Driving on WA state DNR lands

[Mossback]

A couple of links for driving Washington DNR lands. First Open data for WA dnr lands. This is a map showing "active" dnr roads, meaning, it's mostly a "who maintains this road" map. It shows a lot of USFS lands because they are used to access dnr lands. It's a good reference tool for determining possibilities for travel with one important caveat. Orphaned or abandoned roads are considered "off road" on dnr lands. The DNR prohibits motorized off road travel on its lands. This does not mean it is rigorously enforced but if you have an accident or breakdown they could conceivably force you to extract your vehicle via helicopter. Again, probably not likely, but possible. The state gets a tremendous amount of revenue from these lands and if you plug up a road you plug up the money and just look around at who went cross eyed and farted. And this money comes mainly from logging. Here is an excellent write up about driving in logging country. If you drive logging country, get a cb radio. They're cheap and that's the way truckers communicate. Even if you are legally allowed to travel, 80 tons gets a bigger vote than one ton. Consider the driver, 50 tons of logs aimed at the back of your head makes your attitude a little different. These guys are trying to make a living and are just operating machinery in order to do that. Everyone above their level in the corporate chain is trying to minimize the amount of money that gets down to the driver level, which includes the steepest grade possible and the narrowest road possible. Their job is difficult and making it harder is going to impact your relationship with them. At the start of every active logging road I have seen will be a crudely spray painted plywood sign that says for example " cb 14 mile 0" meaning announce yourself on channel 14. There will be subsequent markers as the road goes on. The above link to the article explains. Also if you see that sign you might choose another road (see links above) If you see a road that is listed as active and there is grass growing in the middle of it, it might be a good go. If a road is unmarked by a cb sign and it is pounded smooth and bare and covered is bark chips... you get the idea. Also, it's usually a day job so they knock off at 5:30 or so and probably not on weekends. (emphasis on probably) This might seem like a hassle but camping on dnr lands is often the quietest and most serene available. Especially considering that "first come first served" in a national park means "keep your thumb on the safety". This summer there was a 4 hour wait just to get into the parking lot at the Hoh Rainforest site.

Forgot to add that you need a Washington Discover Pass to access the dnr lands to begin with.

 

[Lazynorse]

A couple of links for driving Washington DNR lands. First Open data for WA dnr lands. This is a map showing "active" dnr roads, meaning, it's mostly a "who maintains this road" map. It shows a lot of USFS lands because they are used to access dnr lands. It's a good reference tool for determining possibilities for travel with one important caveat. Orphaned or abandoned roads are considered "off road" on dnr lands. The DNR prohibits motorized off road travel on its lands. This does not mean it is rigorously enforced but if you have an accident or breakdown they could conceivably force you to extract your vehicle via helicopter. Again, probably not likely, but possible. The state gets a tremendous amount of revenue from these lands and if you plug up a road you plug up the money and just look around at who went cross eyed and farted. And this money comes mainly from logging. Here is an excellent write up about driving in logging country. If you drive logging country, get a cb radio. They're cheap and that's the way truckers communicate. Even if you are legally allowed to travel, 80 tons gets a bigger vote than one ton. Consider the driver, 50 tons of logs aimed at the back of your head makes your attitude a little different. These guys are trying to make a living and are just operating machinery in order to do that. Everyone above their level in the corporate chain is trying to minimize the amount of money that gets down to the driver level, which includes the steepest grade possible and the narrowest road possible. Their job is difficult and making it harder is going to impact your relationship with them. At the start of every active logging road I have seen will be a crudely spray painted plywood sign that says for example " cb 14 mile 0" meaning announce yourself on channel 14. There will be subsequent markers as the road goes on. The above link to the article explains. Also if you see that sign you might choose another road (see links above) If you see a road that is listed as active and there is grass growing in the middle of it, it might be a good go. If a road is unmarked by a cb sign and it is pounded smooth and bare and covered is bark chips... you get the idea. Also, it's usually a day job so they knock off at 5:30 or so and probably not on weekends. (emphasis on probably) This might seem like a hassle but camping on dnr lands is often the quietest and most serene available. Especially considering that "first come first served" in a national park means "keep your thumb on the safety". This summer there was a 4 hour wait just to get into the parking lot at the Hoh Rainforest site.

Forgot to add that you need a Washington Discover Pass to access the dnr lands to begin with.

Good advice, what areas in WA do you find a lot of DNR lands? I’m in WA too, seems most our public land is USFS, very little BLM like many western states have, smattering of State and DNR. While I’ve backpacked and weekend camped the crap out of our state, I admit my longer trips always leave the state for OR, ID, NV, UT.

 

[Mossback]

I use Gaia GPS and it has a layer showing land ownership. I thin OnX does too. And when you get west of the coast range all along the Pacific coast there are extremely large areas that are owned by private entities - logging companies, investment companies etc. It seems that when you get to places that are not as easy to log, a lot of that land ended up administered by the state. The state has basically subsidized the logging industry by building roads into it's lands. It can also be said that access to those lands by the public was only enabled by the logging roads. An analogy would be the "Hall of Mosses" in the Hoh rainforest. It is not a unique place in the rainforests of the peninsula except for the fact that it has a wide smooth trail through it maintained and cleared by the ONP. Foot travel through a real rainforest without maintained access is a real bitch. Before roads the only access to the interior of the peninsula was by walking up stream beds when the water was low. Although the native peoples had established some trade routes following bare ridge lines. Forest service land was also developed for logging on the Olympic Peninsula. East of the Cascades there's not much public land where you can grow a crop. The mountain areas were first opened up by mining. Which kind of explains the narrow steep rocky tracks that were built by hand by "gold rushes". Especially where I grew up in Utah, worked mines in Colorado and construction in Wyoming. The state roads built for logging were designed for 80 ton tractor trailer outfits and have a shallower grade. (also wider) Anyway, I found a map HERE that can be filtered and zoomed showing the public land inventory in Washington.

 

[Cj2atruck]

A lot of Washington DNR land requires a Discover Pass. Not a big deal, just have to remember to get one before a trip, but they are good for a year.