Partner Feeds

 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOREST SERVICE OKANOGAN-WENATCHEE NATIONAL FOREST WINTHROP, WA Cedar Creek, Varden, and Delancy Fires Closure Order: 06-17-04-21-39 Pursuant to 16 U.S.C. § 551 and 36 CFR § 261.50(a) and (b), and to provide for public safety, the following acts are prohibited within the Methow Valley Ranger District of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. This Order supersedes Order # 06-17-04-21-36, dated October 1, 2021, signed by Kristin Bail. This Order is effective October 8, 2021, through December 31, 2021, unless rescinded sooner.   PROHIBITIONS: 1.         Entering into or being upon National Forest System Lands, as described below and displayed on the attached map, Exhibit A [36 CFR § 261.53(e)]. 2.         Being on any National Forest System trail, as described below and displayed on the attached map, Exhibit A [36 CFR § 261.55(a)]. 3.         Being on any National Forest System Road as described below and...

 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOREST SERVICE OKANOGAN-WENATCHEE NATIONAL FOREST WINTHROP, WA Cub Creek 2 Fire Closure Order: 06-17-04-21-40 Pursuant to 16 U.S.C. § 551 and 36 CFR § 261.50(a) and (b), and to provide for public safety, the following acts are prohibited within the Methow Valley Ranger District of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. This Order supersedes Order # 06-17-04-21-35, dated October 1, 2021, signed by Forest Supervisor Kristin Bail. This Order is effective October 8, 2021, through December 31, 2021, unless rescinded sooner.   PROHIBITIONS: 1.         Entering into or being upon National Forest System Lands, as described below and displayed on the attached map, Exhibit A [36 CFR § 261.53(e)]. 2.         Being on any National Forest System trail, as described below and displayed on the attached map, Exhibit A [36 CFR § 261.55(a)]. 3.         Being on any National Forest System Road as described below and displayed on...

Volunteers gathered early in the morning on Saturday, Sept. 25, as part of a joint DNR and Keep Nature Wild cleanup at Dougan Falls in Washougal, close to DNR’s Dougan Creek Campground and the Yacolt Burn State Forest.

“Dougan Falls is one of our very, very popular sites in the Pacific Cascade Region, with people going down by the waterfalls,” Pacific Cascade Region Recreation Manager Sharon Steriti said. “But, as DNR, we can’t maintain it all ourselves.”

Dougan Falls in Washougal, Washington.

The assembled group cleaned up trash of all sizes, ranging from cigarette butts to shoes, diapers and bottles.

When Keep Nature Wild, an outdoor clothing brand that cleans up two pounds of trash for every item purchased, reached out to DNR to set up a cleanup, Steriti could not have been more excited to welcome the help.

“I thought it was a really good opportunity to incorporate another partnership, get some people out here, and focus on picking up some of the micro-trash that people leave,” Steriti said.

Two volunteers and their dog cleaning up trailside trash.

Micro-trash refers to small pieces of garbage that enter the environment, such as cigarette butts, bottle caps, broken glass and other small pieces of plastic. While one piece may not seem to do much, micro-trash can have significant environmental impact when it accumulates.

Steriti explained that while most people don’t mean to litter, trash that enters the Washougal River can work its way into the Columbia River, and then the ocean and the fish we eat. When you help pick up micro-trash, you can help prevent this from happening.

Pacific Cascade Region Recreation Manager Sharon Steriti showcasing DNR’s heavy-duty trash bags.

“DNR benefits from the efforts of volunteers in many ways. They help out with our forest watch program, are our eyes and ears out in our forests, and also help out in recreation. It’s essential to have the public involved because they and many other groups across the state help us maintain many of our recreation areas,” Steriti said.

In addition to helping keep Washington’s trust lands clean, volunteers can also earn a complimentary Discover Pass through their volunteer efforts. Once a volunteer accrues 24 hours or more of volunteer time on certain projects managed by DNR, State Parks or WDFW in a 12-month period, they can earn a complimentary Discover Pass. Click here to learn more.

