Get the freshest Christmas tree for $5 to $10. How to cut your own in WA

The freshest Christmas trees, and maybe a new family holiday tradition, will cost you only $5 to $10 and a drive to a Northwest National Forest.

Trees can be cut now through December in national forests, including the Umatilla, Olympia and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie forests.

Christmas tree permits are available at National Forest Service offices during business hours and some private businesses near forests. For a $2.50 service fee, they also can be purchased online at recreation.gov/tree-permits by searching for a specific national forest.

Permits are sold separately for each national forest and can only be used in that forest.

If there is a fourth-grader in the household, they are eligible to cut a Forest Service Christmas tree for free by signing up for an Every Kid Outdoors pass, which are available at everykidoutdoors.gov, and taking a paper copy to a Forest Service office to obtain a permit.

Forest Service officials also can provide tips on good areas to cut trees.

You’ll need to take some plastic sheeting with you to carry your tree out or slide it out. Dragging will rub off needles and bark.

The U.S. Forest Service also recommends wrapping the tree in a tarp to prevent wind damage if you tie it on top of your car.

Once home, cut at least a half inch off the bottom of the tree to get rid of pores too clogged with sap to absorb water, then put the trunk in water.

Remember to tell someone where you are going and when you expect to return home and to dress in winter gear, bring water and snacks, and have supplies to build a fire in an emergency.

Umatilla National Forest

Tri-Cities area residents can head to Dayton and take North Touchet Road south to Umatilla National Forest Service land to find a tree to cut.

Be prepared for possibly snowy roads and remember that most Forest Service roads are not plowed.

Cutting trees near the Bluewood Ski Area is popular, but trees may not be cut within 200 feet of the ski area.

Trees also may not be cut within 200 feet of summer homes and Forest Service guard stations or on Forest Service areas planted with new trees or with active timber sales.

If you plan to cut in the Tollgate area of the Walla Walla Ranger District, remember than most forest roads close for the winter on Dec. 1. Snowmobiling or snowshoeing may be the only access to most roads off Highway 204.

The maximum height of a tree that may be cut in the Umatilla National Forest is 14 feet and the remaining stumps may be no taller than 10 inches.

Christmas tree permits may be purchased in the Tri-Cities at Farmer’s Exchange or Sportsman’s Warehouse in Kennewick or Columbia Grain & Feed in Pasco.

Permits cost $5 and a service fee may also be charged. They are limited to one per household.

Olympic National Forest

Christmas trees may be cut from along roads, from forest plantations and in the understory of older stands in the Olympic National Forest. But cutting is prohibited within the Quinault Special Management Area, designated wilderness and Research National Areas.

Trees may not be cut within 100 feet of campgrounds or trailheads. Participants also are asked not to cut a tree if it is the only one standing within 10 feet.

Trees can be no taller than 15 feet and the entire tree must be cut down.

Permits cost $5 and a service fee may also be charged. Up to five permits may be purchased.

Mt-Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest

Mt-Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest Christmas tree permits are valid for use in the eastern portions of Pierce, King, Snohomish, Skagit and Whatcom counties.

Trees can be no taller than 15 feet and should be cut 12 inches or less above the ground.

Trees may not be cut within 150 feet of any stream, lake, pond or wetland area or within developed campgrounds, picnic areas, trailheads, designated wilderness areas, or any state or private land within the national forest.

Washington Sno-Park parking permits are required at Sno-Park lots, and parking at a trailhead may require a Northwest Forest Pass or federal Interagency Pass.

Permits cost $10 and a service fee may also be charged. Up to five permits may be purchased.

This story was originally published November 23, 2022 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Get the freshest Christmas tree for $5 to $10. How to cut your own in WA."