USFS · Oregon

Willamette National Forest

The Willamette National Forest is a National Forest located in the central portion of the Cascade Range of the U.S. state of Oregon. It comprises 1,678,031 acres (6,790.75 km2). Over 380,000 acres are designated wilderness which include seven major mountain peaks. There are also several National Wild and Scenic Rivers within the forest. The forest is named for the Willamette River, which has its headwaters in the forest. The forest's headquarters are located in the city of Springfield. There are local ranger district offices in McKenzie Bridge, Detroit, Sweet Home, and Westfir.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest1.8 million acresUSFSOR186 campgrounds within 10 mi377 Forest Service sites507 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗
1fire
active
Thor Rx (prescribed burn) · 48 mi from the center
Interagency incident data as of 2026-09-18
Incident details ↓

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StateOregon
Size1.8 million acres (Forest Service administrative boundary (gis_acres))
Forest Service code0618, region 06
Center point44.1124, -122.1819
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 7)

Boundary map

1 outline

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Willamette National Forest40°50°60°70°80°January: 13.01 inches of precipitationFebruary: 7.49 inches of precipitationMarch: 9.78 inches of precipitationApril: 8.24 inches of precipitationMay: 4.33 inches of precipitationJune: 2.70 inches of precipitationJuly: 0.73 inches of precipitationAugust: 0.59 inches of precipitationSeptember: 1.87 inches of precipitationOctober: 5.83 inches of precipitationNovember: 10.97 inches of precipitationDecember: 12.11 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 43.9°F averageFebruary: 46.3°F averageMarch: 49.4°F averageApril: 54.1°F averageMay: 62.1°F averageJune: 66.9°F averageJuly: 73.8°F averageAugust: 73.4°F averageSeptember: 68.0°F averageOctober: 58.1°F averageNovember: 48.6°F averageDecember: 43.3°F average0 in5 in10 in15 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Cougar Dam, 3 miles from the center point at 1,260 feet, station USC00351914 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 78 inches a year.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

85 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 101 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Alder Springs
Reservable4 sites
FS · Inside
Alder Springs Campground
First-comeOR
FS · Inside
Bedrock Campground
Reservable26 sites
FS · Inside
Big Lake
Reservable56 sites
FS · Inside
Big Lake West Campground
Reservable12 sites
FS · Inside
Big Meadows Horse Camp
Reservable13 sites
FS · Inside
Big Pool
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Black Canyon Campground
Reservable74 sites
Show 4 more

174 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 377

The Forest Service lists 377 recreation sites in this forest, among them 198 trailheads, 61 campgrounds, 24 picnic areas, 24 day hikings. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 60

The 60 closest to the center point are listed; 317 more are on the Forest Service site.

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 507 named trails in this forest, 1,594 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Pacific Crest Trail - Wif4 ↗48.4
Middle Fork ↗27
McKenzie River NRT ↗26.4
Eugene to Pacific Crest ↗25.5
McBee ↗24
Pacific Crest Trail - Wif1 ↗23.6
Olallie ↗22.8
Jim Weaver Loop(waldo Lake) ↗19.9
Santiam Wagon Road West ↗19.2
Trail #55 - Pyramid Loop ↗18.4

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas, refreshed September 18, 2026. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 507 trails in Willamette National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Fire nearby

Within 50 miles · as of 2026-09-18
  • Prescribed
    Thor Rx

    48 mi from the center point

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge, and is measured from the center of a boundary that may be many miles across. Check the agency page for closures.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Register listings within 15 miles · 54 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Willamette National Forest?

1.8 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Willamette National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Willamette National Forest in?

Oregon.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Willamette National Forest?

85 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary, including Alder Springs, Alder Springs Campground and Bedrock Campground. 186 in all are within ten miles. Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites; check the forest page for closures.

Source: Where to camp

Where are the trailheads in Willamette National Forest?

The Forest Service lists 377 recreation sites here, including 198 trailheads, 61 campground campgrounds and 24 picnickings. Each one links to its Forest Service page.

Source: Trailheads and sites

How do I get to Willamette National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 44.112, -122.182. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

Is there a fire near Willamette National Forest right now?

1 active incident within 50 miles as of 2026-09-18, the nearest Thor Rx at 48 miles. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge.

Source: Fire nearby

How dark is the night sky at Willamette National Forest?

NASA’s Black Marble night-lights image reads 7 on a 0 to 255 scale at the center point, about as dark as the ground gets.

Source: NASA Black Marble

Are there historic places near Willamette National Forest?

54 National Register listings within 15 miles, including Belknap Bridge and Independence Prairie Ranger Station.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons; a state is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area.
  • Description: Willamette National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.