The complex topography of the inland northwestern U.S. (58.4 million ha) interacts with continental and maritime air masses to create a highly variable climate, which results in a variety of forest settings. Historically (1850 to 1900), approximately 20% of the area was covered by dry forests (Pinus ponderosa, Pseudotsuga menziesii), and an estimated 18% was covered by moist forests (Pinus monticola, Tsuga heterophylla). Frequent surface fires burned over 75% of the area of dry forests; today, these fires burn approximately 45% of the area. In the dry forests, successful fire exclusion and harvesting allowed dense stands of Abies grandis, Pseudotsuga menziesii, and small Pinus ponderosa to develop. Historically, forest canopies (Pinus ponderosa, Larix occidentalis) and their nutrients were located well above the soil surface; fine roots and microbial activity were located deep in mineral soils, thus protecting them from wildfire. In contrast, the Abies- and Pseudotsuga-dominated forests of today contain nutrient-rich crowns that extend to the forest floor. Nutrients and microbial activity are located near the soil surface, increasing their susceptibility to loss from wildfire. In the moist forests, fire exclusion, harvesting, and the introduction of Cronartium ribicola (a stem disease) from Europe are the primary change agents. In the northern Rocky Mountain moist forests, early-seral Pinus monticola has nearly been extirpated and mid- to late-seral conifers now dominate. In the moist forest of the eastern Cascades Mountains in Washington and Oregon, an increase in homogeneity of mid-seral forests containing Abies grandis, Tsuga heterophylla, and Pseudotsuga menziesii has occurred, encouraged by the harvesting of L. occidentalis and Pinus ponderosa. These changes have elevated the risk to large-scale insect and disease epidemics and uncharacteristic wildfires. Successful restoration strategies in both the dry and moist forests should be cognizant of the changes that have occurred not only in the tree component but also those occurring in the soil and across landscapes. The reintroduction of fire alone is not the answer to restoring these forests. Fire should only be used when the trees and soil are in harmony with its reintroduction. Given ever-changing social desires, changes in soil microbial and chemical properties, potential changes in long-term climate, and both native and exotic diseases and insects, a multiscale approach applied over short- and long-term temporal (decades to centuries) and spatial (site to landscape) scales may provide a template for restoring the moist and dry forests of the Inland Northwest.