Picking up wood from fallen trees on public land is legal in many situations, but the answer turns on which agency manages the land. On most National Forest and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) ground, you can gather small amounts of dead wood lying on the ground for a campfire without a permit, and you need a permit to take more or haul any of it home. National parks work the opposite way: removing wood is prohibited unless a superintendent has opened a specific area for campfire fuel. Private land always requires the owner’s permission.
National Forest Land
The U.S. Forest Service treats grabbing a few sticks for tonight’s fire differently from loading a truck for the winter.
Campfire Wood Without a Permit
If you’re camping on National Forest land, you can generally collect dead wood lying on the ground for your campfire without buying a permit. The regulations call this “incidental use,” and each forest sets its own cap. One National Forest, for example, limits incidental collection to an eighth of a cord per day (a stack roughly 4 feet by 2 feet by 2 feet). Two conditions apply: the wood must be dead and already down, and you can only burn it on-site.1USDA Forest Service. Firewood Cutting and Gathering – Sequoia National Forest
Personal-Use Firewood Permits
Anything beyond incidental campfire use requires a personal-use firewood permit. Federal regulations classify firewood as a “special forest product,” and the Forest Service must set sustainable harvest levels before allowing collection.2GovInfo. 36 CFR 223.219 – Sustainable Harvest of Special Forest Products Free use without a permit is only available up to the incidental-use harvest level; above that, you need a permit from a designated Forest Service officer.3GovInfo. 36 CFR Part 223 – Sale and Disposal of National Forest System Timber
Permits are sold per cord, and prices vary by forest. Expect somewhere in the range of $5 to $10 per cord, often with a minimum purchase of several cords. Most permits restrict you to dead and downed wood in designated cutting areas, specify which access roads you can use, and set a season during which collection is allowed.4USDA Forest Service. Firewood Permits
Some National Forests now sell firewood permits online through the Forest Service’s E-Permits system. You select your forest and product, review the terms, pay through Pay.gov, and print the permit immediately.5USDA Forest Service. E-Permits Not every forest participates, so for many you still need to call or visit the local ranger district office. The permit has to be in your possession while you’re cutting or hauling.
What You Cannot Cut
Even with a valid permit, some material and areas are off-limits. Federal free-use provisions prioritize dead, insect-infested, or diseased timber and logging debris. Live, healthy trees are not available for personal-use cutting outside unusual circumstances.3GovInfo. 36 CFR Part 223 – Sale and Disposal of National Forest System Timber Firewood collection is also prohibited in wilderness areas within National Forests, in developed recreation sites like campgrounds and picnic areas, and in any zones posted as closed.6USDA Forest Service. Forest Products
BLM Land
The Bureau of Land Management takes a similar approach on the roughly 245 million acres it oversees, mostly in western states. If you’re visiting BLM land and want firewood for a campfire at your campsite, you can collect reasonable amounts of dead wood without a permit.7Bureau of Land Management. Forest Product Permits
Harvesting larger quantities for home heating or other personal use requires a permit. Costs, validity periods, and seasonal windows vary by field office, and permits in popular areas can sell out. As on National Forest land, collection is generally limited to dead and downed material. Cutting standing dead trees is typically prohibited unless the permit specifically authorizes it.7Bureau of Land Management. Forest Product Permits
National Parks and Wilderness Areas
National parks are where most people’s assumptions go wrong. Unlike National Forests and BLM land, national parks prohibit possessing or using wood gathered from within the park. The regulation is broad: removing, disturbing, or even possessing plants, dead wildlife, rocks, and wood in their natural state is banned.8eCFR. 36 CFR 2.1 – Preservation of Natural, Cultural and Archeological Resources
One narrow exception exists. A park superintendent may designate specific areas where visitors can collect dead wood on the ground for campfire fuel, but only for use within the park. You cannot take it home, and the superintendent has full discretion over whether to allow it at all.8eCFR. 36 CFR 2.1 – Preservation of Natural, Cultural and Archeological Resources If you’re camping in a national park, check at the visitor center before assuming anything. Many parks require you to buy bundled wood from a camp store or approved vendor.
