24 May 2012

Gila Burning

Smoky sunset, Magdalena, NM, May 2012
Not again... yes, again, the forest is on fire, and although it's over 100 miles away and we're safe from the flames, the winds shifted this afternoon and brought the smoke plume over the Magdalenas. Our clear blue sky faded to sepia within an hour, and my eyes, nose, and throat are burning from the smoke. I knew the sunset would be beautiful, though, so I went a ways out of town to get a clear (heh) view and really like the clarity I got with my 55-300mm lens. No tripod (it's in my car; I took Dad's Subaru) but the shots came out okay thanks to the roof rack....

Smoky sunset, Magdalena, NM, May 2012
The Whitewater-Baldy fire burning in the Gila Wilderness (100+ miles southwest of Magdalena) jumped from less than 20,000 acres to 70,000 acres yesterday thanks to strong winds. Although today was calmer the next few days of intensifying winds will surely cause a major expansion. It is burning hard and fast in the beautiful Willow Creek area where Dad and I camped in August 2010, an area I wanted to camp in again this summer... Damn.

1 comment:

Cindy M said...

I just hate this is happening. I love the area and have been many times. My sister and another friend were just there in April, camping in Gila and visiting Mogollon and Whitewater Canyon. My prayers are with everyone and all the wildlife in the path of this fire. So very sad.