Port Angeles – On Sunday, July 6, a human-caused fire was reported in Olympic National Forest near the Mt. Rose Trailhead along the Lake Cushman Corridor (FS-24). The fire – named the Bear Gulch Fire – is burning on a steep, rocky slope north of Lake Cushman and southeast of the Staircase area of Olympic National Park. The fire is approximately 200 acres.
While there are no current threats to structures or nearby communities, Olympic National Park officials have closed access to the following areas of the park until further notice.
- Staircase Area and Campground
- Bear Gulch Day Use Area
- Rose Trailhead
- Dry Creek Trailhead
- Copper Creek Trailhead
Due to the steep and rocky terrain, aviation resources offer the safest and most effective methods for suppressing the fire. Scoopers and helicopters have used water from Lake Cushman to mitigate the spread. Two twenty-person handcrews and four interagency engines are responding to accessible areas near FS-24 and the lower ends of the fire. A Type 3 Incident Management Team and additional crews will join the effort tomorrow.
Public and firefighter safety remains the top priority. To support this effort, visitors are being asked to avoid the Lake Cushman and Staircase areas.
For updates on the Bear Gulch Fire, visit the Olympic National Forest website at https://www.fs.usda.gov/r06/olympic and follow @olympicforest on social media.
(Photo: Bear Gulch Day Use area)