Cow Mtn. Fire

Wildfire in Lake and Mendocino counties, August 1981

Search for an address

Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/3570/cow-mtn-fire-1981

Key facts

Started August 8, 1981
Contained Not recorded
Burned 25,664 acres
2nd largest fire of 1981
Cause Arson
Open map

Where it burned

Counties

  1. Lake County 24,170 acres
  2. Mendocino County 1,489 acres

Acres are the land the fire burned in each county and community, and places where it burned less than an acre are not listed. Communities are cities, towns and the unincorporated places the Census Bureau names, so land outside any of them is counted only in its county.

The same land, other fires

Burned before

  1. 1948 Unnamed fire 1,396 acres shared
  2. 1948 Unnamed fire 2,507 acres in total 550 acres shared
  3. 1950 Unnamed fire 5,165 acres in total 2,058 acres shared
  4. 1950 Unnamed fire 1,330 acres shared
  5. 1950 Public Domain #1 Fire 617 acres shared
  6. 1950 Public Domain #2 Fire 4,616 acres in total 599 acres shared
  7. 1951 Scott Creek Fire 1,704 acres in total 323 acres shared
  8. 1959 Roadside #26 Fire 11,150 acres in total 5,950 acres shared
  9. 1962 Cow Mountain Fire 187 acres shared
  10. 1962 J. Davis Fire 296 acres shared
  11. 1973 Mill Creek Fire 978 acres in total 316 acres shared

Burned again

  1. 2012 North Fire 375 acres in total · Cause: Arson 266 acres shared
  2. 2012 Scotts Fire 4,509 acres in total · Cause: Campfire 1,262 acres shared
  3. 2018 River Fire 48,920 acres in total 21,990 acres shared

Acres are the land each fire shares with the Cow Mtn. Fire, and fires that shared less than an acre are not counted. Some older or smaller fires may be missing, and a fire perimeter can include unburned patches. How to read fire history

Sources

Fire history
CAL FIRE Fire and Resource Assessment Program
Published 28 July 2026
Building damage
CAL FIRE Damage Inspection
Updated 19 October 2026

This site is independent and not affiliated with CAL FIRE or the CPUC, so for an official determination, check with the agency or your city or county. How we read the data