Ruminatin' - Fire Season 2012

We are finally experiencing some of the effects of Fire Season 2012.
No, we do not have any fires burning near us, thank heavens but the smoke from the fires burning in Idaho and southern Montana has descended into our valley. The Mustang Complex Fire started in Idaho from a lightning strike and crossed into Montana. It is currently over 300,000 acres in size. The Sawtooth Fire is in Hamilton, also started by lightening and is just short of 5,000 acres in size. Weather conditions are dry and there is no rain in the forecast for two weeks out.

The fire personnel are busting their tails. And have been for a long, long time. Many of them have been traveling from fire to fire since Spring when other states started burning. 

Today is not quite as bad as yesterday but it's still pretty awful. It's gotten worse since I took the photos. It's rather like a fog has descended but it's a stinky, oppressive fog that makes it hard to breathe. I really feel for any animals outside; at least we humans can hide in our houses.  Poor Louise the goat is due to kid any day now and she is going to have to labor in this thick, heavy air.

When I look west towards town I usually see the mountains but right now I just see a wall of grey. In fact when the smoke rolled in that is exactly what I saw coming - a huge grey wall of smoke just coming at me. It was rather ominous. Then we were in this murky fog of smoke. All reports are it will stay this way for at least a week if not longer.

Ick!
I want my clear skies back and I know I am not alone. We have been lucky. The folks down in the Bitterroot  have been living with the smoke for a while now. Fire is part of living in the woods. I can't say it's my favorite part . . .