Acres: 635 acres
Start Date: July 17th, 2022
Cause: Lightning
Origin Location: 18 miles southeast of Hamilton
Facebook: Hog Trough Fire Information
Fire Information: 406-763-1134 daily from 8am-8pm
Percent Contained: 9%
Jurisdiction: Bitterroot National Forest and Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest
Website: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8258/
Total Personnel: 202
Resources Assigned: 6 Hand Crews, 2 Helicopters, 3
Engines, 2 Skid Engine, 2 Excavators, 2 Water Tenders
Skalkaho Highway (Highway 38) is OPEN. To ensure firefighter and public safety, Forest Service 75 (Skalkaho-Rye) Road is currently closed from the junction of Highway 38 to Mile Marker 5 near Skalkaho Creek-Jerry Lake Trailhead #503. Forest Service 5070 (Sand Basin Creek) and 5071 Road is currently closed. Forest Service 711 Road is currently closed.
A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place over the fire area. Please do not fly drones near wildfires. Unauthorized drones were spotted near the fire over the weekend. Use of unauthorized unmanned aerial systems (UAS), or drones, in a fire area endangers the lives of pilots and firefighters. Know before you fly.
Summary: The Hog Trough Fire is at 635 acres and is burning in the Sapphire Wilderness Study Area (WSA) on both the Bitterroot and Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forests. It is burning in remote, rugged terrain with no structures threatened and no evacuations in place. Due to significant safety threats and inaccessibility, firefighters currently are not directly engaging the fire on the ground.
Planned Actions: Crews will construct indirect line near FS 711 Road to FS 75 Road along ridge lines to prevent potential fire spread from impacting Skalkaho Highway. Utilizing heavy equipment, an old logging road will be reopened off FS 5071 Road to prep for an indirect fire line on the northern perimeter. Heavy equipment and hand crews will be improving road and trail systems on the East side of the fire to prevent future fire spread from impacting values at risk within the Rock Creek drainage. Fire manager’s objective is to keep the fire south of Highway 38, east of FS 75 Road, and west of FS 5071 Road. Heavy equipment will continue thinning and pruning vegetation along FS 75 Road to create a shaded fuel break along West side of the fire.
Fire Activity: Single/group tree torching within the southeast corner of the fire. Fire activity will be moderate with creeping and smoldering through down woody debris on the western edge of the fire perimeter. As soils and vegetation in the timbered stands dry out, more open flame will occur. Fire will spread to the west and make short, uphill runs on south aspects.
Weather: Strong high pressures will persist Sunday with little change in temperatures, winds or RHs. Temperatures 82-87 degrees Fahrenheit wind relative humidity values between 18-23%. West, Northwest winds between 4-8 MPH with gusts to 15 MPH in the afternoon.
Closures: See Inciweb for specific closure information.
• FS Road 75, From Junction 38 and FS 75 to Mile Marker 5 (Skalkaho Creek-Jerry Lake Trailhead #503).
• FS 5070 and FS 711 Roads are Closed.
• Railroad Creek, National Forest System Trail #77 to Trail#313 at the gate.
• Weasel Creek, National Forest System Trail #156 from milepost 0.00 at its junction with NFSR #461.
• A section of the Bitterroot Rock Creek Divide Trail #313, National Forest System Trail #313
where it intersects Trail #77 Railroad Creek, Weasel Creek Trail #156.
• Skalkaho Creek-Jerry Lake Trail #503, National Forest System Trail #503.