Big Sand Lake Sunset

Description

Sunset on an unnamed peak overlooking Big Sand Lake inside Idaho and Montana’s Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness.

The red colors are the result of the Oregon fires, which busted loose on that day in July 2000. Similar to some of my experiences in a combat zone, aircraft from Missoula, Montana loaded with fire retardant flew their desperate missions over my camp throughout the day. Thus began the horrific fire season of that summer, which soon included Idaho and Montana.

This area has burned a number of times since 1994, when my wife and I hiked through one fire in September. The silhouetted stags in the picture are from that earlier fire season.