On August 25 and September 6, 2018, lightning strikes ignited two separate fires that merged, creating the Lonely/Riggs Fire. Over 2,000 acres in Bryce Canyon and Dixie National Forest burned. Thanks to a proactive forest management program, the park had dedicated years to thinning and pile-burning overcrowded, diseased, and dead trees in this area. The fuel reduction project allowed wildland fire crews to set a controlled "back-burn" fire along this trail, creating a buffer zone to protect nearby structures from the Lonely/Riggs Fire's advance. These management efforts continue throughout the park today, allowing fire to play a natural role in this ecosystem while also reducing the severity of future fires.