Timber Fire, Big Sur, California

True view Fire view

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True view (left): as the eye sees it.
Fire view (right): infrared (SWIR), sees through smoke and brings out the heat.

🟢 green = vegetation
🟤 brown = already burned
🟠 orange = fire right now

Drag to compare: normal photo on the left, heat brought out on the right.

Green: vegetationBrown: already burnedOrange: fire right nowSentinel-2 · Copernicus

Key facts

Source: NIFC

Location4 miles southeast of Big Sur, CA

What's burningTall Grass (2.5 feet)

How it's behavingMinimal, Uphill RunsCreeping — Moves slowly, hugging the ground.Smoldering — Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.

ComplexityType 5 IncidentOfficial scale from 5 to 1: a Type 1 is the most complex in the country.

JurisdictionUSFS · Federal land

Cost so far$185.3 million

Glossary: what each term means

Minimal

Barely moving. Low, thin smoke.

Smoldering

Burning without flame, in the ground or in roots. Can flare up days later.

Creeping

Moves slowly, hugging the ground.

Moderate

Spreads with low, steady flames.

Active

Spreading evenly and steadily, with visible flame.

Extreme

Fast and unpredictable.

Running

Runs along the ground much faster than a person walks.

Flanking

Grows along the sides, not head-on.

Backing

Moves against the wind or downhill, which makes it slower.

Crowning

Climbs into the treetops and jumps crown to crown. It can't be attacked from the ground.

Short Crown Runs

Climbs into the crowns in bursts and drops back down.

Torching

Whole trees flaring up like torches.

Isolated Torching

Single scattered trees flaring up whole, like torches.

Group Torching

Whole clumps of trees flaring at once.

Spotting

Wind carries embers through the air and starts new fires ahead of the front: that is how a fire jumps a road or a firebreak.

Wind Driven Runs

The wind pushes it in long runs in one direction.

The ones marked ● are the behaviors that make a fire harder to stop. They are not a warning or an instruction: they are the description written by the agency in charge. For decisions, always follow your emergency services.

The story so far

After burning for 86 days and expanding at an average rate of about 295 acres each day, the Timber Fire near Big Sur, California, in Monterey County has reached full containment at 25,350 acres. Sparked on August 9, 2026, the Type 5 incident has been managed by the USFS under a Type 5 IC with 148 personnel assigned. Fire behavior is currently characterized as minimal, creeping, smoldering, and making uphill runs through tall grass measuring 2.5 feet on federal land.

Operations to fully suppress the wildfire have accumulated a cost of about $185.3 million. This incident unfolds during the region's typical fire season, which spans from June to October. Across the broader national landscape, a total of 3,478,679 hectares have burned so far in 2026, marking a figure that sits 37% below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire has been burning in California for 91 days. So far it has affected roughly 25,350 acres — about 103 km². The perimeter is 100% contained.

In the Northern Hemisphere, wildfire activity usually peaks during the warm, dry months — roughly May through October.