The Riley fire was 100% contained as of July 15. The park had reopened as of July 10 with the exception of a couple of hiking trails. It was a delight to be heading up the mountain again with a train full of guests!

We had our first trek up (since the fire) on July 14. It proved to be a struggle for me as the vibe of the guests was negative. I don’t understand how someone can be mad on vacation. Seeing beautiful sites and enjoying good food, drinks, family and friends. But some people are.

I’ll share some train-viewable fire area pics instead of prolonging the topic.

It was interesting the way the fire burned. In Colorado the trees would be almost completely burned if not completely. I read the updates daily from the fire lines here in Alaska. When it does rain, the forest is so dense the rain really doesn’t aid much. The undergrowth burned completely. And since it’s so dense – so many layers of green plants, the trees mainly look singed. It might be different up into the middle of the fire area.

The pictures tell the story.