Federally designated wilderness areas within National Forests carry the same restriction. Even if the surrounding forest allows firewood cutting with a permit, the wilderness boundary closes off collection entirely.6USDA Forest Service. Forest Products
State and Local Parks
State parks, state forests, and local parks each set their own rules, and there is no single national standard. Some prohibit all firewood collection and require you to buy wood on-site. Others sell collection permits with restrictions on tools, volume, and access. A handful allow gathering dead wood for campfires without a permit, similar to the National Forest approach.
Many state land agencies also restrict what firewood you can bring in from outside. Rules often require that imported firewood be kiln-dried, heat-treated, commercially packaged with a compliance stamp, or sourced within a limited radius. These restrictions target invasive forest pests that travel in untreated wood, and you can be fined even if you didn’t know the rule existed. Check the managing agency’s website before you go.
Private Land
Not public land, but worth naming because searchers often lump it in. Fallen trees on private property belong to the landowner. Picking up a downed oak along a rural road or in a wooded lot without permission is theft and trespass, regardless of whether the tree is dead, rotting, or blocking a path. Get explicit permission first, and put the agreement in writing if you’re taking more than a token amount.
Moving Firewood: Invasive Pests
Even legally collected firewood becomes a legal problem the moment you move it too far. Invasive insects like the emerald ash borer, Asian longhorned beetle, and spongy moth spread primarily through firewood carried from infested areas into clean ones. The emerald ash borer alone has been detected in 37 states and the District of Columbia.9USDA APHIS. Emerald Ash Borer
Many states maintain their own firewood transport restrictions: distance limits (commonly 50 miles or less from the source), quarantine zones for active infestations, and requirements that firewood be heat-treated before crossing certain boundaries. Federal quarantines still apply to some pests, like the Asian longhorned beetle, in localized areas.
The practical rule is simple: burn firewood where you buy it or where you cut it. Transporting untreated firewood more than 50 miles is generally too far, and keeping it within 10 miles of the source is safest. If you’re buying bundled firewood for a camping trip, look for a USDA compliance stamp or state certification confirming the wood has been heat-treated.
Penalties for Unauthorized Collection
Taking wood without authorization from federal land triggers penalties under two frameworks. Violating Forest Service regulations on timber and forest products is punishable by a fine of up to $5,000, up to six months in jail, or both.10USDA Forest Service. Forest Rules For more serious cases involving deliberate removal or transport of timber from federal lands, the federal criminal statute carries a fine and up to one year of imprisonment.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1852 – Timber Removed or Transported
State penalties for timber theft on state or private land are often harsher. Many states classify timber theft above certain dollar thresholds as a felony, with potential prison terms measured in years and fines well above the federal baseline. Civil liability adds to the risk: in many states, a landowner can sue for multiple times the stumpage value of the wood taken, plus the cost of hiring a consulting forester, legal fees, and restoration expenses. Some states impose double or triple damages by statute.
Park rangers and Forest Service officers have full authority to issue citations and make arrests. Rangers patrol, neighbors report unfamiliar trucks, and freshly cut stumps are easy to spot.
How to Collect Firewood Legally
The process is straightforward once you know the land type:
- Identify the landowner or managing agency. Use the BLM’s or Forest Service’s online maps to determine whether a parcel is National Forest, BLM, National Park, state, or private. The rules differ completely between these categories.
- Check for permits. For National Forest or BLM land, contact the local ranger district or field office, or check the Forest Service E-Permits site. Ask about availability, cost, designated cutting areas, seasonal windows, and any tool restrictions.
- Stick to dead and down wood. Nearly every permit and free-use provision restricts you to wood already dead and lying on the ground. Cutting standing trees, even dead ones, is usually prohibited without specific authorization.
- Carry your permit while collecting and transporting wood. Rangers do ask to see it.
- Don’t move firewood far. Burn it where you collect or buy it, and look for heat-treated or certified wood for longer trips.
- Skip national parks unless the specific park has posted designated areas for campfire wood collection.
When in doubt, a five-minute call to the local ranger station or land office costs nothing and can save you a citation worth many times the price of a permit.