With a long dry spring and early summer, the threat of bushfire rising from the drought dried forest was a real threat that eventuated with a series of lightening strikes in early December that ignited fires across the "western" half of the Alpine National Park. That is country to the west of the Great Alpine Road. Eventually encompassing areas from Mount Buffalo to Mount Buller, The King Valley to Dargo, the fire ground now covers over 800,000 hectares.Then the spectre of bushfire returned to the Bogongs with the "outbreak" of the Tawonga Gap fire on about the 10th December 2006. The fire, believed to be have been deliberately lit, spread rapidly from it's source on the Tawonga Gap Road to engulf much of the forested hill country to the West and South of the townships of Tawonga, Tawonga South and Mount Beauty.Fires blaze above the town lights, veiwed from our home verandahTawonga South and Simmonds Creek were particularly threatened and the fire was held off from private property by a concerted and determined effort by CFA volunteers, DSE staff fire fighters, heavy machinery and aircraft support.As the threat to the upper Kiewa valley receded the fires spread south over Big Hill, Mount Fainter, Pretty Valley and into the head of the Bundarra River.Click on the map below to open a map of the fire ground, and Alpine National Park Closures.