California’s 18 national forests were shutting down as wildfires rampaged across the northern part of the state. In addition to the Sierra High Route, which runs through some national forest land, the Pacific Crest Trail’s California stretch was interrupted for weeks. Officials closed the 700,000-acre Angeles National Forest and three other forests in the region partly because firefighters were overtaxed by blazes elsewhere. Advertisement“On the Angeles [National Forest], 85%, if not 90%, of our fires are human-caused,” said Andrew Mitchell, a public information officer for the forest. “Regardless of if you believe that it’s due to climate change or due to poor management of the forest, this is the situation.”Ultra runner Cameron Hummels in the Angeles National Forest in March.

Source: Los Angeles Times September 23, 2021 18:51 UTC