The West is Burning

There are 25 fires burning in Idaho right now.

25.














Here in Boise, it's like winter's hit early. It's not cold, but an inversion has trapped fire smoke in the valley, and we live under and in a cloud of it. Outside, it smells like campfire all day.

The Rattlesnake fire is perhaps the closest, burning in the Payette up near Garden Valley and Crouch. It's still some miles from inhabitants and not posing immediate danger, but it sure is smoky.

The heroes of summer are out there knocking themselves out to squash these blazes. The rest of us stay in town and bitch about our throats hurting when we ride our bikes.

What we need is a big nasty downpour, Texas-style.