SMA PVT PLT STRAYS INTO A TEMPORARY RESTR AREA AS HE TRIES TO VERIFY A FIRE IN THE REGION. HE HAD FAILED TO OBTAIN NOTAMS ALONG WITH WX BRIEFING.

Narrative

I WAS FLYING TO MEV; NV; FROM VGT; NV. I HAD CALLED RENO FSS AND OBTAINED A RECORDED WX BRIEFING. I DID NOT TALK TO A BRIEFER SINCE THE RECORDING STATED THAT THERE WERE NO WX ADVISORIES AND THE SKY CONDITIONS WERE CLR. I WAS FLYING ON A DIRECT COURSE OF 300 DEGS BTWN BEATTY VOR AND MINDEN; NV; AND WAS NEAR SILVER PEAK; NV; WHEN I NOTICED SMOKE RISING FROM A MOUNTAIN RANGE TO THE R OF MY COURSE. IT APPEARED TO BE A SMALL FIRE AND I DECIDED TO FLY OVER IT IN ORDER TO GET AN ACCURATE FIX ON ITS LOCATION AND RPT IT TO RNO FSS. AS I FLEW OVER IT I NOTED VEHICLES IN THE VICINITY AND KNEW THAT FIREFIGHTING AUTHS WERE AWARE OF THE FIRE. I RETURNED ON COURSE TO MY FLT AND MADE MY REGULAR CALL TO RENO RADIO FOR A PIREP WHEN I WAS ABEAM OF COALDALE VOR. WHEN I FINISHED MY RPT THE SPECIALIST ASKED IF I WAS AWARE OF THE NOTAM ON THE TEMPORARY RESTR AREA SE OF OAL VOR DUE TO FIREFIGHTING ACTIVITIES. I ADVISED I WASN'T AND SHE STATED THAT SHE HAD ATTEMPTED TO GIVE ME THE NOTAM INFO AFTER MY PIREP EARLIER AT BEATTY VOR BUT I HAD ALREADY LEFT THE FREQ. I ADVISED HER THAT I HAD FLOWN OVER THE FIRE IN ORDER TO RPT IT BUT OBSERVED VEHICLES ON THE GND AND THAT OBVIOUSLY THE FIRE HAD BEEN RPTED. MY FAILURE WAS IN NOT OBTAINING A COMPLETE BRIEFING FROM FSS RATHER THAN SIMPLY LISTENING TO THE RECORDED BROADCAST. I SUGGEST; HOWEVER; THAT A SIGNIFICANT NOTAM SUCH AS THIS SHOULD BE CONSIDERED FOR INCLUSION IN THE RECORDED BRIEFING ON THE RTE BTWN RENO AND LAS VEGAS; SINCE THE FIRE WAS QUITE CLOSE TO THAT RTE. I INTEND TO OBTAIN AN IN-PERSON BRIEFING IN THE FUTURE AND NOT RELY ON THE RECORDING FROM NOW ON.