Google served up this info today. I'm not sure how old it is, maybe late 90's. It's from this webpage: https://www.fs.fed.us/eng/toolbox/fmp/fmp_admin.htm
Here's the part concerning the Clackamas:
B. Clackamas River Ranger District
As a result of combining 2 Ranger Districts, Ripplebrook and Estacada, the Clackamas River RD has undergone many consolidations and reductions resulting in an excess of square footage in office, storage and housing space. To help reduce this excess, decisions were made to administratively vacate the Oak Grove work center and the Lazy Bend C&M shop as soon a possible, reduce the number of administrative buildings at Ripplebrook (not including housing or bunkhouses), and surplus the bunkhouses (and land) at Estacada Work Center. A summary of the District proposal is as follows:
Estacada:
- Continue leasing the main office. A 10 year lease was just signed in 1997.
- Bunkhouses (1107 and 1108) are not needed for administrative purposes and can be decommissioned. The land is not needed and can be surplused.
- The Lazy Bend C&M shop (2116) is not needed for administrative purposes and can be decommissioned.
- Convert residence (1031) to a wellness/conference center.
- Keep and maintain all other buildings for administrative purposes.
Ripplebrook (includes ranger station, C&M site and all housing areas):
- The following buildings are not needed for administrative purposes and can be transferred to TLJCC:
1. Office (2011)2. Office (2019)
3. Office (2020)
4. Warehouse (2244)
5. Residence (1095)
6. Residence (1148)
7. Residence (1149)
8. Residence (1150)
9. Residence (1151)
10. Residence (1153)
- Keep and maintain all other buildings for administrative purposes.
Oak Grove:
The 11 buildings at Oak Grove are not needed for administrative purposes.
Radio Buildings:
Keep and maintain all radio buildings (2866, 2867, 2868, 2869, 2870 and 2871) for administrative purposes.
Lookouts:
- Keep and maintain SiSi lookout (4236) for administrative purposes.
- Bull of the Woods lookout (4221) is not needed for administrative purposes and is not being utilized or occupied.
Olallie:
Olallie Lake Guard Station (1054) is under special use permit and Olallie Meadows Guard Station (1055) being proposed for a special use permit as a cabin rental. They are not needed for administrative purposes.
Bagby:
Keep and maintain Bagby Guard Station (1002) for administrative purposes.
I wish there was something that had a map or something to show what those building numbers meant. I looked thru that site briefly and didn't see anything.
I also wonder what the "Lazy Bend C&M Shop" is - I wonder if that is the building that you can now see (after the fire) that is north/east of 224? That building/facility is certainly actively being used today.
That's the buildings across HWY 224 from the Lazy Bend Campground where those who are subcontracted by the FS to maintain the campgrounds and the "Ripplebrook Store" usually hang out!
So will we have to go to Sandy to get a wood permit or Christmas Tree permit to go up the Clackamas? That's not going to happen. I remember 10 years or so ago when the Estacada Ranger Station wasn't open on Friday after Thanksgiving because of weather issues which was usually the starting date for selling Christmas Tree permits. Twenty or so adults in the parking lot said "F### It" and went and got a tree without the permit. I'm sure others followed, we were just the ones there when they were supposed to open.
Maybe all that activity is because they are moving into the old Estacada office.
It sounded like they want to have some sort of "presence" down the Clackamas - I'd assume that means someplace you could get permits, trail info, etc. But I guess time will tell what happens.
They will probably turn the Estacada Ranger Station into what they did at the Ripplebrook Ranger Station/Store run by the same ones they outsource the maintenance of the campgrounds, I forget their name. They will have maps and permits available and some trinkets and maybe an ice machine.
One sorry state compared to back in the boom times when the Forest Service was actually the biggest industry in the state. I believe tree farms and nurseries took over some of that since but didn't compare to the FS in it's day. I got to work in the woods in the early 80's riding the last wave of the forest industry building logging roads for the FS before that industry took it's dive in the Wallowa-Whitman Forest in Baker county in eastern Oregon. We were putting in new roads for the most part in virgin timber, but did some reconstruction work to update roads with drain dips and fish friendly culverts when the timber sale required it. I worked for Ellingson Timber Co., Ellingson Lumber Co.owned the local 3 saw mills in Baker (now Baker City). Kind of a monopoly thing going there, build the logging roads for the FS, private logging companies cutout the sales and bring the logs to the company's saw mills. Those 3 years were some of the best times in my life, just married and just out of college. During college I worked for the Oregon State Forestry on the fire crews for 3 summers in Baker while living with my mom, those were some fun times also. I ramble too much!
Don