I traveled from Ontario to British Columbia two years ago when the forest fires out west were really peaking.
I noticed smoke in the air as far as Winnipeg, and it only got thicker as I approached Vancouver.
Surely all of those white/reflective particles in the upper atmosphere are reflecting the sun's rays.
Also, weather predictions that year where WAY off. Predictions were always much higher than the actual high of the day. I assume this is resultant from historical weather data being a poor source for an altered state weather season.
The smoke covered almost all of north america at some points and it really got much cooler than seasonal averages.
By contrast, when I lived in Texas (no fires), June and July would be in the low 100s, and the first two weeks of August would be 107 - 112.
Unlike volcanoes, any temporary cold effect from clouds would be negated by the permanent destruction of the forest.