The Pickett Fire in Napa County grew to about 3,993 acres with 7% containment late Friday, as crews pushed to steady a blaze that moved east through sparsely populated land that last burned in 2020. Despite rapid growth the fire has not destroyed any structures, though evacuation orders remain in effect for residents in several areas and Western-facing hillside lands where several wineries and vineyards sit nearby.
The fire first erupted Thursday afternoon on the northern edge of Calistoga and exploded through steep, rugged terrain, prompting evacuations for dozens of rural properties and threatening wineries such as Poggi Wines, Eisele Vineyard, Venge Vineyards and Kenefick Ranch. By Friday evening, authorities extended evacuation orders to communities on the fire’s eastern flank.
Cal Fire officials noted that conditions eased somewhat on Friday, allowing crews to make progress. “Although the fire was very aggressive yesterday, today the fire is a much different fire,” Cal Fire Operations Chief Jeremy Pierce said. “We do have aircraft and crews in place, and we’re hoping to keep it in check during the heat of the day.” He cautioned that evacuation orders remained in place and that the situation could still shift with weather.
Mapping updated the fire at 3,993 acres with containment at 7%, reflecting growth of more than 1,100 acres since Thursday night. The Pickett Fire is now the largest active incident in the six counties covered by the Sonoma-Lake-Napa unit of Cal Fire, surpassing the Lake Fire, which burned about 401 acres near Clearlake earlier this year.
“This is the biggest fire that we’ve had since 2020,” Napa County Deputy Fire Marshal Erick Hernandez said, offering some perspective on past blazes in the region. The 2020 Glass Fire burned through Napa and Sonoma counties, scorching about 67,000 acres and destroying more than 1,500 structures, while the Hennessey Fire also burned nearby that year.
The Pickett Fire has followed burn scars from those earlier blazes as it moved east toward Pope Valley. Evacuation orders expanded through Friday to areas north and south of Aetna Springs, east of Victoria Drive and Oat Hill Mine Trail, and west of Summit Lake Drive, with warnings extending beyond Calistoga Ranch.
Officials stressed that resources are drawing on knowledge from years past. “We have the right people here who were here five years ago that are familiar with that road system,” Hernandez said, noting that reusing established roads and fire lines, along with lines rebuilt by Napa Firewise, has helped crews respond efficiently.
The blaze began in the 2300 block of Pickett Road, just outside Calistoga, amid a heat wave that sent mid-summer temperatures into the triple digits in some areas. Investigators are still looking into the fire’s cause, on scene Thursday and again Friday.
As of Friday afternoon, no structures had been lost and only three were threatened, with no new threats reported. The area affected includes rural properties and several notable wineries, underscoring the ongoing balance between protecting communities and safeguarding agricultural assets in this fire-prone region.
What to know
– Fire size: about 3,993 acres; containment: 7%
– Location: northern Calistoga area, moving east into Pope Valley
– Status: evacuations in place for multiple communities; no structures lost as of Friday
– Cause: under investigation
– Conditions: cooler than Thursday but with heat risk later in the day; crews using established roads and prior fire lines
Hopeful note: Fire managers say the situation is more controllable than the previous day’s extreme conditions, and with crews, aircraft and established lines in place, they are hopeful containment will improve as weather stabilizes. Residents should remain vigilant and follow official evacuation orders and updates.