Burned Out Basalt, 2020.
The Miriam Fire of 2018 burned 5,300 acres of landscape in the Goat Rocks Wilderness, ignited by lightning from typical early summer thunderstorms experienced in this region just east of the Cascade Crest.
The fire exposed the terrains of the Tieton Andesitic basalt flow and columnar formations held secret under the dense forest canopy. Lava originating from the extinct Goat Rocks stratovolcano (background) flowed eastward towards Yakima, cooling quickly into hexagon-shaped columns in many places along its path (foreground).
The abrupt transition from dense forest to burned-out snags and deadfall signals the fire’s perimeter, one that was shaped by two sources depending on the location: talented wildland fire crews and Nature’s hand.
