City Prescribed Burning Season Starts November 1st

Published on October 14, 2025

Piles of branches burning on hillside

HELENA, Mont. – The City’s Open Lands team is preparing for its annual prescribed burning season, which starts November 1st and ends April 15th.  All prescribed burning activity is weather dependent.

This winter, the City’s Open Lands team will focus on burning slash piles on the northwest face of Mt. Ascension (Sections 6, Township 9 North, Range 3 West; Section 31 Township 10 North, Range 3 West; Section 1, Township 9 North, Range 4 West), adjacent to:

  • Archery Range Trail
  • Entertainment Trail

The crew will also burn piles on Mount Helena (Sections 26, 35 & 36 Township 10 North, Range 4 West), adjacent to:

  • Ambrose Trail
  • Diretissima Trail
  • Dump Out Trail
  • Mount Helena Ridge
  • McKelvey Trail (Northwest Passage)
  • Prairie Trail
  • Swaney Trail

The City’s forest fuel treatment units total approximately 115 acres. Hand piled forest fuels occurring within the various treatment units were accumulated during the course of a forest sanitation/thinning treatment entries which took place from 2021 – 2025.  The ignited piles will be monitored to ensure safety and air quality compliance.

Maps of the City’s Open Lands trail system can be found at www.helenamt.gov/open-lands/.

Copies of the Prescribed Burn Policy for Helena Open Lands will be available during normal office hours at the following offices of the City of Helena:

 

Parks and Recreation Department
316 N. Park Avenue
Helena, Montana 59623
406-447-8463

For more information call the City’s Open Lands Manager, Brad Langsather at 406-447-8454.

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