July 18, 2014, 8:30 a.m. Marblemount, WA-The Lone Mountain Fire grew to about 650 acres yesterday, still moving upward and away from the Stehekin community. The fire is now on both sides of Butte Creek, a tributary of Boulder Creek where the main fire started.
National Park and National Forest officials have closed trails leading into the Lone Mountain Fire. The Boulder Creek Trail and the War Creek Trail, which meet at War Creek Pass on the divide between the Stehekin and Twisp River valleys, are both closed.
Another fire crew is expected to arrive on the Lone Mountain Fire today. Smokejumpers and ground firefighters are continuing to work on the fireline, supported by a helicopter. Two helicopters and two crews remain on order, but many dangerous, highly active fires in the Pacific Northwest are using up firefighting resources.
Where the Lone Mountain Fire has burned into the 1994 Boulder Butte Fire area, fire behavior decreased, according to North Cascades National Park Assistant Fire Management Officer Tonya Neider.
The 2010 Rainbow Bridge Fire burned between Stehekin and today’s Lone Mountain Fire, which reduced fuel and is aiding the firefighters in protecting the community. The North Cascades National Park crews have also used prescribed and forest thinning projects in recent years around Stehekin, further reducing fire hazard for the community.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
