Last checked: 23 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.

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, the rule now depends on which side of the mountains you are on. Washington State Parks has stepped the western parks down to Burn Ban Level 2, which allows a wood fire in a fire pit in a designated area, with gas and propane allowed and charcoal possibly restricted. We read that again on 23 September at Deception Pass, Cape Disappointment, Fort Worden, Moran, Rasar, Larrabee, Millersylvania, Ike Kinswa, Pacific Beach, Twin Harbors and Grayland Beach, and most of those notices were posted on 18 September. East of the Cascades the parks are still at Level 3, where gas and propane stoves and gas and propane fire pits are allowed and no charcoal or wood fire is. We read Level 3 the same morning at Lake Chelan, Lake Wenatchee, Wenatchee Confluence, Pearrygin Lake, Steamboat Rock, Sun Lakes Dry Falls, Mount Spokane and Riverside. Every park posts its own level on its own page, so read the one you are going to. The national parks no longer all say the same thing. North Cascades still bans every campfire in all parts of the park complex, as it has since 29 June, and because that complex takes in Ross Lake and Lake Chelan National Recreation Areas and so includes Stehekin, propane fire pits are not allowed there either. Mount Rainier has lifted the parkwide fire ban it put in place on 26 June: the park’s fire information page, updated 21 September, now reads “Parkwide Fire Ban: Not in effect”, although fires are never allowed in its wilderness. We could not verify Olympic on 23 September. The burn ban notice it had posted from 7 August is no longer among the park’s current alerts, and the park has published nothing saying what replaced it. Check Olympic National Park directly: Olympic alerts and conditions. The national forests have all now lifted their fire restrictions, and the last two went on 18 September. The Okanogan Wenatchee rescinded every public use restriction on the use of fire across that forest on 18 September, which is a bigger step than the move to Stage 1 it had made a week earlier, and the Gifford Pinchot alert page now states plainly that there are no current fire restrictions on that forest. Mount Baker Snoqualmie rescinded its campfire restrictions on 15 September, the Colville National Forest in the north east lifted its own on 11 September, and the Olympic National Forest fire page states that no public use restrictions are in effect there at all. So on national forest land the Forest Service is no longer adding a rule of its own anywhere in Washington, and what binds you is the statewide proclamation plus whatever the Department of Natural Resources and your county say. A fire closure order is a different thing from a fire restriction, and plenty of those are still in force, so the ground itself may still be shut even where a fire is now allowed. Verified at each agency 23 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.

Where we would and would not go right now

Our read, as of 23 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.

RegionOur readWhat we would tell a friend
Olympic Peninsula and the Pacific coastCheck the bridge before you goThe air is clear and this is still the most reliable corner of the state to walk in. Getting around it is the problem this week. From 5 AM Thursday 24 September the Hoh River Bridge on Highway 101, south of Forks, closes to all traffic around the clock until 5 PM Tuesday 29 September, and then again for stretches of about six days at a time into the middle of October, and there is no detour across the river. While it is shut you cannot drive between the northern half of the peninsula and the southern half at all, and going round the east side adds at least four hours. Mora Road is also 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. South Shore Road at Lake Quinault is closed at mile 8 by a major wash out beyond the park boundary. 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 islandsGoAir is good and nothing fire related is in the way.
South Cascades and Mount RainierGo, but check which roadParadise, 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. The other half of this region is the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, and it is the part we had been quiet about. A new fire closure covering forest roads and trails in the Mount St Helens and Mount Adams ranger districts took effect on 9 September and runs until further notice, and separate fire closures cover ground in the Cowlitz Valley ranger district. The mountains themselves are not shut, but pick your road off the Forest Service alert page rather than off a map.
Snoqualmie Pass, Cle Elum and the Alpine LakesCheck before you goThe Three Queens closure was cut back on 18 September and the new order lifts it from everything east of Highway 903, so the Teanaway trailheads are out of it: Esmeralda Basin, Ingalls Way and Longs Pass are no longer named as closed. Highway 903 and the Kachess Road are open. What is still shut runs up the Cle Elum River and around Lake Kachess through 31 October, including the Salmon la Sac, Cle Elum River, Owhi and Red Mountain campgrounds and the Rachel Lake, Pete Lake, Cooper River, Waptus and Davis Peak trails. Snow Lake Trail is closed for trail work until 25 September. Talapus Lake Trail and the forest road to it closed on 21 September and stay shut to 31 October for a trailhead rebuild. 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 corridorCheck before you goFires 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. Inside the national park complex the same fire closes the Stehekin Valley Road above Stehekin Valley Ranch to High Bridge, along with the camps around High Bridge, so the upper valley is off the table even though Stehekin itself is open. 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. The overnight closures of the Skagit River bridge at Marblemount are finished: the last one ended at 4 AM on Friday 18 September, so Cascade River Road is reachable at any hour again. Further west, on the Darrington side, a fire closure shuts the upper Suiattle River Road above the Downey Creek trailhead along with Downey Creek Trail, and it runs to the end of December.
Leavenworth, Lake Wenatchee, Chelan and EntiatAvoid for now, and this is the hard oneThe 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 OkanoganImproving, still checkFires are still active, but the Pasayten trail closure has been formally reduced. One more to know about on the Okanogan side: the Colville National Forest reissued its Sinlahekin fire closure on the Tonasket ranger district on 11 September, and it shuts a block of forest roads and trails there. Check the current order for the particular trail you want rather than assuming either way.
Spokane and the north eastMostly backMore 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 eastCheck before you goFire activity has eased with the rain. Walla Walla still picks up smoke from fires burning across the Oregon line in the Blue Mountains.

