Last checked: 7 September 2026

Wildfire, smoke and closures change faster than any travel guide can keep up with. So we keep the current picture here, in one place, and our guides point at this page instead of trying to hold a status that goes stale a week after it publishes.

This page tells you where we would and would not send someone right now. It does not report fire sizes or containment percentages. Those numbers are unreliable in every free source we tested, and they are not what you need in order to decide whether to go. Everything here carries a date, and every source we use is linked at the foot so you can check for yourself.

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A statewide burn ban runs through 30 September 2026

Governor Ferguson declared a statewide emergency on 1 August 2026, and the proclamation bans most outdoor burning through 30 September.

What it stops: yard debris burning, trash disposal, land clearing, weed abatement, bonfires, and campfires that are not contained in a structure such as a fire ring.

What the proclamation itself still allows: liquid fuel and gas stoves and grills, used over a non flammable surface and at least five feet from anything that will burn. And campfires contained in a fire ring or fire pit at state, county and municipal parks and campgrounds, or on private property.

The proclamation itself does not ban a campfire in an established ring. What matters much more in practice is that it does not override anything stricter, and almost everywhere you would actually camp is stricter right now.

At a Washington state park, there is no wood or charcoal fire. Washington State Parks has a Level 3 burn ban in effect statewide, at every park and property, and it is posted on individual park pages too. Gas and propane stoves and gas and propane fire pits are allowed where the park allows them. Charcoal and wood are not. In the national parks there is no campfire at all. Mount Rainier banned them from 26 June, North Cascades from 29 June, and Olympic from 7 August, and Olympic’s ban covers the coastal beaches as well as the back country. In the North Cascades National Park complex, which takes in Ross Lake and Lake Chelan National Recreation Areas and so includes Stehekin, propane fire pits are not allowed either. Every national forest on the west and center of the state goes further than the proclamation as well. Okanogan Wenatchee, Mount Baker Snoqualmie, Olympic and Gifford Pinchot all have forest wide restrictions prohibiting wood, wood stove and charcoal fires everywhere including campgrounds and wilderness, with pressurized gas stoves the accepted alternative. The Department of Natural Resources and individual counties set their own rules on top of that. Verified at each agency 7 September 2026.

So check the specific place you are going before you light anything. Start with the state parks alerts page if you are camping at a state park, and the DNR Burn Portal for everywhere else.

This section expires on 30 September 2026. After that date, treat it as out of date until we have replaced it.

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Where we would and would not go right now

Our read, as of 7 September 2026. Towns and businesses in every region below are open and want visitors. What changes by region is whether the outdoors people travel here for is reachable.

