Welcome

The Forest Service was established in 1905 and is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Forest Service manages public lands in national forests and grasslands, which encompass 193 million acres.

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Spotlight

Secure Rural School and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000

On October 3, 2008, the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 was reauthorized as part of Public Law 110-343.  The new law has some significant changes.  The Forest Service is analyzing the new law and providing information to inform decisions that must be made by counties to meet the critical November 14, 2008 deadline that will ensure timely payments are made for fiscal year 2008.

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MonarchLIVE – A Distance Learning Adventure

On Friday October 10, from 12-1p.m. Eastern Time, children from the United States, Mexico and Canada tuned in to watch Chief Kimbell, and a host of partners, kickoff MonarchLIVE.  Every Forest Service employee can easily join the event from their personal computer. 

MonarchLIVE is an exciting conservation education project that uses satellite broadcast and Web technology to bring the magic of monarch migration to classrooms and children throughout the Western Hemisphere. The annual migration cycle of the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is one of the most spectacular natural phenomena in the world. 

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Fall Colors Hotline

The Forest Service Fall Color Hotline is up and running!! This Hotline provides national forest visitors with weekly updates on fall foliage color changes and fall activities throughout the nation.

The toll-free 'Fall Color Hotline' can be reached at (800) 354-4595. The automated voice system is updated weekly with information about peak fall foliage colors in various regions throughout the country. This is the 16th year we are providing this service. The Hotline will continue to operate through the middle of November, or as long as there is significant fall color in our national forests.

Last year we had more than 29,000 callers and we are continually growing.

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Beartooth Highway All-American Road – Montana and Wyoming

A nationally designated Department of Transportation (DOT) All-American Road, the Beartooth Highway is called the “most scenic drive in America” by the late Charles Kuralt. The byway is 68 miles and is one of the most spectacular alpine highways in North America. The route begins on US Highway 212 at Red Lodge, Montana at the southeast corner of Custer National Forest and offers a high-country driving experience through parts of Custer, Shoshone and Gallatin National Forests to the byways end at the northeast entrance to Yellowstone National Park.

The highway offers the byway traveler a rare opportunity to see the transition from a lush forest ecosystem to high alpine tundra in just a few miles. The byway offers sweeping vistas of snow-covered mountains to panoramic views of hundreds of tiny ponds and lakes in glacial depressions. In the winter, the highway is not plowed and becomes a snowmobile trail for winter recreation.

The National Forest System is a major destination and partner with DOT for almost half of the 126 designated All-American Roads and Nationals Scenic Byways. For a complete list of America’s Byways® with detailed maps, directions, visitor services and other information to plan you next trip to one of the 155 National Forest and Grasslands, visit the National Scenic Byways Program website at www.byways.org

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Climate Change Video

Climate change is one of the most urgent challenges facing all of us. Since conservation of our nation's forests and grasslands is a primary mission of the U.S. Forest Service, we are working in many positive ways to respond to this challenge. We invite you to take a few minutes to watch our new video, The Forest Service and Climate Change, and see for yourself how the rise in global temperatures is affecting our planet and the unique role trees play in helping to slow the impact of climate change.

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Celebrating Wildflowers

The dog days of summer are now behind us. Plans for autumn drives and fall hikes are being made in anticipation of nature’s blazing display of fall color; from the golden yellows of aspen in the west to the brilliant reds, orange and yellows of maples in the east. But take just a moment and gaze across the meadows, prairies, and woodlands and behold the regal display of our autumn wildflowers. Members of the aster family dressed in their finest yellows, blues, whites and pinks take center stage. You will delight in what you see as sunflowers, black-eyed Susans, asters, and many more put on a display to rival the wildflowers of spring. Come join us on our national forests and grasslands and enjoy the culmination of the year’s wildflower displays.

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Climate Change, Water and Kids

The American tradition of conservation dates to the 19th century. For more than a hundred years, the Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has built on that tradition by caring for the land and serving people. Over time, the challenges we face have changed. Today, three great challenges cut across the conservation work we do Climate Change, Water and Kids. These are not new topics for us, but they offer a context to build on. Recognizing that context means using our knowledge of cross-cutting issues at the broadest scale to better care for the land and serve people. The Forest Service is acting on a national scale to meet these challenges. Read more »

Discover what the Forest Service's Research and Development program is doing about climate change in your region of the country. Map »

Share the Experience Photo Contest 2008

Calling all outdoor enthusiasts, amateur shutterbugs, wildlife lovers or history buffs! We invite you to share your favorite photos of your visits to America’s Federal Recreation Lands by entering the 2008 “Share the Experience” Photo Contest, sponsored by Olympus Imaging America Inc. and the National Park Foundation. Your winning photo could grace the front of the 2010 Federal Recreation Lands Pass! Visit www.sharetheexperience.org to enter your photos from July 23rd to December 31st or pick up a brochure and entry form while visiting a Federal Recreation Land this year. Great prizes include: Olympus digital cameras, trips to a federal recreation areas, Federal Recreation Lands Passes and more!

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Features

National Recreation Trails Photo Contest

American Trails is sponsoring the 2008 contest for photographs of National Recreation Trails across the country. We're looking for good photos of trail users as well as special facilities, art on the trails, management issues, construction, and volunteers. We also want to see entries that cover the many types and uses of National Recreation Trails throughout America. Photos of any designated National Recreation Trail are eligible. The goal is to highlight the diversity of the NRTs and to make more Americans familiar with these great trails. The deadline for entries is November 30, 2008. For more information please visit the NRT website.

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Performance & Accountability

The Forest Service Performance and Accountability Report - Fiscal Year 2006 is now available. As required by law, this document integrates the Forest Service's annual performance report with its annual consolidated financial statements.

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Website Information

Web Survey

As you leave our site, a pop-up window may ask you to complete a survey that will help us improve the Forest Service website. The survey gathers no personal information about you. We hope you will take time to respond!

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