Alberta Ablaze: Forest Fires

I never paid much attention to reporting (if there was any in the USA) about forest fires in Canada until I began reading reports from Canadian canoe trippers. It seems like for decades, in various places, there have been fire bans, forest fires and serious smoke pollution that affects canoe tripping.

Right now a huge part of Alberta is on fire. Jasper National Park is closed. It is the largest park in the Canadian Rockies and the second-largest dark sky preserve (an area where there is almost zero light pollution, creating ideal conditions for astronomy and stargazing) in the world. Much of the town of Jasper has been burned to the ground, as reported in this news video:


Someone here posted an informative real-time map of Canadian forest fires last summer or the summer before, but I don't recall the link.

Caveat: I have been using the map to check some reported fires (Alberta, Quebec, Labrador) recently but what I'm finding is not matching reports. Right now I'm seeing an area of hotspots to the East of Jasper but nothing right in the townsite. Not sure why this is happening. in the past any active ones I looked for were found and in the expected location (more or less).

Very few fires this year in Ontario and East, more than usual North of 60. Northern Saskatchewan and Alberta on fire as usual.

There is historical information here:

There are 51 active fires in Manitoba at the moment. Although we no longer canoe trip at all, I still check daily as it falls into my weather geekness.

Jasper is a large part of our "playground" and we are deeply saddened by what has and is happening. We are sad for the people of Jasper for their losses and for the long process ahead of them. We are sad for ourselves in that a number of trails that we have hiked many times will be forever (for our lifetime) changed and a number of the scenes that we have always enjoyed will be forever changed. We will also miss those coffee shops and restaurants that were burned.
The rebuilding will take a long time. Jasper is an isolated community. It is about a 45 minute drive north and east to get to the next town, Hinton, (pop. approximately 10 000). To the west and south, it is a much longer drive to get to a fairly large center. Jasper has a limited footprint in the park and it has had an accommodation problem for years. It is difficult for workers to find affordable accommodation and that problem just got worse. Where will the re-builders live? Where will the staff for restaurants live?

We are sad.

I’ve always had a soft spot for the area from when I lived there...Jasper and the town hold such fond memories for me.

I have been in NW Ontario twice this year, on crown lands to the east of Wabakimi PP in June and last week on crown lands to the west of the park. In neither area did we notice any evidence of the fires to the west. This is the first time in the past few years we did encounter any evidence of the fires.