I accompanied Columbia Land Trust in Washington’s East Cascades to document the process of a prescribed burn.  These burns help to restore the ecological growth in the forests and help to prevent future wild fires.  What I expected to see was the burning of small shrubs and grasses, things that would fuel the beginnings of a forest fire, in order to clear out the underbrush below the tall pines.  I admit, I was a little naive going into it.  Once the professionals stepped in and began to systematically ignite the forest with their drip torches, the entire forest filled with sun streaked smoke and orange flames.  Truly amazing to witness not only the heat and power of a fire like that, but to also see how precisely the fire workers could direct the fire to keep it contained and safe.