Daylight encounter with firefighter near Skykomish witnessed in Snohomish County, Washington

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The year was 1993. I was employed with the US Forest Service in Skykomish, WA on the Mt. Baker Snoqualmie NF. I was part of a wildland firefighting crew on the Skykomish Ranger dist. I should point out that I grew up in mountainous regions and did lots of hunting and hiking all my life. My father was a hunting guide when I was a young boy and I'm very familiar with all species of Northwest wildlife, tracks, sounds, smells, etc. On the night of the 22nd of July, the district encountered many lighting strikes. The following morning we (firefighters) met with officials to determine what areas were hit and to find out who would be going where. We split-up in teams of two. After reaching the end of the Beckler River drainage I saw the smoke and the area of concern which was high on a steep, thick, north facing hillside. Me and my partner geared up and started climbing the mountain. The terrain was VERY rugged, steep, rocky, and thick with Devil's Club & Salmon Berry brush. Af...