Consolidating Financial Statements Condensed Consolidating Balance Sheets (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 236,575	$ 78,603	$ 317,112	$ 349,463
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	97,198	95,008
Inventory	102,317	121,998
Intercompany interest receivable	0	0
Prepaid and other current assets	62,010	48,893
Total current assets	498,100	344,502
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	1,504,291	1,503,711
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	522,010	461,552
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE	74,388	69,219
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	0	0
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	0	0
OTHER ASSETS	195,094	190,364
TOTAL ASSETS	2,793,883	2,569,348
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	100,681	72,873
Current maturities of long-term debt	50,512	28,110
Accrued taxes	17,350	5,223
Accrued payroll and benefits	20,322	26,846
Accrued interest	11,075	7,044
Accrued customer incentives	7,148	10,369
Other current liabilities	16,064	17,855
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	9,931	9,931
Total current liabilities	233,083	178,251
LONG-TERM DEBT	973,717	819,229
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	79,194	80,893
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	140,517	140,623
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	24,987	27,279
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	0	0
TOTAL LIABILITIES	1,451,498	1,246,275
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,342,385	1,323,073		1,251,582
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	2,793,883	2,569,348
Parent Company [Member]
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	131,626	0	0	0
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	0	0
Inventory	0	0
Intercompany interest receivable	0	0
Prepaid and other current assets	0	0
Total current assets	131,626	0
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	0	0
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	0	0
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE	0	0
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	1,328,752	1,238,661
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	204,420	204,420
OTHER ASSETS	3,535	0
TOTAL ASSETS	1,668,333	1,443,081
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	0	0
Current maturities of long-term debt	0	0
Accrued taxes	0	0
Accrued payroll and benefits	0	0
Accrued interest	948	8
Accrued customer incentives	0	0
Other current liabilities	0	0
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	0	0
Total current liabilities	948	8
LONG-TERM DEBT	325,000	120,000
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	0	0
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	0	0
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	0	0
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	0	0
TOTAL LIABILITIES	325,948	120,008
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,342,385	1,323,073
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,668,333	1,443,081
Senior Exchangeable Notes due 2012 & 2015 [Member] | Guarantor Subsidiaries [Member]
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	27,671	8,977	9,522	29,759
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	24	3
Inventory	0	0
Intercompany interest receivable	0	0
Prepaid and other current assets	974	2,328
Total current assets	28,669	11,308
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	0	0
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	2,484	2,551
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE	0	0
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	1,524,491	1,490,444
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	0	0
OTHER ASSETS	26,802	26,850
TOTAL ASSETS	1,582,446	1,531,153
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	2,058	1,801
Current maturities of long-term debt	0	0
Accrued taxes	525	(27)
Accrued payroll and benefits	8,211	13,810
Accrued interest	366	246
Accrued customer incentives	0	0
Other current liabilities	2,237	1,886
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	0	0
Total current liabilities	13,397	17,716
LONG-TERM DEBT	0	30,000
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	0	0
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	113,491	112,904
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	17,557	20,210
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	109,249	111,662
TOTAL LIABILITIES	253,694	292,492
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,328,752	1,238,661
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,582,446	1,531,153
Senior Exchangeable Notes due 2012 & 2015 [Member] | Issuer Subsidiary [Member]
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	60,750	59,976	234,269	283,258
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	0	0
Inventory	0	0
Intercompany interest receivable	0	0
Prepaid and other current assets	796	808
Total current assets	61,546	60,784
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	0	0
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	0	0
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE	0	0
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	1,202,519	1,156,896
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	19,262	19,073
OTHER ASSETS	5,750	6,491
TOTAL ASSETS	1,289,077	1,243,244
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	9	10
Current maturities of long-term debt	50,512	28,110
Accrued taxes	0	0
Accrued payroll and benefits	0	0
Accrued interest	8,818	5,442
Accrued customer incentives	0	0
Other current liabilities	0	0
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	0	0
Total current liabilities	59,339	33,562
LONG-TERM DEBT	560,420	580,647
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	0	0
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	0	0
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	0	0
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	0	0
TOTAL LIABILITIES	619,759	614,209
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	669,318	629,035
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,289,077	1,243,244
Senior Exchangeable Notes due 2012 & 2015 [Member] | Non-guarantor Subsidiaries of Rayonier TRS Holdings Inc [Member]
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	8,520	7,398	14,028	1,280
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	94,699	94,399
Inventory	110,274	133,300
