwhile, crews are removing structure protection from the Elk Tongue and Lower Slough Creek cabins. You can still see smoke from Buffalo from the Mount Washburn Fire Lookout – Northeast Webcam.

Both Fawn and Central Fires remain unstaffed and are being monitored from the air at this time. You can see Central Fire from the Mount Washburn Fire Lookout – South Webcam.

All park roads and visitor facilities, both NPS- and concessionaire-operated, not affected by closures are open at this time.

About Sean Reichard

Sean Reichard is the editor of Yellowstone Insider and author of Yellowstone Insider For Families 2017.

Check Also

Yellowstone winter season

Drugs suspected in Yellowstone fatality

Drugs are suspected to be connected to a Yellowstone fatality, as a deceased woman and …