UPDATE (1.14.10) - The Oregon State Marine Board approves gas motor ban on Waldo Lake after overwhelmingly positive public response to proposed rule. (Read more)

Waldo Lake is one of the purest lakes in the world, and a true gem of the Cascades. One of the largest natural lakes in Oregon, and the second deepest, the lake is the source of the nationally-designated Wild and Scenic North Fork of the Middle Fork Willamette River. Waldo Lake is surrounded on three sides by the 39,000 acre Waldo Lake Wilderness, designated by Congress in 1984 to protect the area’s outstanding forests, scenic mountains, and backcountry recreation values.

Stay up to date on the most recent news about the gas motor phase-out and other efforts to protect the lake.

Many visitors value the Waldo Lake area for its outstanding recreation opportunities, solitude, and scenic beauty. A new decision by the U.S. Forest Service, which manages the lake and the surrounding area, will ensure the continued purity of the lake’s waters and of the backcountry experience sought after by so many.

Brief History of Waldo Lake management

Located near the crest of the Cascades, Waldo Lake was difficult to access until the 1970s, when a paved road and several campgrounds were added to the area. Increased local population and recreation use – including fishing, camping, motor boating, and snowmobile use – has led to a decline in water quality, though the lake’s water remains amazingly pure.

To address negative impacts of increased use, the Waldo Lake Basin Plan Committee (representing 12 different recreation user groups and organizations) studied the area for two years. In 2000, the group recommended several changes in management on and around Waldo Lake including: changing the lake’s recreation status from “roaded natural” to “semi-primitive, non-motorized”; limiting and containing impacts of dispersed camping around the lake; placing limits on outfitter/guide permits in the area; phasing out internal combustion engines (including banning float planes) on the lake; and limiting snowmobile use to existing roadways.

In December 2001, the Willamette National Forest took an important step towards maintaining Waldo Lake’s pristine qualities when it proposed to implement a phase-out of motors on and around the lake, in addition to some other recreation recommendations. However, motorized-use proponents appealed the decision and the agency backed out of its decision. A new Environmental Assessment was begun in 2004 and a repeat of the 2001 agency decision was announced in April 2007.

Values at Stake

• The opportunity for visitors to experience the pristine beauty and solitude of a large non-motorized lake does not exist elsewhere in the Pacific Northwest.
• Many visitors to Waldo Lake come specifically for a semi-primitive recreation setting.  Public support of banning motors on and around the lake has been overwhelming throughout current and past planning processes.
• Gasoline engines have likely contributed to water quality degradation in the lake. Removal of these motors will ensure continued high water quality.
• Motorized boats, chainsaws, and generators produce noise pollution. Noise from motors can often be easily heard throughout the designated semi-primitive non-motorized area that surrounds most of the lake, and even into the Waldo Lake Wilderness. This noise disrupts the solitude and serenity that would otherwise exist in the areas surrounding Waldo Lake, and which most visitors come to enjoy.
• The vast majority of visitors to Waldo Lake do not use motorized boats. User surveys show that most visitors enjoy non-motorized recreation activities – from relaxing to canoeing to horseback riding.
  

A Victory for Pristine Waters and Wilderness Experience!

The Forest Service's Environmental Assessment analyzed several alternatives. The Forest Supervisor decided to implement Alternative 4 which will:

• Restrict boat motor use on Waldo Lake to electric motors only, with exceptions for the administrative and emergency use of internal combustion motors when approved by the Forest Service.
• Prohibit floatplanes from using the surface of Waldo Lake.
• Prohibit public use of generators and chainsaws within the Dispersed Recreation, Semi-primitive Non-motorized management area (MA-10e) surrounding Waldo Lake.
• These three changes in recreation activities would be enforced 2 years after the decision is made to provide a transition period for forest visitors and managers.

Oregon Wild supports the proposal to prohibit internal combustion motors on the lake, as well as motorized equipment within the semi-primitive non-motorized area surrounding much of the lake. The ban on motors benefits lake users, water quality, and the wilderness-quality of the Waldo Lake area.

For more info

See background and the current decision on the Forest Service website.

Top photo: Mark Timby. Bottom photos: Gary Guttormsen.