Region	Our read	What we would tell a friend
Olympic Peninsula and the Pacific coast	Go, with two road checks	The air is clear and this is still the most reliable corner of the state. Two things will change a plan though. Mora Road is closed at the campground to everyone including bikes and walkers until 15 October, so Rialto Beach cannot be reached that way, and the park itself suggests Ruby Beach instead. And South Shore Road at Lake Quinault is closed at mile 8 by a major wash out beyond the park boundary. Two lightning fires are burning in remote back country near Mount Olympus with no closures attached, and the Staircase developed area is open while the wilderness around it stays closed for burn recovery.
Puget Sound, Seattle and the islands	Go	Air is good and nothing fire related is in the way.
South Cascades and Mount Rainier	Go, but check which road	Paradise, Chinook Pass and Tipsoo Lake are open. White River Road and White River Campground reopened on 5 September, along with the White River and Sunrise trails. Sunrise Road stays closed to cars and is open for walking and biking only, so Sunrise is reachable but not drivable. Grand Park, the Northern Loop Trail and the Wonderland Trail between the Carbon River suspension bridge and Frozen Lake are still closed. Separately, the Fairfax Bridge on State Route 165 is closed to everyone, so there is no access to Carbon River or Mowich Lake, and Ohanapecosh Campground is closed for construction all year.
Snoqualmie Pass, Cle Elum and the Alpine Lakes	Check before you go	A fire closure order still covers a block of trails and campgrounds up the Cle Elum River valley through 31 October. The rain has quietened the fires, but the order has not been lifted. Snow Lake Trail closes for trail work from 14 to 25 September. Separately, Gold Creek Pond is closed and will be for years, for a restoration project rather than a fire.
North Cascades and the Highway 20 corridor	Check before you go	Fires are still burning in the back country either side of the highway, and the Sisi fire closure shuts the Pacific Crest Trail and the Stehekin side trails in the Chelan ranger district for the rest of the year. The paving closures at the Rainy Pass, Washington Pass, Cutthroat, Lone Fir, Bridge Creek and Klipchuck trailheads and campgrounds have all passed their posted dates, the last on 4 September, so the larch walks should be reachable again. The order behind them runs to 15 October though, so check the Forest Service alert before you drive.
Leavenworth, Lake Wenatchee, Chelan and Entiat	Avoid for now, and this is the hard one	The fire is in much better shape than it was in August and evacuation levels have come down, so the news sounds better than the access is. The Forest Service closure order runs to 31 October and still covers a long list of trails, lakes and passes. The towns are open and worth your money. The country around them is largely still shut.
Methow Valley, Winthrop, Twisp and Okanogan	Improving, still check	Fires are still active, but the Pasayten trail closure has been formally reduced. Check the current order for the particular trail you want rather than assuming either way.
Spokane and the north east	Mostly back	More of Riverside State Park reopened on 28 August, including the Bowl and Pitcher suspension bridge, which came through untouched. Sections are still active fire zones and remain closed, and there is no drinking water in the Nine Mile Recreation Area, so take your own. Note also that 7 Mile Road is shut for sewer work until early October, so check the detour before you drive.
Yakima Valley, Walla Walla and the south east	Check before you go	Fire activity has eased with the rain. Walla Walla still picks up smoke from fires burning across the Oregon line in the Blue Mountains.

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Closures we know about by name

• Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest, Wenatchee River and Entiat ranger districts. The Little Giant fire closure order was reissued on 3 September and runs to 31 October 2026, covering a long list of trails, roads and campgrounds around Leavenworth, Lake Wenatchee and Entiat. Orders can be lifted earlier than their end date, so check rather than assume. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Ingalls Lake, Esmeralda Basin and Longs Pass, Cle Elum ranger district. A fire closure order covering the Three Queens, King and Goat fires shuts Ingalls Way, Esmeralda Basin, Longs Pass and a long list of upper Cle Elum River trails and campgrounds through 31 October 2026. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Pacific Crest Trail and the Stehekin trails, Chelan ranger district. The Sisi fire closure shuts the section of the Pacific Crest Trail that runs through the Chelan ranger district up to the North Cascades National Park boundary, along with the Agnes Gorge, Agnes Creek, Company Creek, Devore Creek and Swamp Creek trails. It runs to 31 December 2026, which is the rest of the season. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Gold Creek Pond, Cle Elum ranger district. Closed under a Forest Service order that runs from 23 June 2026 to 23 June 2028 for a restoration project, with the closure in force each year from 1 April to 30 November. Not fire related, and not reopening soon. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Riverside State Park, Spokane. More of the park reopened on 28 August 2026. Sections are still active fire zones and remain closed, and there is no drinking water in the Nine Mile Recreation Area, so take your own. Separately, 7 Mile Road has been closed since 31 August between Highway 291 and the 7 Mile bridge for sewer work, expected to reopen at the beginning of October, so check the park detour before you drive. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Sunrise and the northern trails, Mount Rainier National Park. Closed since 13 August because of fires on the north side of the park, and partly reopened on 5 September. White River Road and White River Campground are open again, with the White River and Sunrise trails. Sunrise Road remains closed to cars and is open for walking and biking only. Still closed until further notice: the Grand Park area and its trails, the Northern Loop Trail, the Wonderland Trail from the Carbon River suspension bridge to Frozen Lake, and the backcountry camps in that area. Paradise, Chinook Pass and Tipsoo Lake are open. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Carbon River and Mowich Lake, Mount Rainier National Park. State Route 165 is closed at the Fairfax Bridge to vehicles, bicycles and people on foot, and there is no alternate route. There is no public access to Carbon River or Mowich Lake from SR 165 at all. This is separate from the fire closures and it is the one that catches people out, because the map still shows a road. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Ohanapecosh, Mount Rainier National Park. The whole Ohanapecosh Campground area is closed for construction for all of 2026, including every campsite, the visitor center, the restrooms, the picnic area and river access. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Highway 410 corridor, Snoqualmie ranger district. The Grand Park 2 fire has closed several road systems, trails and recreation sites on the national forest along Highway 410, including Ranger Creek Campground, the Ranger Creek airstrip, Suntop Trail and Huckleberry Creek Trail. The highway itself is open and this is national forest land rather than the national park. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Mora Road and Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park. Mora Road is closed at the campground to all traffic including bicycles and pedestrians from 8 July to 15 October 2026 for flood repairs, so Rialto Beach cannot be reached by road. Mora Campground stays open, and the park suggests Ruby Beach instead. South Shore Road at Lake Quinault is also closed at mile 8 by a wash out beyond the park boundary. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Highway 20 trailheads and campgrounds, Methow Valley ranger district. Rainy Pass, Washington Pass, Bridge Creek, Cutthroat, Lone Fir and Klipchuck were closed in turn for a paving project, and every posted closure window has now passed, the last one on 4 September. The order behind them stays in force to 15 October, so the Forest Service can close a site again if the work runs on. Roadwork rather than fire, and worth a check before an autumn larch drive over the pass. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Electric Fire road closures, Mount Baker ranger district. Forest Road 1060 is closed for its whole length from the junction with Highway 20, along with Forest Road 1064, because of the Electric Fire. In effect from 2 September to 31 October. Verified 7 September 2026.
• Snow Lake Trail, Snoqualmie Pass. Closed for trail work from 14 to 25 September 2026, from the trailhead to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness boundary. Not fire related. Verified 7 September 2026.

This is not a complete list, and we will not pretend it is. Nobody publishes a single closure list for Washington. If a particular trail matters to your trip, check it at the source.

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Smoke and air

Rain moved across the state on 2 and 3 September and it made a real difference. At 1 PM on 7 September, AirNow read Good in every Washington reporting area with a current reading except Clarkston, which was Moderate, and the National Weather Service had no air quality alert active anywhere in the state. The alerts that covered Chelan, Douglas and Kittitas counties have expired, and fire activity slowed with the wet weather. Near the fires that are still burning, smoke can settle into the valleys overnight and clear again through the middle of the day, so early morning is when it is worst.

This is the weakest thing on this page, and we would rather say so than let you assume otherwise. The state smoke blog publishes every few days rather than daily, and air can turn in an afternoon. Check AirNow for the day you are travelling.

Air last checked: 7 September 2026, 1 PM. The most recent Washington Smoke Blog outlook was published 4 September 2026.

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Check it yourself

This section works even when everything above it has gone stale. If the dates on this page look old, come straight here.

• Watch Duty for active fires. The fastest and most complete source we found.
• AirNow for air quality by reporting area.
• Washington Smoke Blog for the smoke outlook and what it means.
• Washington DNR wildfire portal for official state fire information.
• DNR Burn Portal for burn restrictions in a specific place.
• Forest Service Pacific Northwest alerts for closure orders, forest by forest.
• Washington State Parks alerts for park by park closures.
• WSDOT mountain passes for road and pass conditions.
• Washington Trails Association trip reports for what hikers actually found this week.

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How we keep this page

We check it on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings, and again before we publish anything with a date on it. If a section above shows a date more than a week old, treat it as a starting point and use the links in Check It Yourself. We would rather send you to the source than have you trust a page that has quietly stopped being true.