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 16 September 2026.
  • Cle Elum River and Lake Kachess, Cle Elum ranger district. The Three Queens fire closure was reduced on 18 September under a new order that runs to 31 October 2026, and the ground east of Highway 903 came out of it. Esmeralda Basin, Ingalls Way and Longs Pass are no longer on the closed list, and Highway 903 and the Kachess Road are open. Still closed: the Salmon la Sac, Cle Elum River, Owhi and Red Mountain campgrounds, the Salmon la Sac, Rachel Lake, Mineral Creek, Lake Lillian, Pete Lake and Davis Peak trailheads, and the Rachel Lake, Pete Lake, Cooper River, Waptus Pass, Spade Lake, Deception Pass and Davis Peak trails, along with the Pacific Crest Trail from Ridge Lake to the Lake Vicente trail. Verified at the Forest Service 21 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 16 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 16 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. The park has also posted a short closure of Aubrey L. White Parkway between the Bowl and Pitcher entrance and Rifle Club Road on Tuesday 22 and Wednesday 23 September while crews clear tree debris, with the Bowl and Pitcher still open and reachable from the south by Downriver Drive. Verified 21 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 16 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 16 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 16 September 2026.
  • Highway 410 corridor, Snoqualmie ranger district. The Forest Service has rescinded most of its Grand Park 2 fire closures along Highway 410. Ranger Creek Campground, the Ranger Creek airstrip, Suntop Trail, Huckleberry Creek Trail, the Lonesome Lake day use area and Forest Road 75 are open again. Forest Road 7305 and its spur, west of the White River, stay closed under an order that runs to 31 October. The highway itself is open and this is national forest land rather than the national park. Verified 16 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 16 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 16 September 2026.
  • Electric Fire and Miner’s Fire closures, Mount Baker Snoqualmie National Forest. Because of the Electric Fire, Forest Road 1060 is closed for its whole length from the junction with Highway 20, along with Forest Road 1064, from 2 September to 31 October. On the Darrington ranger district, the Miner’s Fire closure shuts the Suiattle River Road above the Downey Creek trailhead through to the Suiattle trailhead, along with Downey Creek Trail, from 15 August to 31 December 2026. The lower road was already shut at milepost 4 by a winter washout, so the upper Suiattle has been out of reach by car since February. Verified 16 September 2026.
  • Gifford Pinchot National Forest fire closures, south Cascades. A closure covering forest roads and trails in the Mount St Helens and Mount Adams ranger districts took effect on 9 September and runs until further notice. In the Cowlitz Valley ranger district, a separate order closes national forest land to all entry and travel inside a defined area, and another closes one forest road and its spurs. None of this shuts the mountains, but it does mean you check the Forest Service alert page for the road you plan to drive. Separately, High Bridge Trail in the Cowlitz Valley ranger district is closed for its whole length, from Forest Road 29 to the Tongue Mountain Trail junction, from 21 September to 9 October while its bridge is replaced, which we read at the Forest Service on 23 September. Verified 16 September 2026.
  • Highway 101 at the Hoh River Bridge, Olympic Peninsula. The Washington State Department of Transportation is closing the bridge south of Forks to all traffic. Overnight, 10:30 PM to 5:30 AM, every night from 15 to 22 September. The bridge was open on Monday 14 September; the state moved the start back a day after first announcing it. Then 5 AM Thursday 24 September to 5 PM Tuesday 29 September, 5 AM Thursday 1 October to midday Tuesday 6 October, and 5 AM Thursday 8 October to midday Tuesday 13 October. There is no detour across the Hoh River. While it is shut you cannot drive between Port Angeles, Lake Crescent, Sol Duc, Forks, Mora and the Hoh Rainforest on the north side and Kalaloch, Queets, Quinault, Amanda Park, Ocean Shores and Aberdeen on the south. Going round the east side of the peninsula adds at least four hours. Verified at WSDOT 23 September 2026.
  • Marblemount bridge, North Cascades. The nightly repair closures ran from Monday night 14 September to Friday morning 18 September, 8 PM to 4 AM, and the last one has now ended. The bridge is open and Cascade River Road, which is the road to Cascade Pass, is reachable at any hour again. North Cascades National Park has posted no further closure for this bridge. Verified 18 September 2026.
  • Snow Lake and Talapus Lake trail work, Snoqualmie ranger district. Snow Lake Trail is closed from 14 to 25 September 2026, from the trailhead to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness boundary. Talapus Lake Trail and Forest Road 9030 are closed from 21 September to 31 October 2026 for a trailhead expansion project. Neither is fire related, and both are popular enough to ruin a day if you turn up anyway. Verified 16 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.

Smoke and air

Rain moved across the state on 2 and 3 September and more fell over the weekend. At 5 AM on 23 September, AirNow read Good in 40 of the 43 Washington reporting areas with a current reading. Three read Moderate: Clarkston, Custer and Omak. That is better than Monday, when seven were Moderate, and Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane, Bellingham and Kennewick are all back to Good. Leavenworth and Chelan carried no current reading at all this morning, so we cannot tell you what the air is doing there. The National Weather Service had no active alert of any kind anywhere in Washington this morning, air quality or otherwise. The newest Washington Smoke Blog outlook is still the one from 18 September, which said smoke was pooling in the valleys near the fires that are still smoldering, with Stehekin worst of all and Cle Elum Lake, Lake Wenatchee, Lake Chelan and Ross Lake all seeing it come and go. Near those fires, smoke can still settle into the valleys overnight and clear again through the middle of the day, so early morning is when it is worst, and this reading was taken at that hour.

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: 23 September 2026, 5 AM. The most recent Washington Smoke Blog outlook was published 18 September 2026.

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.

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.