Single Publication

The Salmon-Challis National Forest has had three (3) new fires in the last week.  To date, there have been 47 wildfires reported on the Salmon-Challis National Forest.  41 of those reported fires are out.

Eddy Fire (September 24): The fire, located approximately 12 miles northwest of Challis on the Challis -Yankee Fork Ranger District was estimated at 0.10 acres.  The fire, burning in Douglas fir, is out.

Garfield Fire (September 23): The lightning fire, located approximately 33 miles northeast of Mackay on the Lost River Ranger District was estimated at 0.10 acres.  The fire, burning is spruce and fir, is out.

Wildhorse Fire (September 19): The lightning fire, located approximately 25 miles southwest of Mackay on the Lost River Ranger District is estimated at 0.10 acres.  The fire, burning in spruce and fir is out.

Elkhorn Fire (September 18): The lightning fire, located approximately 27 miles northwest of Salmon on the North Fork Ranger District in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness, is estimated at 0.10 to 0.25 acres.  The fire, burning in grass and dead/down fuels is out.

Saw Log Fire (September 10): The lightning fire, located approximately 22 miles northwest of Challis on the Salmon-Cobalt Ranger District, is estimated at two (2) acres.  The fire, burning in timber with a litter understory is out.

Horse Fire (September 8): The fire, located approximately 5½ miles northwest of Corn Creek on the North Fork Ranger District in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness is estimated at 397 acres.  The fire is burning in lodgepole, fir, and snags.  The fire is being managed under a point protection strategy.  Fire activity is minimal, the fire is smoldering in the interior of the perimeter.  The fire can be found on InciWeb at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8416/.

Owl Fire (September 8): The fire, located approximately 20 miles west of North Fork on the North Fork Ranger District, is 747 acres.  The fire, burning in grass, brush, Douglas fir, and snags is 100% contained.  The fire is on InciWeb at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8416/.

Norton (August 1):  The lightning fire is located approximately seven miles northwest of Lower Loon Creek on the Middle Fork Ranger District in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness.  The 9,054 acre fire burning in subalpine fir, Douglas fir, sagebrush, and grass is located in steep rugged terrain.  Fire activity is minimal, the fire is smoldering with most of the activity on the west side of the fire.  The fire is under a point protection strategy, fire managers are utilizing air resources to determine action points and assess values in the vicinity.  Fire managers continue to assess the fire using remote cameras and aircraft.  The fire can be found on InciWeb at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8308/.

Moose (July 17):  The fire is being updated separately and can be found on InciWeb at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8249/.

Woodtick (July 14):  The lightning fire started as two separate fires approximately six (6) miles west, northwest of Meyers Cove on the Middle Fork Ranger District in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness.  The 9,598 acre fire burning in timber, grass, and brush is located in steep rugged terrain.  Fire activity is minimal, the fire is creeping.  The fire is under a point protection and confine and contain strategies with risk to responders and public safety being the top priority.  The fire can be found on InciWeb at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8253/.

Wolf Fang Fire (July 13):  The lightning fire is located approximately four (4) miles northeast of the confluence of Big Creek and the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness on the North Fork Ranger District.  The 2,082 acre fire burning in spruce and fir is located in steep, rugged terrain.  Fire activity is minimal, the fire is smoldering.  Risk to responders and public safety are the top priorities for the Wolf Fang Fire.  Due to the inaccessibility of the terrain and snag hazards a remote camera and aviation are assessing the fire daily.  The fire can be found on InciWeb at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8273/.

Weather:  High pressure today and Tuesday will support very warm and dry conditions with valley relative humidities dropping to 10-15% and poor overnight recovery at upper slopes, but light winds. A trough of low pressure will bring increasing winds but also increasing humidity and cooling temps from Wednesday through the end of the week. A few light showers may accompany this feature Wednesday night and Thursday.

The forest is asking visitors to be aware of the HIGH fire danger for the Salmon-Challis National Forest.  The U.S. Forest Service, Idaho Department of Lands, and Bureau of Land Management in east-central Idaho are in Stage 1 fire restrictions.  Stage 1 fire restrictions apply to federal, state, state endowment, private forestland and rangelands within the designated area.  One Less Spark Means One Less Wildfire.

Nationally, there are 17 uncontained large fires being managed under a full suppression strategy and 81 large fires managed under a strategy other than full suppression.

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