The Umatilla National Forest, in the Blue Mountains of northeast Oregon and southeast Washington, covers an area of 1.4 million acres (5,700 km2). In descending order of land area the forest is located in parts of Umatilla, Grant, Columbia, Morrow, Wallowa, Union, Garfield, Asotin, Wheeler, and Walla Walla counties. (Columbia, Garfield, Asotin, and Walla Walla counties are in Washington, while the rest are in Oregon.) More than three-quarters of the forest lies in the state of Oregon.[4] Forest headquarters are located in Pendleton, Oregon. There are local ranger district offices in Heppner and Ukiah in Oregon, and in Pomeroy and Walla Walla in Washington.[5]
Quick Facts Location, Nearest city ...
Close
Common wildlife in the Umatilla National Forest include moose,[8] elk, bighorn sheep, black bear, mountain goat, mule deer, white-tailed deer, timber wolf,[9] cougar, coyote, badger, Merriam's turkeys, transplanted Rio Grande wild turkeys, blue and ruffed grouse, Franklin's grouse, chinook salmon, coho salmon, steelhead, rainbow trout,[6] brook trout, and lake trout.
More than 20 percent of the Umatilla National Forest is classified as wilderness:[10]
- Wenaha–Tucannon Wilderness, 177,400 acres (718 km2), straddles the border between Oregon and Washington.
- North Fork John Day Wilderness, 121,800 acres (493 km2), is in the southeast section of the National Forest and located partly in neighboring Whitman National Forest.
- North Fork Umatilla Wilderness, 20,200 acres (82 km2), contains the narrow valley of the North Fork Umatilla River, the source of the Umatilla River.
A 1993 Forest Service study estimated that the extent of old growth in the forest was 190,741 acres (77,190 ha).[11]
Common recreational activities in the Umatilla National Forest include OHV riding, camping, hiking, fishing, hunting, wildlife watching, skiing, and rafting.[12]
Spout Springs Ski Area in Oregon and Bluewood Ski Area in Washington operate under special use permit within the forest.[12] Jubilee Lake has the most popular campground in the forest.[13]