Fire Monitor
Idaho wildfires map: live fire tracking across the state
Use this page to monitor active wildfires in Idaho, see where fire activity is clustering, and explore individual event details.
Recent wildfire alerts in Idaho
A wildfire-focused event feed sorted by the latest updates and built for quick drill-down.
| Event | Severity |
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Fire hotspots
Regions with the most concentrated wildfire activity
About this tracker
Idaho Wildfire Season
Idaho is consistently one of the most fire-prone states in the country by acres burned, with a wildfire season that typically runs from June through October and peaks in July and August. The state's geography produces very different fire behavior region to region: dense conifer forests in the panhandle and central mountains, and fast-curing cheatgrass rangeland across the Snake River Plain in the south.
Idaho's fire history includes the Great Fire of 1910, often called the "Big Burn," which swept across the Idaho Panhandle and into western Montana over two days in August, killing many firefighters and residents and burning an enormous area of forest. The disaster shaped early U.S. Forest Service firefighting policy and remains a reference point for extreme fire behavior in the region.
Central Idaho's Frank Church–River of No Return Wilderness and surrounding backcountry regularly see lightning-caused fires that burn largely unmanaged in remote, roadless terrain each summer. Track current Idaho fire activity on our wildfire map and see conditions in neighboring Montana.
Rangeland and Wilderness Fire Regimes
Southern Idaho's Snake River Plain and the Owyhee rangeland are dominated by invasive cheatgrass, which cures early in the summer and carries fire rapidly across open sagebrush country. The 2015 Soda Fire burned across a large stretch of Owyhee County rangeland straddling the Idaho-Oregon border, one of the more significant rangeland fires the region has seen in recent years.
In contrast, the forested mountains of central and northern Idaho burn less frequently but more intensely, with lightning igniting fires in remote wilderness that can smolder for weeks before growing rapidly under dry, windy conditions. Smoke from these backcountry fires can affect air quality across the Boise and Coeur d'Alene areas even when the fires themselves stay far from populated areas.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is Idaho wildfire season?
Idaho wildfire season typically runs from June through October, peaking in July and August. Southern Idaho's rangeland can burn earlier in the season as cheatgrass cures, while lightning-caused fires in the forested central and northern mountains often peak later in summer.
What was the Great Fire of 1910?
The Great Fire of 1910, known as the "Big Burn," swept across the Idaho Panhandle and into western Montana over two days in August 1910. It killed many firefighters and residents and burned a vast area of forest, becoming a defining event in U.S. wildfire history and shaping early Forest Service fire policy.
Why does Idaho have so many rangeland fires?
Much of southern Idaho, including the Snake River Plain and Owyhee County, is covered in invasive cheatgrass that dries out early in the season and burns easily. These grass fires spread quickly across open range, as seen in the 2015 Soda Fire, which burned a large stretch of Owyhee County rangeland.
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Last updated 8/9/2026, 8:45:13 PM