USFS · Washington, Oregon

Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area

National Forest managed by the U.S. Forest Service in Washington and Oregon.

National Forest292,682 acresUSFSWAOR12 campgrounds within 10 mi23 Forest Service sites82 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗
4 fires
active
Ward Pile Rx - East (prescribed burn) · 29 mi from the center · 29 acres
3 more within 50 miles
Incident details ↓

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StatesWashington, Oregon
Size292,682 acres
Forest Service code0622, region 06
Center point45.66° N, 121.07° W
Night skyVery dark ground, a faint glow at most (Black Marble reading 25)

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 Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area30°40°50°60°70°80°January: 2.38 inches of precipitationFebruary: 1.58 inches of precipitationMarch: 1.18 inches of precipitationApril: 0.83 inches of precipitationMay: 0.76 inches of precipitationJune: 0.48 inches of precipitationJuly: 0.16 inches of precipitationAugust: 0.16 inches of precipitationSeptember: 0.33 inches of precipitationOctober: 1.14 inches of precipitationNovember: 1.97 inches of precipitationDecember: 2.68 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 36.5°F averageFebruary: 40.2°F averageMarch: 46.4°F averageApril: 53.0°F averageMay: 61.3°F averageJune: 67.1°F averageJuly: 74.7°F averageAugust: 74.1°F averageSeptember: 66.3°F averageOctober: 54.0°F averageNovember: 42.7°F averageDecember: 36.2°F average0 in1 in2 in3 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at The Dalles Muni AP, 5 miles from the center point at 235 feet, station USW00024219 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 14 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 →

4 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 8 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
Eagle Creek Campground
Reservable17 sites
FS · Inside
Eagle Creek Overlook Grp Site
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Herman Creek Campground/Horse Camp
ReservableOR
FS · Inside
Wyeth Campground
Reservable16 sites
FS · 2 mi
Moss Creek Campground
Reservable17 sites
FS · 2.3 mi
Black Lake Campground & Day Use Area
First-comeOR
FS · 4.7 mi
Panther Creek Campground
Reservable33 sites
FS · 5.3 mi
Wahtum Lake Campground
First-comeOR
Show 4 more

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 23

The Forest Service lists 23 recreation sites in this forest, among them 6 trailheads, 3 visitor centers, 2 day hikings, 2 viewpoints. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 23

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 82 named trails in this forest, 200 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Gorge ↗28.3
PCT: Columbia Gorge ↗22.6
Klickitat River Trail ↗13.5
Augspurger ↗7.9
Oneonta ↗7.7
Larch Mountain ↗6.5
Cape Horn ↗5.3
Gorton Creek ↗5.2
Horsetail Creek ↗5
Wyeth4.4

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas. This trail list was copied from Trailhead Atlas on November 1, 2026 and is copied again on each weekly run. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 82 trails in Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Fire nearby

Within 50 miles · as of 2026-11-01
  • Prescribed
    Ward Pile Rx - East

    29 mi from the center point · 29 acres

  • Prescribed
    Bronco Piles Rx East

    33 mi from the center point

  • Prescribed
    Camp Cody Rx - East

    34 mi from the center point · 32 acres

  • Prescribed
    Natural Bridges Pile Rx - South

    34 mi from the center point · 155 acres

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 Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Historic Site · 13 mi
Fort Vancouver National Historic Site
National Register listings within 15 miles · 630 in all · Register Atlas

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

Guidebooks for Washington

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Backpacking Washington
    Douglas Lorain, 2020
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Pacific Crest Trail: Oregon and Washington
    Andy Selters, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Waterfalls in Washington
    Sawyer Scheer, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Washington's Fire Lookouts
    Amber Casali, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hikes in the Washington Region Part C
    Larry Broadwell and William Needham, 2017
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area?

292,682 acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area in?

The boundary crosses Washington and Oregon.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area?

Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites. Check the forest page for closures. The federal campgrounds within ten miles are listed under Where to camp.

Source: Where to camp

How do I get to Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area?

A point inside the boundary is at 45.659° N, 121.073° W. Fort Vancouver National Historic Site is 13 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

Is there a fire near Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area right now?

4 active incidents within 50 miles as of 2026-11-01, the nearest Ward Pile Rx - East at 29 miles. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge.

Source: Fire nearby

Which national parks are near Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area?

Fort Vancouver National Historic Site (13 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area?

The National Register has 630 listings within 15 miles, including Bonneville Dam Historic District (Boundary Increase) and Columbia River Highway Historic District.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • 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.