Brief Break From the Smoke

We had a very brief break from the smoke today. I went out a bit before noon and since there was a nice cool wind blowing all the smoke away, I decided to go for a walk (big surprise, eh). By about 1:30, the wind must have changed since it was smokey again. By the time I got back to the Butrovich building, the visibility was again under a mile and breathing was difficult. I almost took the shuttle bus from lower campus to avoid walking up to West Ridge. Pretty awful around here.

Later - The wind changed again and you can now see how close the fire is to Fairbanks. You can also see a hint of blue skies. I believe the paper said about 25 miles away and has burned about 85,000 acres. At least we can breath again. Unfortunately, the wind probably isn't helping those fighting the fire.

Later - Unfortunately, the break from the smoke didn't last very long. By the time I rode home, the smoke was back. Now, it is starting to sprinkle a bit. Not enough to really disperse the smoke but enough to make walking unpleasant. I had my son drop me off near the university since I need to take some video of a steel drum concert tonight. To muggy to wear a coat but wet enough to need one. Since I have some time before the concert, I thought I could getsome walking in but it isn't very nice outside. Too much smoke and now, wet and muggy.