Umpqua National Forest

You are invited to a celebration that has been 100 years in the making. The Umpqua National Forest is celebrating 100 years of caring for the land and serving people. As part of our celebration, we developed an area of our forest web site to include our history, as we know it, complete with historic photographs. You can also find out about the celebrations we have planned this year and take a fun Forest Ranger Exam from 1908. Enjoy the site and join us for our centennial!

2006 Forest Facts...

The Umpqua National Forest

High Cascades glaciation, whitewater rapids and explosive volcanic events have shaped the spectacular scenery and abundant natural resources of the Umpqua National Forest.

The lands were included as part of the Cascade Forest Reserve in 1893. In 1908, Congress designated close to a million acres as the Umpqua National Forest.

The headwaters of the North and South Umpqua rivers and Row River begin on the Forest. Verdant stands of hemlock, true fir, Douglas-fir and cedar transition to lower elevation forests of mixed conifers and hardwoods. The waterways and diverse landscapes of the Forest create desirable habitat for many species of fish and wildlife in addition to providing outstanding recreational opportunities to our local communities and visitors.

The Lands

• Douglas County 824,544 acres (84%)
• Lane County 150,812 acres (15%)
• Jackson County 10,624 acres (1%)
• Total 985,980 acres

The Forest has four ranger districts (numbers exclude private and BLM lands)

• Cottage Grove 87,038 acres
• Diamond Lake 316,629 acres
• North Umpqua 256,404 acres
• Tiller 325,909 acres
• Total 985,980 acres

The Dorena Genetic Research Center is located near the Cottage Grove Ranger Station. The Forest is also the home of the Wolf Creek Job Corps Center, near Glide.

Personnel

• Full time permanent: 221
• Supervisor's Office 86
• Cottage Grove 24
• Diamond Lake 36
• North Umpqua 31
• Tiller 26
• Dorena 18

Volunteers

• 2002: 242 Volunteers = 24,420 Hours Donated
• 2003: 72 Volunteers = 9,975 Hours Donated
• 2004: 299 Volunteers = 19,556 Hours Donated
• 2005: 188 Volunteers = 23,935 Hours Donated
• 2006: 147 Volunteers = 28,908 Hours Donated

Northwest Forest Plan Land Allocations

According to the 1994 Northwest Forest Plan, the Forest falls within two provinces: The Willamette Province in the northern half, and the Oregon Cascades in the southern half of the Forest.

• 3% Administratively Withdrawn
• 34% Late Successional Reserve
• 7% Adaptive Management Area
• 34% Matrix
• 10% Riparian Reserve
• 12% Congressionally Withdrawn

Infrastructure

• 6 offices are located in Roseburg, Glide, Cottage Grove, Tiller, Toketee and Dorena. The Wolf Creek Job Corps Center, near Glide, is operated separately from the Forest
• 4,806 miles of Forest roads, 534 miles of which are maintained for passenger car travel
• 9,488 acres of inventoried Roadless Areas
• 5 active fire lookout facilities
• 2 sewage treatment plants, plus sewage lagoon system at Diamond Lake
• 4 water treatment plants
• 11 active water systems
• A municipal watershed is located at Layng Creek on the Cottage Grove Ranger District
• 173 mining claims on the Forest; 66 with activity on Cottage Grove, 53 on North Umpqua (50 without activity) and 4 without activity on Tiller

Recreation

• 3 Wilderness Areas: Boulder Creek, 19,100 acres; Rogue-Umpqua Divide, 26,350 acres (on Forest); and Mt. Thielsen, 21,593 acres (on Forest)
• 530 miles of trails;153 miles are within Wilderness areas
• 57 campgrounds with 800 total campsites
• 258 Special Use Permits; 146 Recreation Permits, 112 non-recreation permits
• 4 recreation resorts under Forest special use permit
• 102 summer homes under special use permit
• 5 rental cabins and fire lookout facilities
• 735,000 recreation visitors per year

Numbers

Budget (millions of dollars)

• 2002: 22.1
• 2003: 21.3
• 2004: 20.2
• 2005: 20.9
• 2006: 25.4

Timber Cut (million board feet)

• 2002: 4.6
• 2003: 5.1
• 2004: 17.3
• 2005: 29.7
• 2006: 5.3

Timber Sold (million board feet)

