TALES OF THE BEARTOOTH - BOOK THREE: YELLOWSTONE BURNING

The disastrous Yellowstone Park fires of 1988 consumed over 40% of the Park's total area - over 400,000 acres out of a total of 2.2 million. Also, fires in adjoining National Forests incinerated hundreds of thousands of additional acres. The author of "YELLOWSTONE BURNING" deplores as incredibly wrongheaded the "Let It Burn" policy of Park officials when lightning strikes ignited forests that were tinder-dry after three years of drouth. He does support, however, a policy of "Controlled Burns" under favorable weather conditions to rid the forest floors of deadfall and brush debris that pose fire hazards in all National Parks and Forests. Read "YELLOWSTONE BURNING" for an eye-witness account of what happened.