UPDATED Thursday, July 6: A wildfire smoldering in the Columbia River Gorge is estimated to be six to seven acres and has prompted trail closures.

Authorities haven't contained the blaze, dubbed the Indian Creek fire, said Claire Fernandes of the Mt. Hood National Forest. The fire isn't spreading, she said.

Fernandes said authorities are dropping water on the fire from above and that firefighters are monitoring the blaze, which is "smoldering in heavy dead and down vegetation."

A crew is posting closure signs and ensuring people aren't in the closed area, Fernandes, East Zone Recreation Manager for the national forest, said in an email.

The fire was reported at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday near Seven and a Half Mile Camp off of Eagle Creek Trail 440, said Rachel Pawlitz, a spokeswoman for the Columbia River Gorge Natural Scenic Area.

View the closure map below.

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The U.S. Forest Service is fighting a 5-acre wildfire near a popular hiking spot in the Columbia River Gorge, officials said Wednesday.

Officials don't know what caused the fire, which was reported at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday near Seven and a Half Mile Camp off of Eagle Creek Trail 440, said Rachel Pawlitz, a spokeswoman for the Columbia River Gorge Natural Scenic Area. Two helicopters were called in to fight the fire late Tuesday.

The forest service will close the area from Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness to the junction of the Pacific Crest Trail, Pawlitz said. The Pacific Crest Trail will remain open.

Visitors are advised not to enter Eagle Creek Trail from Wahtum Lake from the Eagle Creek Trailhead as firefighters work to contain the fire, she said.

She said the extent of the damage caused by the fire is still being determined.

— Samantha Matsumoto

503-294-4001; @SMatsumoto55

Jim Ryan of The Oregonian/OregonLive staff contributed to this report