During the event, volunteers helped clean up 200 pounds of trash in total. To learn more about volunteer opportunities with DNR, visit dnr.wa.gov/volunteer.

Volunteers gathered early in the morning on Saturday, Sept. 25, as part of a joint DNR and Keep Nature Wild cleanup at Dougan Falls in Washougal, close to DNR’s Dougan Creek Campground and the Yacolt Burn State Forest.

“Dougan Falls is one of our very, very popular sites in the Pacific Cascade Region, with people going down by the waterfalls,” Pacific Cascade Region Recreation Manager Sharon Steriti said. “But, as DNR, we can’t maintain it all ourselves.”

Dougan Falls in Washougal, Washington.

The assembled group cleaned up trash of all sizes, ranging from cigarette butts to shoes, diapers and bottles.

When Keep Nature Wild, an outdoor clothing brand that cleans up two pounds of trash for every item purchased, reached out to DNR to set up a cleanup, Steriti could not have been more excited to welcome the help.

“I thought it was a really good opportunity to incorporate another partnership, get some people out here, and focus on picking up some of the micro-trash that people leave,” Steriti said.

Two volunteers and their dog cleaning up trailside trash.

Micro-trash refers to small pieces of garbage that enter the environment, such as cigarette butts, bottle caps, broken glass and other small pieces of plastic. While one piece may not seem to do much, micro-trash can have significant environmental impact when it accumulates.

Steriti explained that while most people don’t mean to litter, trash that enters the Washougal River can work its way into the Columbia River, and then the ocean and the fish we eat. When you help pick up micro-trash, you can help prevent this from happening.

Pacific Cascade Region Recreation Manager Sharon Steriti showcasing DNR’s heavy-duty trash bags.

“DNR benefits from the efforts of volunteers in many ways. They help out with our forest watch program, are our eyes and ears out in our forests, and also help out in recreation. It’s essential to have the public involved because they and many other groups across the state help us maintain many of our recreation areas,” Steriti said.

In addition to helping keep Washington’s trust lands clean, volunteers can also earn a complimentary Discover Pass through their volunteer efforts. Once a volunteer accrues 24 hours or more of volunteer time on certain projects managed by DNR, State Parks or WDFW in a 12-month period, they can earn a complimentary Discover Pass. Click here to learn more.

During the event, volunteers helped clean up 200 pounds of trash in total. To learn more about volunteer opportunities with DNR, visit dnr.wa.gov/volunteer.

Acres: 24,165Containment: 83%Personnel:  4Current Situation Hand crews and heavy equipment such as dozers, excavators, chippers, and various other machines continue to work diligently on suppression repair operations. This will result in roads being open faster, safer longer and better for forest recovery.Slash and other woody debris are being processed into chips at landing sites and then removed. This process allows for easier removal of the debris from the fire area and Forest. Removing the slash piles will aid in further mitigation of wildfires in the future. These actions help employ local workers and businesses and reduce the burden on local communities. There has been an influx of personnel this week as large equipment, drivers, operators, and contractors are arriving to help your community return to normal.Please be aware of heavier traffic on Highway 138 as more equipment will be hauling chips and debris from suppression repair out of the fire area. Fire Conditions and...

Acres: 50,409Containment: 74%Personnel: 374 Current SituationHand crews and heavy equipment such as dozers, excavators, chippers, and various other machines continue to work diligently on suppression repair operations. This will result in roads being open faster, safer longer and better for forest recovery.Slash and other woody debris are being processed into chips at landing sites and then removed. This process allows for easier removal of the debris from the fire area and Forest. Removing the slash piles will aid in further mitigation of wildfires in the future. These actions help employ local workers and businesses and reduce the burden on local communities. There has been an influx of personnel this week as large equipment, drivers, operators, and contractors are arriving to help your community return to normal.Please be aware of heavier traffic on Highway 138 as more equipment will be hauling chips and debris from suppression repair out of the fire area. Fire Conditions and...

