Campfires now restricted in Olympic National Forest and Park
Campfires in Olympic National Forest and Olympic National Park have been restricted to established fire rings as of noon Friday, July 11.
The U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service announced the new restriction in a Thursday news release, citing dry conditions, high fire danger and active wildfires in the region.
“Because it was a very dry spring, forest vegetation is extremely dry, stressed, and receptive to stray embers,” Olympic Interagency Fire Management Officer Jeff Bortner said in the news release.
“The ongoing Bear Gulch Fire shows how fast fires can grow during these conditions. When firefighters are already responding to other incidents across the region, it becomes even more important to prevent new, human-caused starts,” he said.
The Bear Gulch Fire started July 6 near the Mount Rose Trailhead along the Lake Cushman Corridor of Olympic National Forest. This human-caused blaze had burned about 415 acres as of Thursday, according to an interagency incident information system.
So far, the fire has been burning on a steep, rocky slope north of Lake Cushman and southeast of the Staircase area of Olympic National Park. No structures or communities were immediately threatened Thursday but Staircase and other recreational areas remained closed.
The new campfire restrictions ban visitors from creating backcountry and dispersed area campfires or using charcoal grills and other equipment that create ash.
Gas or propane camp stoves are still permitted provided they have shut-off valves or levers that can immediately extinguish flames. The public is advised to use such stoves far away from flammable vegetation and forest litter.
These restrictions also apply to coastal beaches in Olympic National Park as well as the Hoh and Quinault rainforests, according to the news release.
Officials recommend the public keep campfires small, attend to active campfires at all times and properly extinguish all campfires before leaving them.
The public can review updated fire information on the respective websites of appropriate land management agencies.
- Olympic National Park, www.nps.gov/olym
- Olympic National Forest, www.fs.usda.gov/olympic
- Washington State Department of Natural Resources, https://fortress.wa.gov/dnr/protection/firedanger/
This story was originally published July 10, 2025 at 8:34 PM with the headline "Campfires now restricted in Olympic National Forest and Park."
