20 Blue Mountain campgrounds closed after Umatilla National Forest is shut down by fires
Thousands of acres of burning forest forced the closure of the entire Umatilla National Forest at the height of summer recreation in the Blue Mountains of Oregon and Washington.
And it’s likely to stay shut for several weeks.
Hot, dry conditions and continuing efforts to battle three large wildfires drove the U.S. Forest Service to decide it would be safer for the public to close access to 1.4 million acres of forest.
That led to shutting 20 campgrounds, including Bluewood, Olive Lake and Jubilee Lake campgrounds.
The forest stretches across nine counties in the two states, including Columbia, Walla Walla, Asotin and Garfield counties in Washington, and Umatilla, Morrow, Grant, Wheeler and Wallowa counties in Oregon.
The closure means people won’t be able to access the 2,000 miles of forest roads and 700 miles of trails.
State and federal highways, including Interstate 84, and county roads are still open.
The Forest Service is trying to reach as many people as possible to begin emptying the campsites. The public was advised to cancel any plans to visit the forest for the next several weeks.
“This is a temporary closure and the Forest (officials) will continually assess conditions and lift the closure once the unprecedented conditions moderate,” the forest service said in a release.
Violators can face up to a $5,000 fine and prison time, and organizations can be fined up to $10,000.
Friday’s decision was spurred by firefighting efforts to contain the Lick Creek, Green Ridge and Elbow Creek fires.
Hot weather has made it hard for firefighters to work, according to a release from the Forest Service.
The Lick Creek fire started after a lightning strike in the forest July 7 southeast of Pomeroy. So far, it had burned over 65,000 acres and isn’t expected to be contained until Sept. 1.
About 30 miles east Walla Walla, another lightning strike July 7 started the Green Ridge fire that wasn’t expected to be contained until the end of August.
The third fire started southeast of Walla Walla this week and had burned more than 9,000 acres.
This story was originally published July 16, 2021 at 4:52 PM with the headline "20 Blue Mountain campgrounds closed after Umatilla National Forest is shut down by fires."