Volunteers set off through the Olympic Experimental State Forest in Jefferson County as part an Earthwatch Institute group aiding Washington State Department of Natural Resources staff in forestry research.

The old-growth western hemlocks tower over a hillside in the Olympic Experimental State Forest southeast of Forks. There’s not a cloud in the sky on the beautiful summer day – not that you would be able to see one through the lush, green canopy anyway.

Gingerly descending the steep hillside, a group of 10 citizen scientists follows the footsteps of DNR forest ecologist Daniel Donato toward a research plot.

 There, they will spend the day assessing the habitat characteristics of this patch of forest as part of an ongoing experiment to determine how land management affects wildlife use in working forests.

From sociologists to software engineers, from schoolkids to senior citizens, these citizen scientists were just some of the nearly 50 people who got to explore the OESF and assist DNR scientists conducting research this summer through the environmental nonprofit Earthwatch.

Among the nearly 50 research volunteers who aided DNR this summer were a group of high school students from New York.

Evan Williams made the trek to the Olympic Peninsula from Lawrence, Kansas, seeing the weeklong experience as both an opportunity to meet new people and to get outdoors. She was initially nervous about meeting the physical requirements – clambering over downed logs, climbing down hillsides, navigating through the thick rainforest undergrowth – but she realized she could keep up and quickly came to appreciate both what she was learning and the company of the other volunteers.

“I’m learning everything from flora and fauna to history – it’s fascinating,” she said. “There’s nothing like this where I’m from and I’ve never been to this part of the nation. It’s fabulous.”

That learning opportunity is one of the most important things that OESF Research and Monitoring Manager Teodora Minkova set out to provide to the Earthwatch volunteers. Minkova, the co-principal investigator of the experiment with Donato, said she saw an opportunity to expose people to the importance of sustainable forestry – “forest management with a clear objective of environmental wellbeing and human wellbeing.”

An acoustic monitoring device sits strapped to the broken-off stump of a rotting tree.

The experiment – which uses the activity of different birds to measure how habitat quality, diversity, and function change after different types of forest management – is a part of the 20,000-acre T3 Watershed Experiment in the OESF that DNR and University of Washington researchers are undertaking to examine new methods for sustainable forestry.

“Forestry isn’t about cutting every tree and leaving a moonscape, and it is not about leaving every tree. There are many ways to manage a forest, and many people do not know that there is a middle ground,” Minkova said. “I wanted to show people that DNR is doing an array of activities just in our standard forest management practices – and we’re experimenting with even more novel ideas.”

A volunteer measures the diameter of a downed tree as part of DNR’s research measuring habitat use in the Olympic Experimental State Forest.

The volunteers took on several tasks in the field throughout the summer, performing habitat surveys to measure forest characteristics such as tree diameter and ground cover, as well as installing and retrieving audio recording units that allow researchers to determine what birds used the forest when people were not present.

The immersive experience went beyond the days of fieldwork, with staff and guest lecturers from the Makah Tribe and the University of Washington educating the volunteers about how forestry and ecology fit within the human geography of the Olympic Peninsula.

For Rohit Kothur of New York, he was drawn to Earthwatch after reading about the nonprofit in a memoir a friend had given him for Christmas.

Rohit Kothur came from New York to participate in the weeklong volunteer experience in the Olympic Experimental State Forest.

“In one of the chapters, she described an Earthwatch project she did in Australia where she was basically tracking emus and I thought that sounded awesome, so I found the organization, looked around for projects, and this was the coolest one that I saw that was available,” he said.

Kothur quickly took to learning about the experiment and appreciated the guidance of Donato and field supervisors Lauren Kuehne and Laura Giannone. But spending a week in and around Forks also afforded the Queens resident an in-depth opportunity to learn about the contentious legacy of forestry and conservation throughout the Pacific Northwest.

