In the depths of Southcentral Alaska, a small tourist town called Talkeetna sits on the edge of the Susitna River, below Denali National Park, where the continent’s tallest peak towers over the mixed spruce and hardwood trees, the hilly terrain and the rivers.
On July 3, 13 miles south of Talkeetna, a bolt of lightning struck the brush and started burning.
Although it never grew more than 400 acres, it threatened the historic town and drew a large response from firefighters around the Northwest continental United States.
Officially named the Montana Creek Fire, it was considered relatively small in a hectic wildfire season in Alaska – one that has seen heat records shattered and that already has burned more than 2 million acres of frontier woods.
While it never grew more than 400 acres, the Montana Creek Fire threatened the historic town of Talkeetna and drew a large response from firefighters around the Northwest continental United States, including some from Eastern Washington.