Warm and Dry Summer Contributes to Wildfires on the Olympic Peninsula

Purple air sensors near Lake Cushman currently report hazardous air quality due to the Bear Gulch Fire. Vertical mixing and dispersion should improve air quality in the area throughout the day. That said, warm and dry conditions could increase fire activity and cause air quality to degrade later this evening. The fire is burning in steep terrain, causing challenges for firefighting efforts. Firefighting crews are currently protecting the Staircase Area and other nearby park structures. The Bear Gulch Fire will likely burn for several weeks until the area receives significant precipitation, causing intermittent smoke impacts for the foreseeable future.

Nearby fires are also contributing smoke in the Lake Cushman/Hoodsport Area. The Hamma Fire (about 2.5 miles northwest of Eldon) began on July 27th and the Browns Creek Fire south of Lake Cushman started yesterday afternoon and has burned about 12 acres. 

Smoke plumes from the Bear Gulch and Hamma Fires. Source: Inciweb.

The South Huckleberry Fire, west of Lake Quinault, was reported this morning at about 15 acres with a smoke plume visible on satellite imagery.

Highlighted circle shows smoke plumes from the South Huckleberry, Hamma, Browns Creek, and Bear Gulch Fires. GOES-WEST 29 JUL 2025 17:16Z

Communities near these active fires will observe the greatest smoke impacts overnight and into the morning hours before smoke disperses during the day. Kitsap County may also experience periods of moderate air quality. Outside of these areas, surface air quality should continue to be mostly good in Western Washington, although upper-level haze will be visible throughout the region.

As for the rest of the state, recent air quality has generally been good throughout Central and Eastern WA. Containment has increased for the larger fires; the Burdoin, Hope, and Lake Spokane fires have not grown significantly and continue to show little activity. The Pomas Fire continues to burn near Entiat with minimal smoke impacts. 

Continued hot and dry conditions statewide could increase smoke production from active fires in coming days. Thunderstorms Wednesday through Friday bring the potential for new fire starts with the greatest risk Wednesday with dry thunderstorms over the Cascades.