As it turned out, BNSF was still running. So much for accurate reporting by media! Only the highway was closed. I saw lineups showing both BNSF and Amtrak (on time!) were traversing the Pass well into early afternoon.
We've had our own scare when the ridge to the south of Big Bear Lake, Ca. caught fire. Closer then any of us felt comfortable. However fire crews did an excellent job fighting it. Several choppers in the air and two tankers closed in to snuff it out. We can only hope things go as well for the community of Essex.
As of this morning, official fire maps showed the closest point was still about one mile away from that town. The fire map was a time lapse type view, which was really strange. It goes one way a little while, then another area goes at an odd angle, then another, while previous areas slow down to almost nothing. As far as I know, there has not been much in the way of wind, so it could be interesting to know what is causing such behavior.
Detours and congestion by the fire would explain why I saw a westbound stack train go through here last night. No pics, left the camera home as I had the wife out for ice cream. We sat outside at the former DQ and watched train traffic across the road. The smoke was enough that we could hardly make out more than the outlines of the hills on the east end of town, it has been thick enough to reduce visibility to 1/2 - 1 mile often. The bad is the irritation to eyes, nose throat etc. The good is that the sun is mitigated and it doesn't get as hot! Which is nice when working outside all day.
Wish our smoke was as light as yours. I'm tired of smelling it, coughing, burning eyes, etc. Slight breeze picking up this morning, First time in days, so am hoping.
Highway 2 is closed between mileposts 176.8 at Schellinger and 185 at Bear Creek. BNSF trains and Amtrak are running intermittently. Call 511 or visit http://www.mdt.mt.gov/travinfo/alerts.shtml for current road status. For more information on Amtrak call (800) 872-7245.
http://www.krtv.com/story/29932601/...m=social&utm_source=facebook_KRTV_Great_Falls Aside from the hotel, there are several other historic former railroad structures at this site. Reports this morning indicate that BNSF is ending their fire related detours via MRL.