Ahtanum State Forest is a state-managed working forest and recreation area in central Washington, about 30 miles west of Yakima, along the southern edge of the Yakama Indian Reservation. Its name comes from the Yakama language, meaning “stream by long mountain.” The forest emerged from a major land-consolidation effort on terrain long divided between public and private owners. In 2005, Washington’s Department of Natural Resources traded 3,000 acres of scattered land for 12,000 acres of private timberland, helping assemble about 35,000 acres into a more continuous holding. Support from the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation helped complete the process. Today, its unified scale supports more practical long-term timber management and recreation.