Forest Products Permits
A permit is required to collect any forest product in bulk or for commercial purposes. Some forest products may be collected in limited quantities for personal use without a permit, but a free or fee permit may be required so check with your local Ranger District.
Foraging Small Amounts
You do not need a permit to collect small amounts of:
- Fruits and nuts
- Pinecones
- Mushrooms
- Wood for campfires: Campers on national forest lands may collect firewood without a permit while camping. You can’t cut any trees, but you can gather wood on the ground for your campfire.
- Some rocks or fossils (see section on minerals further down). Contact your nearest district office for more information.
- Some flowers and vegetation
Fuel Wood Permits
You do need a permit to gather down and dead wood on the national forest after you obtain a Fuel Wood Permit from a District Office. Wood gathered under this permit is for personal use only.
*Note
You do not need a permit to collect firewood from November 19, 2024 to December 2025, in an attempt to reduce woody debris and downed trees in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
You are allowed to gather down and dead wood on the national forest after you obtain a Fuel Wood Permit from a District Office. Wood gathered under this permit is for personal use only.
Permits cost $20.00 and are good for six months from date of issue. The permit allows you to gather 4 cords of wood from the National Forest in North Carolina.
To purchase a permit, you will need to know the year, make, model, color, license plate number, state of issue, and size of truck bed of the vehicle that you will be using to gather fuel wood.
Contact your nearest District Office for information about obtaining a permit, appointments are often required. Please note that these permits are not available at the Forest Supervisor's Office in Asheville, NC.
Please sign and return one copy of the permit to the ranger district office that issued it.
Where can I gather wood on the forest? Wood can be gathered anywhere on the National Forest in North Carolina EXCEPT:
Recreation Areas, Wilderness Areas, and Marked Timber Sale Areas.
Where can I drive my vehicle to get the wood? Vehicles can only be operated on open roads. Cross country driving is prohibited.
How much wood can be gathered? You are permitted to gather FOUR cords of wood
How much is four cords? 8 loads in a truck with an 8-foot long bed. 11 loads in a truck with a 6-foot long bed. 16 loads in a mini-pickup truck.
Other things to keep in mind... Display your permit on your dashboard while gathering wood. Make sure you are not on private land. Private land holdings are common within National Forest areas. The boundary between private and public land is normally a three-foot corridor with marked trees on each side. Private land is behind ONE red blaze. National Forest land is behind TWO red blazes. Check page 3 of the permit for other restrictions specific to the ranger district you are cutting on.
Prohibited Uses
Collecting American Ginseng
You cannot collect any portion of the American ginseng plant for personal or commercial use from the National Forests in North Carolina. Ginseng populations have declined over the last several decades due to continued harvest of the plant for consumption and sale. Ginseng is a listed as a threatened species through the Endangered Plant and Insect Species Act. The management plan for the National Forests in North Carolina prohibits issuing permits for the collection of a threatened or locally rare species, making ginseng harvest prohibited. The management plan for the National Forests in North Carolina specifically prohibits the harvest of ginseng. Removing any portion of the ginseng plant from the national forest comes with strict penalties, including a fine of up to $5,000, six months in jail or both.
Cutting Christmas Trees
You cannot cut Christmas trees on the National Forests in North Carolina. We do not issue permits for cutting Christmas trees.
Collecting Historic and Prehistoric Artifacts
Taking any historic or prehistoric artifact from national forest land is strictly prohibited. Historic items may include old nails, glassware and household utensils that were once used during early settlement years. Prehistoric items may include arrowheads, pottery and other objects that are centuries old. Any ground or earth disturbing activity is prohibited where historic and prehistoric artifacts may occur.
Recreational Mineral Collecting
Interested in rock collecting? Limited collection [1] of rocks and minerals for personal use is allowed on most National Forest System lands. These materials may be collected without a permit provided the collecting is for personal, hobby, and noncommercial use. For commercial [2] or other uses of rock material, contact the local Forest Service Office.
What Type of Rock Collecting is Allowed on National Forest Land?
- Collection of small amounts [1] of widespread, low-value, relatively common minerals and stones (common quartz crystals, agate, obsidian) for noncommercial use.
- Hobby mining activities; such as recreational gold panning or use of metal detectors [3] to prospect for gold nuggets and other naturally occurring metals.
Which Areas are Closed to Collecting for Recreation?
- Certain lands within the National Forest are not open to collecting due to wilderness designation or other sensitive areas. Contact the Forest Service for local information.
- It is a good idea to check with the Bureau of Land Management for specific locations to find out whether or not there are mining claims in the area.
No Permits is Required if the Following Applies
- You are collecting samples on the surface (no digging with hand tools or mechanized equipment).
- You are collecting for personal and not to sell or barter.
Permits are Required if the Following Applies
Please contact the Forest Service to discuss permitting or authorization if you plant to do the following:
- Activity that involves digging with hand tools or mechanized earth-moving equipment, including bobcats, suction dredges, ‘high banking’ or dry washing equipment.
- Commercial activities including collecting mineral or fossil specimens for re-sale.
- Removal of more than insignificant amounts [1] of landscape rock.
Important: The Following Cannot be Collected or Removed
- Vertebrate fossils (dinosaurs bones, fish, - anything with a backbone), and shark teeth.
- Archeological resources including any material remains of prehistoric or historic human life or activities, which are at least 50 years old, and includes the physical site, location, or context in which they are found. (36 CFR 261.2)
- The collection of projectile points, pottery, or any other archeological resource or artifact is not allowed (36 CFR 261.9 (h) without a permit. Projectile points include "arrowheads" and any prehistoric human-modified stone.
Footnotes
[1] You may collect reasonable amounts of specimens. Generally, a reasonable amount is up to 10 pounds.
[2] Commercial use is any trading, bartering, or selling of rocks and minerals from National Forest System Lands.
[3] Searching for artifacts (man-made objects) with metal detectors is discouraged, as any ancient or historical artifacts found may not be removed from federal lands, such as old coins, metal implements, or utensils.