“I actually didn’t know anything about any of the timber wars stuff – it was kind of before my time – so coming out here and learning about all this stuff and how it affected the people around here and the people’s attitudes toward preservationists and the owl and the preservationists’ attitude toward the logging industry, it’s super fascinating,” Kothur said. “It’s just really cool just seeing this side of the country, this very small – I mean, it’s not small, it’s huge – this huge part of the culture that I wasn’t exposed to before.”

Where Kothur had a surprise sociology lesson, Irene Fiala volunteered so that she could learn about things outside the field. The Ashtabula, Ohio, resident is a sociology professor when she’s not traveling the world, and she, too, had never been to the Olympic Peninsula.

“This is like heaven,” Fiala said.

For Fiala, the weeklong expedition was a “really enlightening experience” – in part from the diverse group of participants being brought together through common interests, and also because of the opportunity to help science better the world around us.

“I teach a course called ‘Animals and Society.’ We focus on the animal side of it and we talk a little bit about conservation versus preservation, but to actually be here and to see how the forests are being managed and what kind of research is going on has for me both professionally and personally been something I find very valuable,” Fiala said.

A pair of volunteers measure the diameter of a large western redcedar.

For many of the volunteers, the experiment was an opportunity to explore a part of the world they had never visited before, even if it meant the occasional slog across hills thick with head-high hemlock understories.

But for Jeannette Franks, the Olympic rainforests have been a part of her life forever.

The Bainbridge Island resident has volunteered with Earthwatch regularly since 1996, the first time as a present to celebrate the completion of her doctoral degree. But this tour provided her with a unique opportunity to learn more about how the public lands in her own backyard are managed.

“I’ve been all over the world doing Earthwatch or other service projects, and this was the first time it was really in my neighborhood – it was like, ‘Yes, of course I’ll do that,’” Franks said. “I didn’t have to get on an airplane during COVID, which was also a bonus, and I love the Olympic rainforests, which I’ve been coming to since I was a child, so it just seemed like a good combination of components.”

The gratification that the volunteers found in the Olympic Experimental State Forest is one Minkova shared in organizing the experience – one of the few Earthwatch projects able to operate during the COVID-19 pandemic – and she specifically noted the volunteers’ generosity, determination, curiosity, and passion for a common cause in donating nearly 1,800 hours of their time.

“It was challenging – it was a lot of work for the project staff,” Minkova said. “However, it turned out to be quite rewarding seeing the lightbulbs that go off with the volunteers as they go through the forest and learn what we do and why.”

Volunteers set off through the Olympic Experimental State Forest in Jefferson County as part an Earthwatch Institute group aiding Washington State Department of Natural Resources staff in forestry research.

 There, they will spend the day assessing the habitat characteristics of this patch of forest as part of an ongoing experiment to determine how land management affects wildlife use in working forests.

From sociologists to software engineers, from schoolkids to senior citizens, these citizen scientists were just some of the nearly 50 people who got to explore the OESF and assist DNR scientists conducting research this summer through the environmental nonprofit Earthwatch.

Among the nearly 50 research volunteers who aided DNR this summer were a group of high school students from New York.

Evan Williams made the trek to the Olympic Peninsula from Lawrence, Kansas, seeing the weeklong experience as both an opportunity to meet new people and to get outdoors. She was initially nervous about meeting the physical requirements – clambering over downed logs, climbing down hillsides, navigating through the thick rainforest undergrowth – but she realized she could keep up and quickly came to appreciate both what she was learning and the company of the other volunteers.

“I’m learning everything from flora and fauna to history – it’s fascinating,” she said. “There’s nothing like this where I’m from and I’ve never been to this part of the nation. It’s fabulous.”

That learning opportunity is one of the most important things that OESF Research and Monitoring Manager Teodora Minkova set out to provide to the Earthwatch volunteers. Minkova, the co-principal investigator of the experiment with Donato, said she saw an opportunity to expose people to the importance of sustainable forestry – “forest management with a clear objective of environmental wellbeing and human wellbeing.”

An acoustic monitoring device sits strapped to the broken-off stump of a rotting tree.

