Rim Fire...crossed into Yosemite

[TollerMom]

i can't even begin to say how devastating the Rim fire is becoming. It's still out of control. 2% containment. It has burned over 105,600 acres..something like 165 square mile and is torching some magnificent old growth. It started west of our national treasure, Yosemite National Park, and crossed over into the park boundary. The smoke plume has taken flight on the upper winds and is filling our air in the Tahoe/Reno area nearly 150 miles north with unhealthy levels of particulate. Most outdoor activites in the region have been cancelled for the weekend.

http://graphics.latimes.com/responsivemap-rim-fire-near-yosemite/. Hope I got the interactive fire map URL posted correctly.

This is the scene from my window. Red skies!

[tmountainnut]

I've been following the fire because a friend of mine is hiking the JMT right now. For his sake, I'm happy the fire is mostly outside of the park, however its looking like a really bad fire.

Luckily in colorado we've been getting quite a bit of rain lately, so our fire danger has been reduced a bit. i hope california gets some rain to help the firefighters out.

[TollerMom]

It's pretty bad. The smoke is so thick, I drove down near Mono Lake for some clear sky hiking yesterday at the Virginia Lakes trailhead...headed up to Summit Pass el 11,100'. Coming back home was like driving into a fog bank.