A fire 3 miles southwest of Red Feather Lakes in Larimer County erupted Thursday and made a run through heavy timber as it burned 30 acres.
The Bald Mountain fire became so hot at one point that it forced firefighters to retreat from the front lines on the mountain. The fire started burning downhill to the east but then shifted to the north.
Fifty-five firefighters, one heavy air tanker, one single-engine air tanker and one helicopter were battling the initial flames. Fifteen Snake River Hot Shots from Idaho were en route, fire managers said.
Hotshot crews are highly trained firefighters who specialize in clearing fire lines.
No structures were threatened, and no injuries had been reported as of 6:30 p.m. Dead Man Road was closed.
Reghan McDaniel, fire spokeswoman for the Arapaho and Roosevelt national forests, said she could no longer see flames Thursday evening from her post about 3 miles from the fire, but white-and-gray smoke still rose high above the mountain. McDaniel said she thought lightning sparked the wildfire.
Elsewhere in Colorado, firefighters were gaining ground against wildfires despite scorching temperatures and extremely dry conditions.
Justin Dombrowski, wildland fire coordinator for the Boulder Fire Department, said wildfires that occur this late in the summer have the potential to explode.
“Two weeks ago when we got fires, it would be a single tree. Now, any small fire could easily turn into a major fire,” he said. The monsoon season, which brings much-needed rain showers to the region, is running dangerously late this year, he added.
Wildfires raging across the West and Southwest are putting a strain on national firefighting resources, Dombrowski said. Major fires in Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Idaho have priority over Colorado.
“We have 36 major fires going on before the Rocky Mountain area even shows up on the radar screen,” he said.
The Trail East and Dwelling fires in southwestern Colorado were 100 percent contained Thursday. Artifacts in the Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Park that were threatened by the Dwelling fire appeared to be intact, tribal officials said.
The Craig Draw fire on the Western Slope east of Norwood was 95 percent contained. The Pack Trail fire, 10 miles west of Meeker, was being allowed to burn Thursday on about 2,800 acres of public and private land as part of a wildland fire-use program.
Commissioners from Larimer County, where the Bald Mountain fire was burning, planned to adopt fire restrictions Thursday night that would prohibit open flames such as campfires, torches and fireworks in unprotected open areas. Other counties have adopted similar restrictions in light of favorable wildfire conditions. Among them is Jefferson County, which as of 3 p.m. today is banning open fires and permitting smoking only within a shelter or a vehicle.
Heavy moisture in the spring and winter caused grasses to grow thick and tall, providing potential fuel for wildfires, Dombrowski said. Heavy spring snow knocked down branches in many areas of southwestern Colorado, which also feeds wildfires. Combine that with insect disease outbreaks across the state and extended drought conditions and, Dombrowski said, you have a recipe for disaster.
“My pager goes off with a wildfire every day” in Boulder County, he said. “All it takes is for one fire to get away, and you have a major problem on your hands.”
Staff writer Abbe Smith can be reached at 303-820-1201 or asmith@denverpost.com.
Staff writer Christopher Ortiz contributed to this report.
