Sawlogs Up, Cordwood Down in Lake States National Forest Markets

Despite predictions that winter logging has retreated after two straight years, activity has revived somewhat during this cold winter in the national forests of Wisconsin and Michigan.

In Wisconsin, pine and fir sawlog prices on national forests reached a five-year high in the first quarter of 2026. Sawlog prices were well over $100 per MBF through mid-March. This follows a national push from the Trump administration to grow timber management nationally on national forest lands to control fire risk.

However, cordwood prices did not move in sync with log pricing. Most cordwood prices have declined from recent years.

The same trends have been apparent in Michigan. Fir prices rose, but less strongly than pine.

But pine price broached $200/mbf. Red pine was particularly strong. Inventories seemed depleted after the difficult logging conditions in the late March 2025 ice storm in Northern Michigan.

Minnesota activity did not show the same higher level of activity and prices that were reported in Michigan and Wisconsin.

You can see detailed five-year price trends from the first quarter by subscribing to the FDN Prime database. You can get a sample of what’s available there for both sawlog and cordwood pricing on a 5-minute video available at forestdatanetwork.com/prime