Here is a 9/12 afternoon update for the fire. Our initial 9/10 livestream and report are farther down on this page. Recent Fire Behavior As of 4:30, pm, on 9/12, the fire was spreading east, on the NE and SE flanks, with some spotting on the SE corner. Most of the rest of the fire … Read more
After big movements last week, the Timber and Plaskett Fires, burning in Big Sur and the South Coast, have been pretty subdued over the past 4 days. Our Lookout Livestream, last night, provides a map update showing the concentrated areas of fire heat and new spread, which has been very minimal. This doesn’t mean the … Read more
This Lookout Livestream covers a recent prescribed burn conducted by First Rain Land Stewards near Nevada City above North Bloomfield Road in a very productive mixed-conifer and hardwood forest (cedar, sugar pine, black oak, madrone) with heavy fuels and dense thickets in places, especially cedar. First Rain has grown from an organic farm into a … Read more
UPDATED 10am, 9/1/2026. In the Lookout Livestream and written analysis, below, we take a look at the long-term prospects for the Plaskett Fire, on the Central Coast. If the fire isn’t held from spreading farther south into the Silver Peak Wilderness, the broken topography, lack of recent fires, and roadless nature of the Wilderness, all … Read more
Zeke provides an update on the Timber and Plaskett wildfires in Big Sur and the Sinlahekin fire in Washington. MAP UPDATES: 8/29/2026 Big Sur/Timber Fire Updates As of morning of 8/29, the eastern side of the fire has very little spread with the cooler weather. The fire is largely at the tops of the ridges, … Read more
The Timber Fire in Big Sur’s Ventana Wilderness is entering a critical phase, with extreme weather, rugged terrain, and heavy fuels driving steady westward spread toward Manuel Peak which sits just inland of the Big Sur Valley. It is likely that the fire will get over the ridge, which has very difficult access and a … Read more
The Timber Fire, in Big Sur, is opening a new chapter. As fuel conditions dry out, and the fire leaves the area of coastal influence, it is now free to burn east thru the Ventana Wilderness. 9:30pm update The fire added about 1,000 acres between 5:30pm and 9pm, this evening. Here is our evening briefing … Read more
The Timber Fire, in Big Sur, continues to grow to the east. In the past 2 days, the fire has pushed about a mile deeper into the canyons of the Ventana Wilderness, where steep, broken terrain makes fighting the fire directly very difficult for ground-based firefighters. Helicopters have been used over the past 10 days … Read more
Achieving beneficial fire effects with either a prescribed fire or even a wildfire is all about the conditions. Fire doesn’t care about calendar dates. However, regulating agencies have often suspended burn permits on strict calendar dates, regardless of actual conditions. In the Klamath Mountains, in Northwestern California, locals have been burning straight through this summer, … Read more
North of Reno along Highway 395, the Bug Fire ignited near the agricultural inspection station and has since merged with the Fred Fire, with the Stallion Fire burning farther north toward Pyramid Lake. Scroll down for updates on fires in the Pacific Northwest! Current Situation The Bug–Fred portion: Initially ran hard to the east under … Read more
This report looks at the current conditions and expected fire behavior on the Timber Fire, in Big Sur, California. In the video, below, we use our trademark style of live mapping and storytelling to examine how wildfire works in Big Sur’s mishmash of unique environments, and how the terrain, fuels, and weather affect options for … Read more
Western Fire Season Enters Relentless Phase as New Incidents Erupt from Big Sur to the North Cascades The Western fire season has shifted into a fuel‑driven, landscape‑scale phase, with emerging and established fires stretching from California’s Big Sur coast through the Klamath River region, Eastern Oregon, and deep into Washington’s North Cascades. In our latest … Read more
Good morning. Today is August 8, 2006, and we’re reporting on fires in the Pacific Northwest. Yesterday was a deadly day for firefighters in the American West. Two helicopter pilots died on the Widemouth 2 Fire in Central Utah, and a dozer operator died the night before last, during a blowup on the Wrights Spring … Read more
The Grasshopper Fire spreads steadily toward Mount Hood, the Brewer/Box Springs Fires resist indirect attack, two fires that have been smouldering for weeks are cranking, now, and the well-established fires in North-Central Washington are mainly contained or not spreading much, with exception of Sinlahekin and Little Giant. We forgot to cover the emerging Wright’s Spring … Read more
