SHERIDAN COUNTY — Sheridan County in Wyoming draws hundreds of hunters from across the state and country each year. With the Elk Fire, unfortunately, the season has been cut short as parts of the Big Horn Mountain are inaccessible, creating a ripple effect for surrounding businesses.
"That's kind of where the fire started over the top of that ridge. And blew this way when that cold front came through and jumped the canyon," said Wyoming native Shawn Kelley as he pointed out the Elk Fire's path in Sheridan County Monday.
Like many in Wyoming, hunting isn't just a hobby to Kelley. It's more of a lifestyle.
"There's very, very few people that don't hunt for the same reason. We're trying to put meat on the table. It's the most organic meat you can find. And it saves on the grocery bills all winter long," Kelley said. "Both my daughter and my wife still have a cow tag to fill. So we'll probably get out a little bit in November."
That passion for hunting and the outdoors led him to become the Northern Wyoming Regional Director for the conservation group Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.
"We track and serve in acres for wildlife, mainly, obviously, our number one priority is elk," added Kelley.
He's seen just how much of an impact the Elk Fire has had on hunters and the season.
"It impacted it pretty greatly because we couldn't get on the mountain from this side," Kelley said. "I was even talking to some friends that hunt from the west side in. A lot of their stuff got shut down just because of the fire resources that were on the mountain for public safety and for the safety of the firemen. They just shut it down."
With the fire forcing elk down the mountain a little earlier than usual, they were pushed onto private land.
"They're down here where the grass is green, the weather is good. They'll be fine. They're probably stress-free now. They're probably living on private land and eating the best grass they've eaten all year. It's a little vacation time," said Kelley. "People just don't get after them with a lack of public access to get after them."
Rifle season started in October, which coincided with the start of the Elk Fire.
"Typically, October's a big month up there. I know a lot of people that go up there first day or two and they have really good success. And that was right when the fire was blowing up," Kelley said.
It's caused hunters to make some tough decisions when it comes to tags.
"The guys that I know that turned in their tags, they still have the opportunity to go hunting. But some of those out-of-staters, I mean, they plan, I mean, some of those draw units are in the teens for years. They wait for that tag,” said Kelley. "Your heart kind of goes out for some of those people that might have been waiting 16 years to go hunt. And now they got to wait another year."
Kelley said it's had a ripple effect on the area's economy.
"It definitely, probably hurt the economy a little bit. Hunting is a very good economy driver. So, I'm not sure if anybody's feeling the effects of the non-hunters coming here, but bars, restaurants, gas stations, all see out-of-state hunting as a plus because it's an economy driver," Kelley said.
Executive director of the Brinton Museum and its Brinton Bistro Kendra Heimbuck saw the impact firsthand as the museum is located at the base of the Bighorn Mountains.
"I think the closest it got to us was about six miles. But we saw how quickly it traveled down the face of the mountain. And when it first started, we thought, you know, we'll be diligent, we'll keep an eye on it, but there's no way that we're probably really going to be impacted by it," said Heimbuck.
The fire shut down the museum and its bistro for six business days.
"It definitely impacted our revenue-generating opportunities, you know, every day that the bistro is open, it helps to contribute to the overall business plan of the year," Heimbuck said. "Had we been closed longer, you know, we would have had to start thinking through those impacts even more."
The Brinton Museum is back open and ready for business.
"It truly is a gathering place. And so when our doors are closed, it, you know, we lack that kind of sense of community," said Heimbuck. "When we reopened, we were a little concerned that it would take, you know, a week for people to realize, okay, they're back open. But thankfully, we reopened on Thursday last week and the dining room was slammed. The museum was full of people. I think everyone was just so excited that we were okay."
Kelley said there is a couple of silver linings in the situation.
"We're very fortunate they didn't lose many structures. Fatalities were none, so there is a lot of positives to take from it. The community support and how people rallied around the fire crews that were here in town," Kelley said. "Fire is devastating. Fire burns a lot of stuff, destructs a lot of stuff. But the regrowth and rejuvenation that we're going to get, the rejuvenation that we'll get, the landscape will be good again for wildlife."
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