SYRINGA PARK 49°22’46.1”N 117°56’07.0”W
“Wildfires seemingly sprung up everywhere once the hot weather of summer and dry lighting storms clashed. Familiar mountain vistas were transformed by flame, at the mercy of heat and wind.”
Soon new shoots of fireweed, named for its abundance after fire, cover the burnt Mountain sides in a display of green leaves and vibrant purple petals. In the absence of other plants, fireweed is quick to spread across a disturbed landscape. With the increase of sunlight after the forest canopy burns, this sun-loving wildflower blooms. Even in areas of moderate to severe burn, fireweed is a marker of the resilience of forest ecosystems. Being there to witness and capture this transition on the landscape feels deeply important to me as a photographer. The acceleration of wildfires burning across the globe, and the changes that these spaces we care about are undertaking, needs to be witnessed. While most wildfires I’ve photographed haven’t burned at a high intensity, that’s not always the case for the rest of the province. In 2023, 2.84 million hectares of land burnt in British Columbia, a record amount in the province’s history. Hotter summers and prolonged drought have contributed to the ever-increasing wildfire conditions. Wildfire smoke is now a constant and expected companion during the summer months. Recent fire seasons have begun earlier and stretched late into the fall, often ending once snow falls high in the mountains. The years following the Syringa Creek Wildfire, I spent countless nights on dusty forest service roads that zigzag through the mountains. Wildfires seemingly sprung up everywhere once the hot weather of summer and dry lighting storms clashed. Familiar mountain vistas were transformed by flame, at the mercy of heat and wind. My most- visited websites during the summer are weather forecasts and fire maps, to aid my project of capturing wildfires across my corner of British Columbia. Through capturing wildfires, I’ve come to know my home on a deeper level than before, and I feel more connected to the landscape than I ever have. Beyond the his- torical and environmental importance of capturing wildfires, I’ve learned so much about appreciating my home in all its seasons and life cycles. The places I love won’t always be the same, but they’ll remain beloved to me through it all.
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MOTHER VOLUME THREE
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