This livestream walks through why the Pacific Northwest saw a relative slowdown in fire activity after an extremely active day on the 1st, and what the sudden shift in fire behavior reveals about weather, fuels, and urban wildfire risk. Watch the Lookout Livestream, here, or scroll down to read it. Weather Pattern: A Needed Breather … Read more
Pacific Northwest Morning Report: Fire-By-Fire Breakdown Recorded August 2, 2026 This morning’s Lookout briefing walks through an intense and rapidly evolving fire situation across Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Watch the full livestream, below, or scroll down for a written version, with static maps, organized fire-by-fire. Washington Fires Spokane Area Fires: Autumn Lane, Old Trails, … Read more
In tonight’s Lookout Livestream, we review maps and intel for the Pacific Northwest to try to get a handle on which fires might have the greatest potential for radical spread with tomorrow’s forecast for extreme fire spread weather conditions. Any fire which is currently still active has potential, but the following ones stand out: The … Read more
We opened our briefing on 7/26/2026 with a map of more than a million acres of active fire in Oregon alone. This post steps back from the incident-by-incident view to ask a bigger question: how does fire actually behave at landscape scale, and what does that mean for our real options in managing it? The … Read more
Akawa Butte Fire Pushes Toward Sisters as Lightning Bust Ignites New Blazes Across Oregon Date: July 22, 2026 Location: Sisters, Oregon, broader Pacific Northwest, California Last week, a volatile mix of dry fuels, hot temperatures, and fast-moving thunderstorms pushed Oregon’s fire season into high gear, with multiple large fires breaking out from the eastern slopes of … Read more
Rumsey, Chute, Biscar, East Evans Creek, Akawa Butte, and Aspen Acres in Focus By The Lookout – July 20, 2026 After a slow start in California, the state joins a wildfire season that has been well-underway across the American West. In a wide‑ranging briefing on July 20, The Lookout’s Zeke Lunder walked viewers through emerging and … Read more
Oregon and Washington Lightning Bust Spurs Dozens of Large Fires, Straining Crews from Medford to the Columbia Plateau Date: Sunday, July 19, 2026 By: The Lookout A major lightning bust across Oregon has ignited a sprawling web of fires from Southern Oregon to the Columbia Plateau, rapidly stretching firefighting resources and creating a highly volatile … Read more
Good morning, We are covering the large lightning bust that pounded Oregon in the past few days, sparking many large fires, mainly east of US Route 97, and north of US Route 20. Generally north and east of Bend. Scroll down for new maps for the Evans Creek Fire, near Medford. Lightning Fires and Recent … Read more
Behind every dozer line on a map, every firing operation along a ridge, and every decision not to engage directly with the flames, there is a legacy of hard-learned lessons about risk, trauma, and the human cost of aggressive firefighting. A recent broadcast of The Lookout Livestream used ongoing fires in Colorado and the broader … Read more
Colorado wildfires see a welcome lull after days of explosive growth, with fire behavior moderating across the state and in neighboring regions. In this evening’s briefing, fire analyst and mapping specialist Zeke Lunder walks through a landscape that is still dangerous, but clearly less volatile than it has been during the last three broadcasts. High … Read more
Recorded July 3, 2026 – “Colorado Tactics” Lookout Livestream In this livestream, Lookout wildfire analyst and mapping specialist Zeke Lunder walks through a series of large ongoing fires in Colorado, Utah, and Arizona, using current perimeters and high‑resolution terrain models to explain what firefighters can and cannot realistically do to control wildfire burning under today’s … Read more
This is a good one! Colorado’s Critical Fire Week: Aspen Acres, Gold Mountain, Willow, Snyder & More Livestream recap and analysis from The Lookout – June 29, 2026 AI-generated summary of the Livestream, edited by Zeke Lunder, wildfire analyst and founder of The Lookout Big-Picture Setup: Why Colorado Is Flaring Up Now As of June … Read more
This Lookout Livestream provides an update on Utah Wildfires for 6/29/2026 AI Summary of Lookout Livestream, edited by Zeke Cottonwood Fire (Utah) The Cottonwood Fire has largely quieted down after several active days earlier in the week. According to weather data from the Cottonwood Mountain station, strong nighttime humidity recovery (coupled with an easing of … Read more
Note: This article is based upon an AI-generated summary of today’s Lookout Livestream. It has been edited and proof-read by a human. Watch the Livestream, here: Western U.S. Wildfires Surge Under Powerful Southwest Winds; Three Firefighters Killed in Colorado Strong southwest winds and critically dry conditions across the interior West have driven explosive wildfire growth … Read more
