By Noah Jiles
If you’ve stepped outside in the Valley lately, you’ve seen it: a pale haze obfuscating the San Juan Mountains to the west, a copper tint to the sunrise, and on some mornings, plumes rising from the east over the horizon toward the Great Sand Dunes. Wildfires burning across the Southwest from southern Colorado to the deserts of Utah and northern New Mexico are sending smoke our way, and it’s changing the air we breathe on the trail, in the garden, and on the ballfield.
At SLV GO!, getting outside is what we’re all about. So this season, loving the outdoors means learning to read the air the way we already read the weather.
Why smoke is more than a hazy view
Wildfire smoke carries fine particles called PM2.5 which are small enough to slip deep into your lungs and even into your bloodstream. They can irritate the lungs and heart, aggravate asthma, and leave you tired or short of breath. Smoke also pushes up ground-level ozone, another lung irritant.
Here’s the part that surprises people: you don’t need to see or smell smoke for it to affect you. And when smoky days stack up one after another, the exposure adds up. That’s why checking the air before you head out matters so much right now!
Check the air before you go
The Air Quality Index (AQI) turns invisible conditions into a simple, color-coded number. The lower the number, the cleaner the air. A few free tools make it easy:
- AirNow Fire and Smoke Map (fire.airnow.gov) — the best local view during smoke events, pulling from monitors and sensors near Valley towns.
- AirNow app and AirNow.gov — your ZIP code’s current AQI at a glance.
- Colorado Smoke Blog and CDPHE air quality advisories — plain-language updates on where the smoke is headed.
Use this quick key to make sense of the number:
| AQI | Category | What it means for outdoor plans |
|---|---|---|
| 0–50 | Good | Enjoy your usual activities. |
| 51–100 | Moderate | Fine for most; very sensitive folks may ease up. |
| 101–150 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | Kids, older adults, and those with heart/lung conditions should cut back. |
| 151–200 | Unhealthy | Everyone should reduce prolonged or heavy exertion outside. |
| 201–300 | Very Unhealthy | Move activities indoors; avoid outdoor exertion. |
| 301–500 | Hazardous | Stay inside with clean air if you can. |
Who should take extra care
Smoke affects everyone, but some folks feel it sooner: children, older adults, pregnant and postpartum people, outdoor workers, and anyone with asthma or a heart or lung condition. And anyone — no matter how fit — takes in more smoke when exercising hard outdoors, because you’re breathing deeper and faster.
How to keep getting outside
Smoky season doesn’t have to mean staying in. It means staying flexible:
- Time it. Air is often clearest in the morning and builds through the afternoon. An early start beats a hazy evening.
- Ease off when the number climbs. Trade the trail run for a walk, or save the big climb for a clear day.
- Have a plan B. A shorter, lower-elevation outing or even an indoor option, keeps the day moving when the air turns unhealthy.
- Mask up if you must be out in heavy smoke. A well-fitting N95 or KN95 helps; cloth masks and bandanas don’t filter fine particles.
- Make a cleaner space at home. Keep windows closed when smoke is present, run AC on recirculate, and use a HEPA filter in the room where you spend the most time.
Looking out for each other
Check in on vulnerable neighbors, like older folks and anyone with breathing trouble, when the air turns. Remember that protecting our air and our public lands go hand in hand: knowing and honoring the current fire restrictions is part of keeping these places healthy for all of us.
