[pct-l] Trail Debris / Fire Rings / Fires

[Barry Teschlog]

Brick Wrote
"What makes a fire ring illegal?"
Reply:Perhaps the ring itself might not be illegal, after all, it's just a circle of rocks.  That said, a fire IN a ring certainly is or was illegal in some areas.

For example, in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, all campfires are prohibited, period, above 4,000 feet.  In the Wenatchee National Forest, all fires are prohibited above 5,000 feet.  This is regardless of IFPL or other seasonal fire restrictions that may be in place due to weather or forest conditions.

In addition, there are fire restrictions regardless of altitude within certain lake basins here in Washington - for example Lk. Valhalla (~5 miles north of US2 / Stevens Pass) fires are permanently restricted within a set distance of the lake (I believe it's 1/2 mile, which if memory serves is a pretty typical restriction for many, but not all, of the lake basin's).
Significant stretches of the PCT in central / north Washington fall into the above permanently restricted areas, therefore any evidence of a camp fire in those areas is evidence of illegal activity.  Seeing as fires are illegal in these areas, structures (fire rings) that facilitate said illegal activity ought to be removed.