Western US on the road to recovery

Forest fires by Alan Moore

Western US on the road to recovery

Rates cut to recoup losses

THE widely reported forest fires that recently swept parts of the western US have now been contained.

But at their height they caused substantial damage to some national forest areas in California, Colorado and Montana, as well as Idaho and western Wyoming.

Montana alone currently estimates businesses have lost around $30m due to the impact of the fires, with the final cost as high as $270m. There is no breakdown of tourism-related losses, however.

In California’s Sequoia National Forest, all the sighted blazes were in remote back-country areas and tourism officials report no tourist destinations were in the vicinity of the fire lines.

They added that travel throughout the state has not been affected, and all major wild fires were at least 95% contained by the end of the first week of August.

Yellowstone Park

The south entrance to Yellowstone National Park, which cuts across several western states, was closed in mid August for several days when fire activity outside the park was at its highest.

Another major route, Highway 89/191 into Yellowstone National Park, was also closed but has since reopened.

Cooler weather has dampened down the risk of further incidents after the summer season saw more than 30 fires reportedly caused mostly by lightening strikes.

Jim McCaleb, general manager of Amfac Parks and Resorts’ Yellowstone National Park Lodges, said: “Visitors haven’t been significantly affected by the fires, and we’re now back to normal. In Yellowstone, autumn means cooler temperatures, and there are still great colour changes and wildlife to be seen.”

Reduced-rate packages

As an incentive to get the message across, many Yellowstone resorts and lodges are offering reduced rates and added-value packages during the current season.

Montana has not been so lucky. A spokesperson for the Montana Department of Commerce said: “The loss to the tourism industry is immense and could be long lasting without increased marketing efforts.

“The impact on the accommodation industry and the related drop in bed taxes will negatively affect the ability of the current Travel Montana promotional programme and the regional tourism councils to market the state as a desirable destination.”

The department warned many tourism businesses, including family-run outfitters organising outdoor activity tours, are likely to go out of business.

There have already been calls from the regional tourism authorities for state grant aid to increase marketing efforts to offset the losses.

Yellowstone Experience

&#42 Yellowstone National Park Lodges is promoting packages and educational adventure programmes for the season. The Experience Yellowstone and Winter Getaway stays include accommodation in the park. Four-night prices start at $550 per person and include a guide, some meals, winter sports and accommodation. Visitors can trail the wildlife in the Lamar Valley and join a geology tour in Yellowstone’s Grand Canyon.

&#42 For more information about Yellowstone and other national parklocations in the Rockies, call Amfac Parks and Resorts on 001 303 297 2757 or visit www.amfac.com

Burning issues

Amfac Parks and Resorts: lodges, tours, restaurants and Amfac Parks and Resorts-operated campgrounds were unaffected by the fires and are fully open. As well as the south entrance to the park, there is access from the west near West Yellowstone, Wyoming and an eastern entrance west of Cody.

The Manter Fire: Sequoia, Kings Canyon and Yosemite National Parks are open and operating as usual. A major blaze in early August was located in Sequoia National Forest and consumed 74,000 acres. It was centred on a remote area in the eastern Sierra not normallyfrequented by visitors.

Pechanga Fire: the other notable California fire was the Pechanga Fire, east of the town of Temecula. State Highway 79 is now open following containment of the fire that destroyed 12,476 acres.

Colorado: some of the national forest regions were damaged by the fires