Campfires are off across Grand Teton National Park, Bridger-Teton National Forest, and the National Elk Refuge as of 6 a.m. on July 22, 2026. The Teton Interagency Fire dispatch calls it Stage 1, and it covers all three units together. If you were planning to boondock in the Bridger-Teton over the next few weeks, this is the rule you have to work with.
What Stage 1 prohibits
Per the Teton Interagency Fire restrictions order, you cannot light, build, maintain, attend, or use a fire, including one fueled by charcoal or briquettes. Fireworks and explosives are banned outright. Welding or open-flame torch work needs a 10-foot cleared area and a pressurized fire extinguisher with at least an 8-ounce Class 2A rating on hand. Smoking is out unless you are inside a vehicle or building, at a developed recreation site, or stopped in a spot cleared of flammable material at least three feet across.
Penalties are not symbolic. A violation is a Class B misdemeanor carrying fines up to $5,000 for individuals or $10,000 for organizations, plus up to six months of jail time.
What still works
The order specifically allows liquid or gas stove-type devices in areas cleared to bare ground for at least three feet in any direction. That is what you cook on. A Coleman propane stove, a Jetboil, a Camp Chef, a small butane burner, all fine, as long as you clear a real 3-foot ring first. A fully enclosed metal stove with a chimney at least five feet long and a spark arrestor is allowed in a 10-foot cleared area, which covers a standard RV wood-stove setup.
Fires in permanent metal or concrete fire pits at Forest Service developed recreation sites are also permitted. That is different from a fire ring you scratched out at a dispersed site, which is not.
The three exceptions worth knowing
Grand Teton National Park allows campfires only in the designated metal fire grates at its campgrounds. Even outside a fire order, backcountry campfires are prohibited in most zones of the park.
The National Elk Refuge never permits campfires. Stage 1 does not change that; there was nothing to lose.
The Bridger-Teton is where boondockers actually go, and its dispersed camping areas are where the ban bites the hardest. If you had a plan that involved a wood fire at a pull-off, plan to cook on a stove instead until this order lifts.
What to do this trip
Check the Teton Interagency Fire restrictions page before you drive out, because Stage 1 orders often escalate to Stage 2 during a dry spell, and Stage 2 pulls in the propane stoves too. The Grand Teton fire activity page publishes park-specific updates and closures.
Call the ranger district you plan to camp in. The Bridger-Teton runs several district offices across western Wyoming, and each can tell you about specific area closures the interagency page has not caught up with. Do not rely on the sign at your campsite alone: the posted sign wins over any website, but a website check plus a phone call catches what a rusted-out old sign might miss.
For an overview of camping in the state, see our Wyoming free-camping page.