• 2002: 0.3
• 2003: 10.6
• 2004: 19.6
• 2005: 16.9
• 2006: 63.8

Workforce (perm. full & part time)

• 2002: 262
• 2003: 238
• 2004: 240
• 2005: 230
• 2006: 226

Forest Fires

Fire Starts

• 2002: 102
• 2003: 38
• 2004: 27
• 2005: 21
• 2006: 65

Acres Burned

• 2002: 88,159
• 2003: 1,297
• 2004: 10
• 2005: 2
• 2006: 79

Reforestation of Burned Areas

• Tiller Ranger District 1,156
• North Umpqua Ranger District 814
• Diamond Lake Ranger District 652
• Total Acres Reforested 2,622

Native American Indian Tribes

Archaeological evidence suggests that the Umpqua Basin has been occupied for over 10,000 years. As trappers and settlers arrived in the mid-nineteenth century, they documented four distinct tribes of American Indians living and using areas now administered by the Umpqua National Forest. The Umpqua in the main Umpqua Valley, the Southern Molalla in the uplands of the Umpqua National Forest, the Yoncalla in the northern part of the Umpqua Valley, and the Cow Creek with their territory encompassing Myrtle Creek, Cow Creek, and the South Umpqua drainage. The Umpqua, Southern Molalla, and Yoncalla were moved to the Grand Ronde and Siletz Reservations. The Cow Creek Band of Umpqua of Indians is the only federally recognized Tribe remaining within the upper Umpqua Basin. The Umpqua National Forest consults with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, Confederated Tribes of Siletz, and the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians.

Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000

Funding Year 2006: $2.69 Million

Since the act was enacted, the 15-member Rogue/Umpqua Resource Advisory Committee has recommended $17.3 million of Title II funding for 317 projects in Douglas, Lane, Jackson, Klamath and Josephine counties on the Umpqua and Rogue River-Siskiyou national forests. The program provides work for local contractors and communities while restoring forest health and maintaining roads and recreation facilities.

Wildlife

Over 250 wildlife species make the Forest home. Large mammals such as elk, deer, black bear, and cougar, as well as the smaller residents, squirrels, fox, raccoons, and bats are supported by the diverse forest habitats.

Raptors such as owls, eagles, osprey, and even peregrine falcons, can occasionally be seen soaring above the trees. Waterfowl are highly visible swimming and feeding in the lakes and rivers, while songbirds can be heard in the forests.

Anadromous fish - Coho and Chinook salmon and steelhead (sea-run trout) - and rainbow, brown and cutthroat trout swim, feed and spawn in the rivers and streams of the Forest.

Key Watersheds

• Boulder Creek 22,121 acres
• Calf Creek 12,651 acres
• Copeland Creek 22,988 acres
• Deception/Wilson Creeks 5,653 acres
• South Umpqua River 321,447 acres
• Steamboat Creek 118,369 acres
• Williams/Fairview Creeks 7,618 acres

Total 510,847 acres

Adaptive Management Area

The Little River Adaptive Management Area has 72,540 acres on the Umpqua and 19,260 acres administered by the Roseburg District Bureau of Land Management.

Rogue-Umpqua National Scenic Byway and North Umpqua Wild and Scenic River

The Rogue-Umpqua National Scenic Byway extends 172 miles through the Rogue River and Umpqua national forests, the Medford and Roseburg districts of the Bureau of Land Management, and local lands. The Byway forms a partial loop, off Interstate 5, between Roseburg on State Highway 138 and Gold Hill on State Highway 234.

The Byway parallels 40 miles of the North Umpqua Wild and Scenic River, famed for its remarkable emerald green waters and steelhead trout habitat. In 1988, the Oregon Omnibus Wild and Scenic Rivers Act designated a portion of the North Umpqua a part of the Wild and Scenic River system. Twenty-six miles of the river are on the Forest.

Umpqua National Forest 2006 Forest Facts Brochure

The information contained on this page is also availabe as a brochure. To request a copy, contact any of the Umpqua National Forest offices.

USDA Forest Service - Umpqua National Forest
Last Modified: Friday, 15 February 2008 at 19:33:20 EST