Columbia Gorge Prescribed Fire Training Exchange (TREX)

The annual Columbia Gorge TREX provides experiential prescribed fire training and boosts local capacity for burning on all lands.

CGTREX 2024 | September 22-28 + on-call in October

Applications have closed for the 2024 Columbia Gorge Prescribed Fire Training Exchange. If you will be a participant in CGTREX 2024, see below for some FAQs!

• Where is this taking place? Our TREX base camp will be in Trout Lake, WA, at the foot of Mt. Adams. Trout Lake is about 1.5 hours east of Portland and 25 miles north of the Columbia River. From Sept 22-28, participants will be provided all meals and bunkhouse lodging at the Mt. Adams Institute facility.

• How is the training structured? CGTREX this year looks a little different than a standard TREX. Participants are expected to attend the entirety of “training week” (Sept 22-28), during which we will have field trips, guest speakers, skills practice, and prescribed burn implementation if weather permits. We will then shift into an “on-call” period when participants will reconvene for specific prescribed burn opportunities. Participants are expected to be available for at least one week of the on-call period so we can ensure we have enough resources available to conduct a given burn.

• What costs do I or my organization need to cover? There is a non-refundable $200 registration fee per participant (however, let us know if this is a barrier to your participation, as we have some scholarships available!). Meals and lodging are provided only from Sept 22-28. We can provide a campsite during the on-call period, but otherwise participants are responsible for their own food/lodging costs during that time. Each participant and/or their employer is responsible for travel costs to and from Trout Lake, as well as all paid and vacation time (including overtime) that is accrued during TREX.

• What if we can’t burn? We all hope to accomplish as much burning as we can, but we unfortunately can’t control the weather nor the wildfire season. The on-call model should give us greater flexibility to take advantage of weather windows when they arise. During the training week, the CGTREX planning team has many training/learning activities prepped for days when weather prohibits burning.