As we drove from Grangeville ID south to Boise ID we passed through a narrow canyon that was really smoky. A major wildfire, called the Pioneer Fire, was east of us. As of today (8/18/16) it’s burned over 80,000 acres and is now 50% contained.

We’ve encountered several wildfires this year as we’ve gone through New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana and now Idaho. It’s been a real bad year. In the very southern part of Wyoming, we got stuck on the road for a couple of hours when we had a flat and had to wait for AAA to send someone out to us. While we were waiting, we could see smoke to the south (in north Colorado) on the other side of a hill. By the time the towtruck arrived the fire had crested that hill and was rapidly coming down the other side. We were a few miles away so we weren’t scared, but the speed at which the fire was burning through the hillside was scary enough! And, there were no firefighters that we could see!

It was comical talking to AAA for that flat tire…they kept asking me what exit # we were near, and I kept saying “We’re not on an interstate or even a major highway. We’re on a small state road, there are no mile markers, I haven’t seen any road intersections for miles, and I’m guessing we’re about 8 miles into Wyoming. He then asked if I meant Wyoming, Iowa or Wyoming, Wisconsin? HUH?!?!?! I finally got him to transfer me to someone who knows Wyoming, and he knew exactly where I was at! I’ve called AAA several times while we’ve been on the road and usually they are very helpful. I think this time I may have gotten a new person or a ‘city-dweller’ who just didn’t understand rural areas.

Anyway, here are a couple pictures of the smoke we travelled through: