Photos: Horseshoe 2 Fire
The Horseshoe 2 Fire started on May 8, 2011 and burned thousands of acres of the rugged, cherished Chiricahua Mountains in Coronado National Forest and part of Chiricahua National Monument.
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
A blasted valley near the Sugarloaf trailhead at the Chiricahua National Monument in the aftermath of the Horseshoe 2 Wildfire, Tue. July 26, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Fire ravaged trees, little more than sticks, stand against a face of pinacle rock formations at the Chiricahua National Monument in the aftermath of the Horseshoe 2 Wildfire, Tue. July 26, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Clouds surround a backfire blackened Sugarloaf Mountain and its still operating and intact fire lookout at the Chiricahua National Monument in the aftermath of the Horseshoe 2 Wildfire, Tue. July 26, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
A deer looks though the relatively untouched areas around the visitor's center in the lower levels at the Chiricahua National Monument in the aftermath of the Horseshoe 2 Wildfire, Tue. July 26, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Two scorched skeletons of Arizona cypress trees stand against the background of the Cochise Head formation at the Chiricahua National Monument in the aftermath of the Horseshoe 2 Wildfire, Tue. July 26, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Some green still survives in the fires scorched areas surrounding Sugarloaf Mountain at the Chiricahua National Monument in the aftermath of the Horseshoe 2 Wildfire, Tue. July 26, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
A sign in front of a burned area in the populated White Tail Canyon that moved through overnight and continued, Thursday, June 9, 2011, destroying two structures as the Horse Shoe 2 continues to burn on the west side as well as north in the Chiricahua mountains.
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
A skycrane drops retardant onto the Horse Shoe 2 Fire in the White Tail Canyon that burned overnight and continued, Thursday, June 9, 2011, destroying two structures as the in the Chiricahua mountains.
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Dense areas of trees were burned during the Horseshoe 2 Fire near Pinery Canyon in the Chiricahua Mountains. Wednesday October 05, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Dense areas with trees were burned during the Horseshoe 2 Fire near the Rustler Park campground in the Chiricahua Mountains. Wednesday October 05, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
A privately owned cabin was completely destroyed during the Horseshoe 2 Fire near the Rustler Park campground in the Chiricahua Mountains. Wednesday October 05, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
A partially charred sign showing the mileage to Willcox and Highway 181 still stands after the Horseshoe 2 Fire burned through areas in the Chiricahua Mountains over the summer. Wednesday October 05, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire as seen from the International Space Station on May 15, 2011.
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
A helicopter goes back to refill as it flys past a smoke and charred filled White Tail Canyon that burned overnight and continued, Thursday, June 9, 2011, destroying two structures as the Horse Shoe 2 continues to burn on the west side as well as north in the Chiricahua mountains.
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Taurus Diaz (cq-TAURUS DIAZ, foreground) and other members of the Type 2 La Guna 1 firecrew (cq-LA GUNA 1) get ready to head to Animas, NM to spend the day at a local high school (about a 30 minute drive) after spending the night fighting the Horse Shoe 2 fire in the Chiricahua mountains as the fire has burned more than 128,653 acres as of today, Thursday, June 9, 2011.
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Tatanka Hotshots Caleb Andersh (cq-CALEB ANDERSH, left) and Brock Rose from Black Hills, South Dakota, watch the sun set outside of Whitetail Canyon as smoke from the Horseshoe 2 fire continued Wed, June 8, 2011.
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Steve Bluemer tosses a rope to Doug Ruppel as the two conservationists from the Douglas Ranger District tie down a load on a mule name Dolly near Cypress Park in the Chiricahua Mountains in the effort to resupply fire fighting personnel holding a new line against the southwest edge of the Horseshoe 2 fire along Raspberry Ridge.,Thurs. May 19, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Steve Bluemer a conservationist from the Douglas Ranger District, grabs a box of MRE's from a truck load of gear, water and food as they load a string of mules at Cypress Park in the Chiricahua Mountains to resupply fire fighting personnel holding a new line against the southwest edge of the Horseshoe 2 fire along Raspberry Ridge.,Thurs. May 19, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Vegetation ecologist Kolby Hawkins from the Safford Ranger District, leads his string of the 13 mules and horses past some of the rugged terrain while leading a loaded string of mules from Cypress Park in the Chiricahua Mountains to resupply fire fighting personnel holding a new line against the southwest edge of the Horseshoe 2 fire along Raspberry Ridge.,Thurs. May 19, 2011
The Horseshoe 2 Fire of 2011
Doug Ruppel, a conservationist with the Douglas Ranger District, has his hands full to carry a cube of water and several cans of coffee as he and other Forest Service personnel load a string of mules at Cypress Park in the Chiricahua Mountains to resupply fire fighters holding a new line against the southwest edge of the Horseshoe 2 fire along Raspberry Ridge., Thurs. May 19, 2011. It was cold enough for ice on the ridge and coffee seemed to be the most popular item for the string of 13 mules and horses to haul five and one-half miles and up to 9,300 feet to the Monte Vista Lookout on the fire line.
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Helicopter used to fight Horseshoe 2 fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire, June 9
Horseshoe 2 Fire, June 9
The Horseshoe 2 Fire, June 9
The Horseshoe 2 Fire, June 9
The Horseshoe 2 Fire, June 9
The Horseshoe 2 Fire, June 9
The Horseshoe 2 Fire, June 9
The Horseshoe 2 Fire, June 9
Horseshoe 2 fire
Horseshoe 2 fire
Horseshoe 2 fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 Fire
Horseshoe 2 fire
Rick Wiley
Photo editor
PORTAL - The blaze in the rugged Chiricahua Mountains has grown to more than 10,000 acres and firefighters are working to protect area homes a…
PORTAL - About 300 people are working the fast-growing, human-caused Horseshoe 2 Fire near the hamlet of Portal in the Chiricahua Mountains, which had blackened more than 10,000 acres as of Tuesday afternoon. "We have no containment at this time," said Karen Takai, an information officer at the fire site.
Firefighters ordered evacuation of the Southwestern Research Station and private homes near Cave Creek Canyon Sunday as the Horseshoe 2 Fire, …
The National Weather Service issued a red-flag warning for southeast
Arizona today, including the fire area 120 miles southwest of Tucson.
Wind gusts of up to 45 mph are predicted beginning at noon.
Fire crews worked today to extinguish the embers of a burnout, designed to save the Southwestern Research Station from the Horseshoe 2 Fire ad…
PORTAL — The cost of the Horseshoe 2 Fire, now the largest fire in the Chiricahua Mountains in modern history, is immense in terms of natural …
When you assemble 812 people to fight a fire in the wilderness, you need a variety of occupations - pilots, accountants, cooks, map-makers, we…
For 12 days, the Horseshoe 2 Fire affected only the eastern slopes of the Chiricahua Mountains.
Two historic, treasured fire lookouts have been destroyed in a blaze of irony - burned by wildfires like the ones they were built to detect.
Naturalist Helen Snyder of Portal was elated last week when the little community of Paradise was saved from the advancing Horseshoe 2 Fire, bu…
SPRINGERVILLE - A massive wildfire in Eastern Arizona that has claimed more than 30 homes and cabins and forced nearly 10,000 people to flee w…
A wildfire in Southeastern Arizona has continued to grow while another blaze near Arivaca is almost contained, fire officials said Friday.
The two largest wildfires burning in Southern Arizona originated in rugged, mountainous corridors frequently used by cross-border people and drug smugglers. And the U.S. Forest Service has determined that both fires were human-caused.
Fire, flood and forest closures shut down recreational tourism in large swaths of Arizona early this summer, and the effects linger even as ac…
Fires have burned more than 1 million acres of Arizona forest and grassland this year. They have burned in every month of the year, including this one.
Everything comes back after a fire - even a big wildfire like the 223,000-acre monster that blazed through the Chiricahua Mountains for 45 day…
Southern Arizona's costliest fires of 2011 were both human-caused, and both started in border areas known for drug- and human-smuggling.