Cooler temperatures in Leelanau with chances of rain showers are on tap for the days ahead and into the weekend after an unseasonably warm period of dry weather lingered for the first part of the week.
While the warmer than normal temperatures were a nice reprieve from the typical October cooler conditions, it brought with it elevated fire danger in both the northern lower and upper peninsula. According to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR), wildland firefighters battled a number of fires last weekend, which included a 100-plus acre “Summit Lake Fire” in the federally managed McCormick Wilderness in Baraga County.
The DNR said the Summit Lake Fire is the largest fire currently burning in the state and was at 120 acres on Monday afternoon. Other fires in the Upper Peninsula at this time were started by recent lightning strikes, and were reported to sometimes “smolder for days in remote locations before becoming visible.” As of Oct. 21, DNR wildland firefi ghters have fought more than 250 fires in 2024.