The experiment – which uses the activity of different birds to measure how habitat quality, diversity, and function change after different types of forest management – is a part of the 20,000-acre T3 Watershed Experiment in the OESF that DNR and University of Washington researchers are undertaking to examine new methods for sustainable forestry.

“Forestry isn’t about cutting every tree and leaving a moonscape, and it is not about leaving every tree. There are many ways to manage a forest, and many people do not know that there is a middle ground,” Minkova said. “I wanted to show people that DNR is doing an array of activities just in our standard forest management practices – and we’re experimenting with even more novel ideas.”

A volunteer measures the diameter of a downed tree as part of DNR’s research measuring habitat use in the Olympic Experimental State Forest.

The volunteers took on several tasks in the field throughout the summer, performing habitat surveys to measure forest characteristics such as tree diameter and ground cover, as well as installing and retrieving audio recording units that allow researchers to determine what birds used the forest when people were not present.

The immersive experience went beyond the days of fieldwork, with staff and guest lecturers from the Makah Tribe and the University of Washington educating the volunteers about how forestry and ecology fit within the human geography of the Olympic Peninsula.

For Rohit Kothur of New York, he was drawn to Earthwatch after reading about the nonprofit in a memoir a friend had given him for Christmas.

Rohit Kothur came from New York to participate in the weeklong volunteer experience in the Olympic Experimental State Forest.

“In one of the chapters, she described an Earthwatch project she did in Australia where she was basically tracking emus and I thought that sounded awesome, so I found the organization, looked around for projects, and this was the coolest one that I saw that was available,” he said.

Kothur quickly took to learning about the experiment and appreciated the guidance of Donato and field supervisors Lauren Kuehne and Laura Giannone. But spending a week in and around Forks also afforded the Queens resident an in-depth opportunity to learn about the contentious legacy of forestry and conservation throughout the Pacific Northwest.

“I actually didn’t know anything about any of the timber wars stuff – it was kind of before my time – so coming out here and learning about all this stuff and how it affected the people around here and the people’s attitudes toward preservationists and the owl and the preservationists’ attitude toward the logging industry, it’s super fascinating,” Kothur said. “It’s just really cool just seeing this side of the country, this very small – I mean, it’s not small, it’s huge – this huge part of the culture that I wasn’t exposed to before.”

Where Kothur had a surprise sociology lesson, Irene Fiala volunteered so that she could learn about things outside the field. The Ashtabula, Ohio, resident is a sociology professor when she’s not traveling the world, and she, too, had never been to the Olympic Peninsula.

“This is like heaven,” Fiala said.

For Fiala, the weeklong expedition was a “really enlightening experience” – in part from the diverse group of participants being brought together through common interests, and also because of the opportunity to help science better the world around us.

“I teach a course called ‘Animals and Society.’ We focus on the animal side of it and we talk a little bit about conservation versus preservation, but to actually be here and to see how the forests are being managed and what kind of research is going on has for me both professionally and personally been something I find very valuable,” Fiala said.

A pair of volunteers measure the diameter of a large western redcedar.

For many of the volunteers, the experiment was an opportunity to explore a part of the world they had never visited before, even if it meant the occasional slog across hills thick with head-high hemlock understories.

But for Jeannette Franks, the Olympic rainforests have been a part of her life forever.

The Bainbridge Island resident has volunteered with Earthwatch regularly since 1996, the first time as a present to celebrate the completion of her doctoral degree. But this tour provided her with a unique opportunity to learn more about how the public lands in her own backyard are managed.

“I’ve been all over the world doing Earthwatch or other service projects, and this was the first time it was really in my neighborhood – it was like, ‘Yes, of course I’ll do that,’” Franks said. “I didn’t have to get on an airplane during COVID, which was also a bonus, and I love the Olympic rainforests, which I’ve been coming to since I was a child, so it just seemed like a good combination of components.”

The gratification that the volunteers found in the Olympic Experimental State Forest is one Minkova shared in organizing the experience – one of the few Earthwatch projects able to operate during the COVID-19 pandemic – and she specifically noted the volunteers’ generosity, determination, curiosity, and passion for a common cause in donating nearly 1,800 hours of their time.

