Forest fires alter hiking options in wilderness

HIKING — With the wildfire season kicking into high gear, be sure to call ahead before leaving on a backcountry trip — and have an alternate plan even if you get a green light.

Jim Czirr of Spokane sent in this report after returning from a trek in the Bob Marshall Wilderness:

I just got back from the Bob Marshalls where I was hiking the last several days.  My brother in law and I were the last ones to slip down Red Shale Meadows trail before they closed it due to the forest fires up there.

The attached photos were taken Saturday PM around 3 or 4 PM Mountain time near the Red Shale fire.  The fire was a few hundred yards from the trail.

We did the section of the CDT from Lake Levale to Red Shale.  Went in Route Pass and out Headquarters, a nice 50 mile loop or so entering the wilderness outside of Choteau.