В Орегоне планируют утроить вырубку лесов и снять защиту с дикой природы

Explore Oregon’s wildest corner — the Blue Mountains Published 9:30 am Thursday, July 16, 2026 In a state full of wild places, the Blue Mountains of northeast Oregon stand out above the rest. This large region spans a massive diversity of habitats and landscapes, ranging from sagebrush-steppe and desert canyons to intact ancient forests and the state’s most rugged alpine mountains. Protected Wilderness Areas like the Eagle Cap, Strawberry Mountains, North Fork John Day, and North Fork Umatilla, along with world-class rivers like the Grande Ronde, Snake, Umatilla and John Day, attract visitors from around the world. The Blue Mountains contain some of the wildest areas left in Oregon, and their location and diversity of habitats make it one of the most important wildlife migration corridors in the lower 48, providing connectivity between the Rocky Mountains, the Columbia Plateau and the Cascades. Elk, moose, wolverine, great grey owls, salmon and steelhead and most of Oregon’s wolves call this region home. This is also one of the most threatened landscapes in Oregon, as the Forest Service just released a draft plan that would remove current protections for fish and wildlife, increase road construction and development, and triple commercial logging output across the Blue Mountains. The Forest Service is accepting public comments on this proposal until Sept. 30, so this summer is the perfect time to explore this remote and threatened landscape, and, if you so choose, submit a public comment in defense of it. Here are five of the best places to explore in the Blue Mountains that stand to be impacted by the proposed plan. Wallowa Mountains The highest peaks in the Blue Mountains are found in the Wallowas. The Eagle Cap Wilderness, in the heart of the Wallowas, is the crown jewel of this area, but a network of wild forests, river valleys and Roadless Areas surrounds the designated Wilderness. These are popular entry points to the Wallowas, where people come to backpack, hunt, and begin their wilderness adventures. For a remote wilderness experience in the Wallowas, head to the Main Eagle Trailhead along Eagle Creek. This trailhead provides access to the southern portion of the Eagle Cap Wilderness and Wallowas. Eagle Creek itself flows from the high peak of the Wallowas through a narrow, rocky canyon, providing excellent habitat for native trout. Joseph Canyon Home to elk, bear, bighorn sheep, gray wolves, and even moose, Joseph Canyon is one of the wildest river canyons in the Blue Mountains. This canyon has significant cultural value to the Nez Perce Tribe as an important area for hunting, fishing and gathering. It is also the birthplace of Chief Joseph, after whom the canyon is named. Joseph Canyon is a designated Roadless Area, and Joseph Creek, an important tributary of the Grande Ronde River, is a proposed Wild & Scenic River in Senator Ron Wyden’s River Democracy Act, a testament to its many important ecological and cultural values. The Joseph Canyon Viewpoint along Highway 3 north of Enterprise provides a sweeping vista of the rugged canyon and surrounding wildlands. North Fork John Day River Surrounding the North Fork John Day Wilderness is a vast expanse of undeveloped forest and wild watersheds. These streams pour cold, clean water into the North Fork John Day River and important spawning grounds for salmon and steelhead. Hike the South Fork Desolation Creek Trail for a remote, backcountry experience. This 5.4-mile round-trip hike climbs through a subalpine old-growth forest to the Greenhorn Roadless Area and Vinegar Hill Scenic Area. Note: This hike is featured in Oregon’s Ancient Forests: A Hiking Guide. If you are looking to spend the night after the hike, drive a little farther up the road to the Olive Lake Campground. This scenic campground features lakeside sites and opportunities for hiking, paddling, and fishing. Malheur Canyons The upper Malheur River watershed provides a vital migratory corridor for wildlife between the Strawberry Mountain and Monument Rock Wilderness Areas. The Malheur River and North Fork Malheur River are both designated Wild and Scenic Rivers and provide excellent hiking in the area. The Malheur River Trail starts near the river’s headwaters and travels downstream through a deep river canyon with towering walls and old-growth ponderosa pine. Note: This hike is featured in “Oregon’s Ancient Forests: A Hiking Guide.” Elkhorn Crest and Anthony Lakes The Elkhorn Crest Trail might be one of the most underrated backpacking trips in Oregon. Starting from the popular Anthony Lakes area, this 28-mile-long trail climbs to a ridgeline over 7,000 feet in elevation, featuring dramatic mountain views, tons of wildflowers, and no shortage of scenic alpine lakes. Much of the trail lies within the 60,000-acre Twin Mountain Roadless Area. Besides backpacking, the Elkhorns and Anthony Lakes are a popular destination for camping, fishing, hunting, and winter recreation based around the Anthony Lakes ski area. Blue Mountains Forest Plan Revision On July 2, the Forest Service issued a draft plan to revise the Blue Mountains Forest Plan. This is the plan that guides management across 5 million acres of the Malheur, Umatilla, and Wallowa-Whitman National Forests in the Blue Mountains and determines which areas are suitable for logging and grazing, and which areas should be protected for fish and wildlife habitat, clean drinking water, recreation, and conservation. The Trump Administration-led revisions to the plan propose significant changes to how these forests will be managed. Notably, the draft plan proposes eliminating or severely weakening protections for large trees and old-growth forests, native fish and wildlife, and Roadless Areas, and increasing the logging, grazing, and mining activity in the Blue Mountains. Specifically, the plan aims to triple commercial logging output from current levels, eliminate the 21-inch rule that protects large trees from logging, reduce safeguards for riparian areas and rivers, and eliminate protections for 721,000 acres of Roadless Areas. The public has until Sept. 30 to provide public comment on this proposal. After that, the Forest Service will consider public comments and release a final decision that is expected sometime in 2027. For now, the Blue Mountains remain wild and largely intact. However, if this version of the Blue Mountains Forest Plan is adopted, we can expect a lot less wildness, and a lot more roads, bulldozers, development, and stumps across Oregon’s wildest corner. Find more information on hikes in the Blue Mountains and across Oregon’s forests in “Oregon’s Ancient Forests: A Hiking Guide,” by Chandra LeGue.