U.S. Forest Service - Green Mountain & Finger Lakes National Forests

08/10/2026

08/09/2026

Only YOU can prevent wildfires!

Happy birthday, Smokey Bear 🥳 Thank you for 82 years of wildfire prevention!

08/06/2026

Six campgrounds on the Green Mountain and Finger Lakes offer reservable sites online with Recreation.gov ... and several sites are still available for reservation this season!

Forest Service photo by Briana Shepherd.

Link in comments.

08/04/2026

It's blue. It's p**p. And it's actually great news! We all know bears eat berries, but you're probably still scratching your head about why we're excited about this pile of s**t? The blue hue and undigested bits are clear indicators that this bear was doing exactly what we hope Vermont's black bears are doing this time of year: feasting on berries.

As wild blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries ripen, black bears will seek out these tasty and high sugar foods. If a bear finds a bumper crop of berries, it will happily stick around until there's nary a berry left.

In just a few short weeks, black bears will begin trying to eat as much as they possibly can—we're talking nearly 24 hours a day!—to build up their energy stores for winter. Like the bear who's s**t we see here, we hope they'll be filling up on natural foods like berries, beechnuts, acorns and other wild fall foods and not birdseed, garbage, or compost. By securing these attractants, we're keeping Vermont's bears healthy, wild, and focused on the foods they can find in nature.

08/03/2026

Many species on the Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests benefit from prescribed fire, including blueberries. The low bush wild blueberries found on forest thrive with the pruning provided by regular 2-to-3-year fire intervals.

Link in the comments.

Forest Service photo by Briana Shepherd.

07/31/2026

Are you remembering to keep your firepit/grill clean? For the love of bears, please do!
https://bearwise.org/six-bearwise-basics/clean-grills/

07/29/2026

You do NOT need a firewood permit to collect dead and downed wood for your campfire on the National Forest.

You DO need a firewood permit to collect cords of firewood to burn on private property.

Get your permit online: https://epermits.fs2c.usda.gov/forest/0920

Or in person at your local Ranger Station: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/gmfl/offices

07/26/2026

Snacking and picking blueberries in small amounts is permitted on the Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests.

Get ‘em while they’re ripe and remember to give wildlife plenty of space as they snack too!

Forest Service photo by Briana Shepherd.

07/24/2026

Bear boxes are provided at some locations on the Green Mountain National Forest for visitors to use. Store all food, toiletries, garbage or anything else that may attract wildlife; and be sure to properly latch the lid.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/gmfl/safety-ethics/be-bear-aware

07/20/2026

Have you ever rested in a field, belly full of wild blueberries, and admired the mountain view as birds chirped all around you? Today could be that day in your National Forest.



Forest Service video by Briana Shepherd.