Two friends and I have planned a trip to the Wind River Range from Sept. 3-13, but are wondering if and how our trip might be affected by smoke from the Dollar Lake fires. This same group hiked in Glacier 8 years ago and the smoke was horrendous. We couldn’t see anything from high elevation and it made breathing tougher. We don’t want to repeat that. I’ve been monitoring the info coming from firefighters, plus smoke maps and all that, but I don’t know how to interpret the data as it affects our area. For instance, we’re planning to head out from Boulder Lake Trailhead and go up over the pass above Timico within the first day and spend the rest of our time fishing and exploring Golden Lakes, Alpine Lakes, Marked Tree, Camp Lake etc. Given that the prevailing winds move east to West, will the smoke be bad on the Eastern side of the divide? If we plan to spend the majority of our trip above 9k feet, will that affect the degree to which the smoke becomes a bother?
My questions are as follows: 1. What is the best source of information about smoke concentrations? I’ve looked at sites like arcgis but I don’t have the experience to really know how to interpret the data 2. Is there anyone out there who has recent reports from the back-country esp. at higher elevation–assuming that makes a difference 3. Would a call to the Ranger Office be helpful. If not, maybe a local outfitter would have better info.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