“It was challenging – it was a lot of work for the project staff,” Minkova said. “However, it turned out to be quite rewarding seeing the lightbulbs that go off with the volunteers as they go through the forest and learn what we do and why.”

With fall weather returning and shorter days, the Bull Complex is winding down. Firefighters are continuing to focus on mop-up along the fire edge and suppression repair work. Fire suppression repair includes a series of immediate post-fire actions taken to repair damages and minimize potential soil erosion and impacts resulting from fire suppression activities. This work repairs the hand and dozer fire lines, roads, trails, staging areas, safety zones and drop points created and/or used while fighting the fire. This week on the Bull Complex, firefighters have been repairing dozer lines, grading roads used for fire access, using a curtain burner to create biochar from cut slash, and chipping slash from cut brush and limbs. Fire personnel work with local natural resource advisers to repair and reduce the impact of firefighting equipment and activities as much as possible.Firefighters and cultural resource advisors have removed structure protection wrap on Hawk Mountain Cabin, Gold...

The closure area has been reduced to the perimeter of the fire.  Please see map and official closure order attachments for more

Closure order has been amended as of 10/06/2021.  The area within the fire perimeter will remain closed.  Please read closure order to verify which roads and trails will remain

The revised closure order and map for Middle Fork Complex are linked

Acres: 24,165Containment: 83%Personnel: 4Current Situation Loaded dump trucks will be hauling chips down to Glide. Please be aware of heavier traffic on Highway 138.Crews are canvassing the fire area and retrieving equipment from suppression work.While conditions allow, an average of eight to ten miles of repair is being completed daily.  Road 23 has hand crews repairing dozer line, roads and installing water bars to prevent erosion. There has been an influx of personnel this week as large equipment, drivers, operators, and contractors are arriving to help with the suppression repair. Fire Conditions and Weather Favorable weather and successful suppression action has reduced fire behavior to isolated smoldering in heavy fuels. Continued cool temperatures for today but a few degrees warmer than yesterday. Mostly sunny skies except for some early fog in the valleys. Winds will be light out of the west. Cooler temperatures and moisture will continue through the week with more...

Acres: 50,409Containment: 74%Personnel:  374Current Situation Loaded dump trucks will be hauling chips down to Glide. Please be aware of heavier traffic on Highway 138.Crews are canvassing the fire area and retrieving equipment from suppression work.While conditions allow, an average of eight to ten miles of repair is being completed daily.  Road 23 has hand crews repairing dozer line, roads and installing water bars to prevent erosion. There has been an influx of personnel this week as large equipment, drivers, operators, and contractors are arriving to help with the suppression repair. Fire Conditions and Weather Favorable weather and successful suppression action has reduced fire behavior to isolated smoldering in heavy fuels. Continued cool temperatures for today but a few degrees warmer than yesterday. Mostly sunny skies except for some early fog in the valleys. Winds will be light out of the west. Cooler temperatures and moisture will continue through the week with more...

Prescribed Fire Operations Update John Day, Prairie City and Hines, OR. – (October 7, 2021) After carefully monitoring conditions across the Forest, fire officials have determined that conditions are within specific parameters, including temperature, relative humidity, and fuel moisture to start prescribed fire operations in specifically planned units.  Emigrant Creek Ranger District – planned ignitions starting today, October 7: Wolf F – 4,300 acres; located in the Magpie Table area. Silvies 7 – 3,000 acres; located south of the Silvies River and west of National Forest Road 31. Fuels have lost moisture over the long, hot summer. Burning under dry fuels conditions allows the fuels to potentially consume more completely and produce less smoke. For the safety of firefighters and the public, roads and areas of prescribed fire activity will be signed. Please avoid these areas so as not to interfere with ongoing operations. For safety, roads, trails and areas may need to close...

