The Ridge on Amisk Resort

Six Months After the Wolf Wildfire: A Community Still Standing

It has been six months….half of a whole year already since the Wolf Wildfire tore through Denare Beach on June 2, 2025.

I sat at the boat launch below The Ridge today. Looking up on an empty lot/hillside where the once beautiful Ridge proudly stood overlooking that “million dollar view” which will never be the same again in my lifetime, the land is bare and scorched now. Proof of life gone completely.
All the feelings flooded my cells; sadness, anger, fear, deep emptiness also grateful for the happiness and the fulfillment that business brought to my soul, it wasn’t just my business it was my purpose. I Imagined how beautifully it would be decorated for the season. The Christmas parties and weddings we would be hosting this December. Happy staff buzzing around spreading cheer with amazing food and seasonal drinks.

Time has softened the shock, but it has not erased the magnitude of what was lost. Homes, Businesses, Livelihoods In a matter of hours, lives were altered and an entire local economy was devastated.

We were not evacuated because our town was lost we were evacuated because access might be. We trusted that, with citizens gone and the SPSA established fire base, Denare Beach would be protected. Instead, as the days passed, it became clear it was not. No water bombers arrived. No reinforcements were sent. What stood between our community and total destruction were a handful of exhausted, untrained locals and our hero volunteer firefighters, people who refused to leave, who stayed long after they were told no help was coming. For two weeks we watched the Wolf fire advance. I first reported it on May 20th and they were already aware. Those final hours were not defined by government action, but by local courage. And while much was lost, the truth remains: Denare Beach did not fail itself, it was left behind by the SPSA, the very agency that was supposed to protect us.

In the immediate aftermath, there was disbelief, ANGER and grief. Then came the day of waiting to hear if your business or home survived, if you had anything left to come home too. The immense emptiness is hard to describe. Then long days of sorting through what remained, paperwork, decisions, memories & uncertainty. Recovery is not a moment, it is a process. One that unfolds quietly and unevenly, long after the headlines fade.

And yet, what has endured is the strength of this community.

Neighbors helped neighbors. Strangers became friends. Kindness showed up in meals, donations of clothes, food, a spare bed to sleep in, hugs, listening ears, and in simple acts of compassion that reminded us we were not alone. Denare Beach may be small in size, but its spirit is immense.

Peace does not mean forgetting. It means choosing to move forward with gratitude and intention.

We move forward by honoring what was here, by rebuilding thoughtfully, and by supporting one another as individuals and as a community. We move forward by recognizing that places like Denare Beach matter, not just as vacation destinations or dots on a map, but as living communities that contribute to the local economy, provide jobs, and offer a sense of belonging that cannot be replaced.

Resilience is not loud, It is steady, It is showing up every day, even when the road ahead is uncertain.

Six months later, we are still here. Still hopeful, still committed to rebuilding not just structures, but lives, opportunity, and a future rooted in community, cooperation, and respect.

Denare Beach will rise again, not exactly as it was, but stronger for what it has endured.

Sandi Woods
The Ridge.



As Christmas approaches, my wish is simple, that every family affected finds comfort, every business finds a path forward, and that the spirit of kindness we’ve witnessed here continues to guide us into the new year.

Merry Christmas
Sandi & Kirk

It is with great sadness we announce the complete loss of The Ridge on Amisk Resort to the Wolf wildfire that engulfed our beautiful little village of Denare Beach Yesterday, June 2, 2025. So many people lost their homes and their way of life in our area. We will get through this as a community and help each other out as neighbours and friends. The Ridge had been on my mind and in my heart for 20 years and the last two years we poured everything we had into it to update it and its systems from the ground up, we were just starting to get to fun cosmetic things. We had just started the renovations on the restaurant bathrooms and many other fun projects this summer. Our life savings, dreams our blood, sweat and tears along with our hearts and souls, In one afternoon it was all taken away. We are doing our best to remain optimistic for our future and the future of our friends and neighbours. I have endless gratitude for the relationships I’ve made over the last 2 years at The Ridge most imporantly all of our staff who have made this a labour of love and kindness. You all have forever imprinted on my heart. Out of this something good will come❤️🙏🏻

Our heartfelt thanks and gratitude to all of the boots on the ground and air support trying to save our communities facing this tragedy. We appreciate and we support you in your efforts and we will be back shortly to help as we are not out of the woods yet. We still have so many homes and businesses to save.

Thank you for your Patronage

With love and gratitude

Sandi & Kirk

The Treetop Kitchen is closed effective immediately due to fires and evacuations.
Stay safe everyone 💜

Saturday special pulled pork rice bowl $17

Also WING DAY $1.50 each all day.

Great Western light beer $5

OPEN 12-8 pm

Be**er Deans carvings for sale at The Ridge on Amisk gift shop. Ok, the bear isn’t for sale I just bought him but if you want want he can make another.

It didn’t look like this early today.

Thank you Ideal Signs and Design We absolutely love our signs.