Hello Everyone,
Looking for rules about campfires on the Salmon River Trail. All I can find is info banning fires from last year. Is that still in effect? Planning on doing a trip this Friday and Saturday on that trail and would love to have a fire.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Anthony
Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
Re: Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
There's currently no fire restrictions in Mt Hood National Forest. You can have a fire as long as you're 200 feet away from the stream, keep it small, and have what you need to put it dead-out before you leave.
Re: Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
walkin62 wrote:There's currently no fire restrictions in Mt Hood National Forest. You can have a fire as long as you're 200 feet away from the stream, keep it small, and have what you need to put it dead-out before you leave.
Thanks for the info. I also called the park ranger and he told me the same thing. He also encouraged me not to have a fire
Re: Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
Good! Please take that to heart!amarkey wrote:He also encouraged me not to have a fire
Karl
Back on the trail, again...
Back on the trail, again...
Re: Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
The 200-foot rule would, for all practical purposes, mean no campfires in the first 2 miles of the Salmon River Trail and all of the Old Salmon River Trail. You would have to hike past the viewpoint in order to find a suitable location to camp that is also 200 feet from the river.
Re: Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
Exactly. This 200' rule would probably exclude a large number of existing campsite firepits in the state. And I'm completely fine with that. Decommission when (in)appropriate!
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Re: Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
I backpacked Salmon Creek Trail to Goat Creek Campground this past weekend and there are several camping spots very close to the water. We ended up having a small fire every night but we took precautions.miah66 wrote:Exactly. This 200' rule would probably exclude a large number of existing campsite fire pits in the state. And I'm completely fine with that. Decommission when (in)appropriate!
Re: Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
Im just curious, what is the reason for the 200' minimum from water rule for no campfires?
FWIW I was camping at Duffy Lake last weekend and the rule there was 100', was that because it was a lake vs stream?
FWIW I was camping at Duffy Lake last weekend and the rule there was 100', was that because it was a lake vs stream?
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Re: Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
The basic reason for limiting campsites, number of tents (people) and campfires is in reducing the impact to an area that potentially receives a lot of foot traffic.
A tent requires a footprint on the ground that over time (frequent usage of an area) turns duff into hard-packed dirt. If you have a campfire, it has to be a certain distance from your tent so you don't burn up your tent and belongings, which results in additional hard-packed dirt between the campfire ring and the tent, and around the campfire ring. Thus, the campfire site goes from being perhaps 10 sq ft of dirt to 50 or 100 sq ft of dirt.
Why is this a concern? In addition to the bare spot being less asthetically attractive than a natural duff soil with randomly placed ferns, runoff from rains can make the river less habitable for fish. By allowing the larger campsites away from streams, where people's attention is drawn and fish swim, the visual and environmental impact are both reduced.
Quite a few campsites along Eagle Creek (Gorge) have been roped off over the past 20 years in order to return them to a more natural condition. Campfires in many areas have been restricted simply because the wood laying on the ground has already been burned by campers and live trees would be the next source of fuel.
A tent requires a footprint on the ground that over time (frequent usage of an area) turns duff into hard-packed dirt. If you have a campfire, it has to be a certain distance from your tent so you don't burn up your tent and belongings, which results in additional hard-packed dirt between the campfire ring and the tent, and around the campfire ring. Thus, the campfire site goes from being perhaps 10 sq ft of dirt to 50 or 100 sq ft of dirt.
Why is this a concern? In addition to the bare spot being less asthetically attractive than a natural duff soil with randomly placed ferns, runoff from rains can make the river less habitable for fish. By allowing the larger campsites away from streams, where people's attention is drawn and fish swim, the visual and environmental impact are both reduced.
Quite a few campsites along Eagle Creek (Gorge) have been roped off over the past 20 years in order to return them to a more natural condition. Campfires in many areas have been restricted simply because the wood laying on the ground has already been burned by campers and live trees would be the next source of fuel.
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Re: Camp Fires Salmon Trail Oregon
Hi folks - the 200 foot rule is intended to apply (where physically feasible). Obviously, much of the Old Salmon R and parts of Salmon R cannot meet that. The intent is to reduce impacts and protect hiker experience. Fire rings and human waste near site have impacts to habitat and water quality. Hikers don't want to feel like we are hiking through your campsite when you camp so close to our trail. That said, leave no trace rules apply. Avoid a fire where/when possible. Consider a fire pan if you must. Keep fires small. Camp as far away from water sources and the trail as possible if terrain restricts 200' rule. In places like Salmon R and Old Salmon R, where use is high and frequent, camp in an existing site - not a new one. Pack out trash you have or that others have left. Don't bother trying to restore campsites. Campsite impacts have already occurred and are not possible to "restore" given continued use demands.