Very early this morning, we set out for what was planned to an overnight hike. By time we got to the general hiking area, the air was slightly scented with smoke from a forest fire about 60 miles away as the crow flies.

We were not sure if hiking up to 6500 feet would result in the air being a little clearer (which it usually is). However we were able to talk with another couple who just spent the night up the mountain and told us that higher up, the smell of smoke was less and visibility was good.

Once we made our way up the mountain some time later, turns out, the conditions were worse then where we started as there was a fair breeze from the the east which is where the above mentioned forest fire is.

This photo below was taken just after 1:00 pm and the sun was almost completely blotted out from the forest fire smoke.

After a lunch, we started our way down only to be greeted with a completely un-forecasted thunder/lightning/rain storm moving in. As most of you know, being out on open ground (especially in high open terrain) is not good. Fortunately we double timed down off the high open ground and found shelter in a young small 2nd growth tree area. This was not the best...but beats being on open ground during a lightning storm. There we ditched the trekking poles about 50 feet away from us and waited as the storm passed just northeast. Although we seen a few lightning bolts which were far enough way (30/30 rule), all we got was a light rain sprinkle which lasted only a few minutes.

With the weather looking unstable and the forests tinder dry, we decided to call it a day and made our way back down to the car. On the way home, we learned that 4 new (small) fires were started because of this fire. According to the TV news tonight, one of these fires is only a few miles north of where we were up the mountain. Making the decision to call it a day and head home was the right one as considering there is only one main forestry road in/out of the area (30 km / 18 miles) and could easily be cut off if that new and nearby fire gets out of control.

Also the newly updated weather forecast for the area now calls for a 40% chance of thunder/lightning....too much percent for hiking in the high country for me...