10/17/2025
Bear Gulch and Tunnel Creek Update: October 17, 2025
Bear Gulch
Estimated Size: 20,233 acres; 20% containment
Personnel: 4
Tunnel Creek
Estimated Size: 598 acres; 0% containment
Personnel: Unstaffed due to remote fire activity
Fire Information Phone: 360-732-1813, 8:00am – 6:00pm through October 20, 2025
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beargulch2025/
Inciweb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/waolf-bear-gulch-fire
Bear Gulch Containment Increases;
Staircase Area and FS-24 Closed for Winter
Bear Gulch Update:
Due to recent precipitation and snow, containment increased to 20%. Though an infrared flight on October 16 detected heat signatures within the fire perimeter, there were no changes to total fire acreage. The next fire update will follow any significant changes to fire activity or management. In the interim, the Olympic Interagency Fire Management Team is advancing suppression recovery efforts in the national forest and park.
The Staircase Campground and developed area in Olympic National Park will close for the winter season today, October 17, 2025. Olympic National Forest has also closed Lake Cushman Corridor (FS-24) and the surrounding Forest Service recreation sites. FS-24 is the only access road to the Staircase developed area.
The Staircase Ranger Station, restrooms, and campsites are intact. Two single-log bridges were damaged by treefall after the fire passed. Throughout the incident, firefighters used a variety of tactics to protect the campground and developed area. An elaborate system of pumps, hoses and sprinklers protected targeted assets. Firefighters created a defensible perimeter by removing fuel – standing dead wood and vegetation – around the developed area. This allowed firefighters to guide the wildland fire around Staircase infrastructure with defensive fire techniques, effectively creating a small, unburned bubble of vegetation inside the larger fire area.
The surrounding mountain slopes bear patchwork burn scars, produced during a range of high to low severity burns. Because fire destabilizes soil, these burn scars increase the risks of landslides, rockfall, and treefall. Firefighters have mitigated some immediate risks to Staircase infrastructure by felling some fire weakened trees.
Fire ecologists, hydrologists, and engineers will continue to assess risks to public safety and park infrastructure in the burned areas. One of the biggest concerns is the potential for debris flows along FS-24 and in the Lake Cushman developed areas. Numerous sites sit on historically active alluvial fans, which will likely see an increased risk for debris flows after the fire. Multidisciplinary risk assessments will inform future reopening timelines.
For more information about the debris flows, visit the Washington Department of Natural Resource’s website: https://dnr.wa.gov/washington-geological-survey/geologic-hazards-and-environment/wildfire-associated-debris-flows . A report specific to the Bear Gulch Fire can be found under the “Reports” tab.
Tunnel Creek Update:
The October 16 infrared flight detected minimal fire activity. The Olympic Interagency Fire Management Team continues to monitor fire behavior and plan suppression strategies if values at risk become threatened. Smoke may be visible at times. The Tunnel Creek Trail remains closed.
Campfire Restrictions:
Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest have returned to standard campfire regulations. Campers should use caution with any open flame and ensure fires are completely extinguished - cool to the touch - before leaving a site. Campers are required by law to stay with their campfire from start to finish. In addition:
- Fires may only be built within established rings, stoves, grills, or fireplaces below the 3,500-foot elevation.
- On ocean beaches, fires may not be kindled closer than 10 feet to the nearest beach logs. Fires may not exceed 3 feet in diameter.
- Campfires and wood-burning camp stoves are not allowed on the coast between the headland at Wedding Rocks and the headland north of Yellow Banks.
Open fires are prohibited in the following backcountry areas:
- Parkwide above 3500’ elevation
- Forestwide above 3500’ in Wilderness areas
- The South Ozette Loop from the headland at Wedding Rocks south to the headland at the north end of Yellow Banks
- The Olympic Hot Springs area including the Boulder Creek camp area
- From 1/4 mile north of Elk Lake (Martin Creek) to, and including, Glacier Meadows and above, to include the lateral moraine/Blue Glacier
Image 1: A trail splits two sections of evergreen forest. The right half of the image shows a burned, black forest. The left half of the image shows a lush, green forest. Three people in yellow firefighting shirts are visible at the bottom of the trail in the middle of the image.
Image 2: In the top half of the image, distant hills bear green and brown patches of forest, reflecting burned and unburned areas. In the bottom half of the image, a crystal-clear river passes beneath a bridge bordered by more green forest.
