Feature .01 Welcome to the Pyrocene It's time to reckon with the reasons why 2020 has become a record year of devastating wildfires across the American West. While agencies have managed to contain COVID-19, they are not prepared to pay the price for years of mismanagement and a lack of funding. Apocalyptic blazes are here to stay. Is there any way we can survive the conflagration? BY KYLE DICKMAN Photographs by JERRY DODRILL December 2020 / OUTDOOR RETAILER 29