GATES OF THE MOUNTAINS -- With a copy of Norman Maclean's "Young Men and Fire" on the dash of his boat, Tim Crawford watched the smoke rise from this deep river canyon, not far from where 13 smokejumpers died in 1949 fighting the Mann Gulch fire.

Crawford, owner of Gates of the Mountains Boat Tours, is well aware of the canyon's fire history, including the 1949 blaze memorialized by MacLean in his book.

While firefighting tactics have changed over the last 58 years, fire itself has remained the same, as have the conditions that spark it.

The canyon is now home to the Meriwether fire, started by lightning as was the Mann Gulch fire. The blaze grew to roughly 2,500 acres Tuesday, burning in steep and rocky terrain above the river.

"I've been here for 30 years and I love this place," Crawford said Tuesday, easing the Hilga Rose into the only dock still open in the canyon. "To see it burn like this is just heart wrenching. It just tears at you. There's a lot of people who really appreciate the Gates of the Mountains, and now it's just charred."

As Crawford spoke, the fire tossed up a giant wall of flame and sent a seething black cloud billowing high into the already smoky sky.

The fire moved from slope to slope, starting spot fires downwind. Ash rained down like snow upon the Missouri River. Boaters sat back to watch the fire, helpless to do anything about it.

"They should put that thing out," Willie Price shouted from his nearby boat. "I know it's a wilderness area, but why let it burn? It'll never come back in our lifetime. It'll be like this for generations now."

With fires scattered throughout the drought-stricken West, resources have gone to other locations. Even Tuesday, slurry bombers and helicopters could be seen passing above, heading north to other fires.

"Resources are at a critical shortage," said Amy Teegarden, spokeswoman for the Helena National Forest. "We're going to actively manage this fire until it's out. But we're going to manage it in a way that keeps firefighters safe. We're going to manage it on our terms. We're not putting firefighters up there. There are too many hazards."

Fire officials have said the terrain is too steep and dangerous to fight the fire on the ground. Fire crews have resorted to shelter protection instead. They keep a boat docked at the Meriwether Picnic Area if needed.

Stationed at the picnic area, a group of firefighters wrapped a historic cabin in shelter wrap. A generator pumped water from the river and up the trail to a series of sprinklers placed around the structure.

"This cabin has been here since Mann Gulch," said Jessie Brown, the Meriwether fireguard, as she packed her belongings ahead of the flames. "It's kind of surreal being here with the fire burning. Sometimes it feels like I'm in direct contact with history."

The silver-wrapped cabin once housed James Harrison, the Meriwether fireguard who spotted the Mann Gulch fire in 1949. Harrison, along with 12 smokejumpers, was overrun by flames no more than a half-mile north of here.

"We were really moved by the 13 men who died," said British Colombia's Leona Hammerton, who took an afternoon boat tour through the canyon. "The smoke brought it all home. A few people on the tour had tears in their eyes when they heard that story."

"Now I've seen it with my own eyes," said Belgium's De Bock Lieve, also on the canyon tour. "When you're in Belgium and you hear about the fires here, you ask, 'Why don't they do anything about it?' But when you see it, you have a better understanding."

Crawford may also understand the need and nature of fire, but in recent days, he has also watched his passenger counts drop. He lost $1,000 on Monday on just one tour, and on Tuesday, most of his boats entered the canyon half full.

While the smoke and rising flames made for strong summer memories for those tourists who saw them, snapping pictures from their cell phones, the wilderness fire is the last thing Crawford wants to see.

"If we get a little bit of help and keep this fire outside the river corridor -- if they keep it in the wilderness -- this place can hold its own," Crawford said. "But if they let it down into the river and it burns out the whole canyon, it'll impact my business for generations to come."

Reporter Martin Kidston can be reached at 447-4086, or at mkidston@helenair.com