Ancient cedar groves ride out nearby wildfires

An ancient cedar grove appears to have survived a wildfire that swept through North Idaho, and officials are also optimistic about the fate of a similar stand in Montana.

A sprinkler system was set up as the Grizzly fire complex advanced on the Settler’s Grove near Eagle, Idaho. Firefighters had to leave before the system was fully in place, but initial reports indicate that Wednesday’s low-burning fire spared the centuries-old trees, said Shoshana Cooper, acting public affairs officer for the Idaho Panhandle National Forests. More will be known when the road to the grove is safe for travel, she said.

“It’s a special place for a lot of people,” Cooper said of Settler’s Grove.

An interpretive trail follows the West Fork of Eagle Creek through towering stands of western red cedars. Some of the trees were mature when Columbus set sail for the New World.

The Ross Creek Cedar Grove in northwest Montana also looks like it will survive a fire burning within a half-mile of the 100-acre stand, fire officials said Wednesday. The Ross Creek stand contains giant cedars, including some with 8-foot diameters.

“The trees have survived large fires in the past, including the 1910 fire,” said Bob MacGregor, a fire information officer.

Fire managers expect the outer perimeter of the fire to pass near the cedars, if the flames advance that far, MacGregor said. The grove is located about 29 miles southwest of Troy in the Kootenai National Forest.

The Forest Service has also thinned nearby stands of trees in recent years to reduce the risk of fire spreading to the Ross Creek Cedars.

Western red cedars have thin bark, but the sheer size of mature trees helps them withstand forest fires, according to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. They grow in humid creek bottoms, which also gives them an advantage for fire survival.