  Schneider Springs Fire Update Fire Update – Oct. 05, 2021 Fire Info Line: (509) 653-1468 Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.   The weather has started its downward spiral into fall.  Cooler days and cold nights have helped firefighters get the handle on the Schneider Springs Fire.  All smokes are on the interior of the fire perimeter and pose no threat to the containment lines.  You will be seeing smokes for a while. Suppression repair is in full swing with dozer lines being repaired, hazard trees being removed, and roads repaired. Resources are starting to demob as they are no longer needed or they time out.   Containment has risen to 86%.  100% containment will only occur when the snow flies, because of the rugged and remote terrain.  The acreage went up because of more accurate mapping.   The next update will be Thursday, October 7 and that will be the last update for Nevada Team 3.   Road and area closures are still in effect.  Even when they open,...

Acres: 24,165Containment: 83%Personnel: 4  Current Situation Large logs will continue to smolder and burn where they are protected in the understory from the precipitation that has fallen on the fire.  Suppression related repair work on the 5850 Road with heavy equipment continues. These actions include processing logs, removing slash and repairing roadways. Crews are actively chipping slash on the 3821 Road, removing debris from the ditches and roads to prevent erosion.  With the relocation of the large horizontal grinder, repair work has sped up and become more efficient. 42.6 miles of repair work has been completed. Chipping operation in the Johnson Meadow area will be completed today and crews will progress south. On the west side of Rough Patch, near 2358 Road, hand crews are repairing dozer line where the terrain is too steep for heavy equipment. Fire Conditions and Weather Last night the fire and burned areas received a dusting of snow with 3/10ths of an inch of...

Acres: 50,409Containment:74%Personnel: 346 Current Situation Large logs will continue to smolder and burn where they are protected in the understory from the precipitation that has fallen on the fire.  Suppression related repair work on the 5850 Road with heavy equipment continues. These actions include processing logs, removing slash and repairing roadways. Crews are actively chipping slash on the 3821 Road, removing debris from the ditches and roads to prevent erosion.  With the relocation of the large horizontal grinder, repair work has sped up and become more efficient. 42.6 miles of repair work has been completed. Chipping operation in the Johnson Meadow area will be completed today and crews will progress south. On the west side of Rough Patch, near 2358 Road, hand crews are repairing dozer line where the terrain is too steep for heavy equipment. Fire Conditions and Weather Last night the fire and burned areas received a dusting of snow with 3/10ths of an inch of...

PENDLETON, Ore. - Fire management officials on the Umatilla National Forest are preparing to implement the Forest’s fall prescribed burn plan, which could impact camping and hunting opportunities in several hunting units across the Forest.  Any associated road and trail closures will go into effect prior to and during burn operations, which typically take 2-5 days to complete. Hunters are advised to plan ahead and avoid camping in the designated prescribed burn areas during the 2021 hunting season. Frequent, low-intensity fire is essential for healthy forests and reducing the risk of uncharacteristic wildfire caused by excessive fuel buildup. Prescribed burning is an effective tool for removing excessive amounts of brush, shrubs, and trees, while also encouraging the growth of native vegetation. Prescribed burning is also highly dependent on weather conditions, which must be within a narrow criteria window in order to use prescribed fire. Factors such as wind speed and direction,...

Prescribed Fire Operations Update John Day, Prairie City and Hines, OR. – (October 5, 2021) After carefully monitoring conditions across the Forest, fire officials have determined that conditions are within specific parameters, including temperature, relative humidity, and fuel moisture to start prescribed fire operations in specifically planned units. Prairie City Ranger District – may start ignitions Wednesday, October 6th   and continuing possibly till Saturday, on the Elk 16 IB Unit, 600 acres, located North of Crane Prairie between the National Forest Service (NFS) Road 1600-600 and the 1660-478 road.Emigrant Creek Ranger District – may begin implementation in Silvies 7, located south and east of the Silvies River and west of NFS Road 31, as early as Thursday, October 7th, depending on weather conditions. 1,000 acres.  Fuels have lost moisture over the long, hot summer. Burning under dry fuels conditions allows the fuels to potentially consume more completely and...