Intercompany interest receivable	0	0
Prepaid and other current assets	53,540	36,937
Total current assets	267,033	272,034
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	40,154	39,824
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	517,340	456,754
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE	(11,281)	(11,006)
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	0	0
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	0	0
OTHER ASSETS	699,073	702,087
TOTAL ASSETS	1,512,319	1,459,693
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	97,448	69,648
Current maturities of long-term debt	0	0
Accrued taxes	14,188	3,934
Accrued payroll and benefits	10,572	10,563
Accrued interest	334	739
Accrued customer incentives	7,148	10,369
Other current liabilities	7,367	9,199
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	9,931	9,931
Total current liabilities	146,988	114,383
LONG-TERM DEBT	0	0
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	79,194	80,893
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	27,026	27,719
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	6,809	6,396
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	49,783	73,406
TOTAL LIABILITIES	309,800	302,797
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,202,519	1,156,896
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,512,319	1,459,693
Senior Exchangeable Notes due 2012 & 2015 [Member] | Non-guarantor Subsidiaries All Other Subsidiaries [Member]
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	8,008	2,252	59,293	35,166
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	2,475	606
Inventory	0	0
Intercompany interest receivable	3,111	3,848
Prepaid and other current assets	6,700	8,820
Total current assets	20,294	15,526
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	1,462,277	1,462,027
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	2,186	2,247
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE	85,669	80,225
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	0	0
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	0	0
OTHER ASSETS	12,469	6,856
TOTAL ASSETS	1,582,895	1,566,881
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	1,166	1,414
Current maturities of long-term debt	0	0
Accrued taxes	2,637	1,316
Accrued payroll and benefits	1,539	2,473
Accrued interest	609	609
Accrued customer incentives	0	0
Other current liabilities	6,460	6,770
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	0	0
Total current liabilities	12,411	12,582
LONG-TERM DEBT	88,297	88,582
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	0	0
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	0	0
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	621	673
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	215,307	203,208
TOTAL LIABILITIES	316,636	305,045
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,266,259	1,261,836
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,582,895	1,566,881
Senior Exchangeable Notes due 2012 & 2015 [Member] | Consolidation, Eliminations [Member]
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	0	0	0	0
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	0	0
Inventory	(7,957)	(11,302)
Intercompany interest receivable	(3,111)	(3,848)
Prepaid and other current assets	0	0
Total current assets	(11,068)	(15,150)
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	1,860	1,860
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	0	0
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE		0
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	(4,055,762)	(3,886,001)
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	(223,682)	(223,493)
OTHER ASSETS	(552,535)	(551,920)
TOTAL ASSETS	(4,841,187)	(4,674,704)
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	0	0
Current maturities of long-term debt	0	0
Accrued taxes	0	0
Accrued payroll and benefits	0	0
Accrued interest	0	0
Accrued customer incentives	0	0
Other current liabilities	0	0
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	0	0
Total current liabilities	0	0
LONG-TERM DEBT	0	0
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	0	0
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	0	0
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	0	0
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	(374,339)	(388,276)
TOTAL LIABILITIES	(374,339)	(388,276)
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	(4,466,848)	(4,286,428)
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	(4,841,187)	(4,674,704)
Senior Notes due 2022 at a fixed interest rate of 3.75% [Member] | Guarantor Subsidiaries [Member]
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	83,099	58,132	241,703	303,746
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	89,582	90,658
Inventory	109,244	132,323
Intercompany interest receivable	0	0
Prepaid and other current assets	54,679	39,366
Total current assets	336,604	320,479
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	116,728	117,243
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	518,933	458,497
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE	0	0
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	796,030	801,838
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	0	0
OTHER ASSETS	706,429	710,663
TOTAL ASSETS	2,474,724	2,408,720
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	97,059	65,732
Current maturities of long-term debt	50,512	28,110
Accrued taxes	14,736	3,838
Accrued payroll and benefits	18,065	23,070
Accrued interest	9,518	6,427
Accrued customer incentives	7,148	10,369
Other current liabilities	8,700	10,319
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	9,931	9,931
Total current liabilities	215,669	157,796
LONG-TERM DEBT	560,420	610,647
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	79,194	80,893
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	140,517	140,623
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	23,554	25,894
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	126,618	154,206
TOTAL LIABILITIES	1,145,972	1,170,059
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,328,752	1,238,661
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	2,474,724	2,408,720
Senior Notes due 2022 at a fixed interest rate of 3.75% [Member] | Non-Guarantor Subsidiaries [Member]
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	21,850	20,471	75,409	45,717
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	7,616	4,350
Inventory	1,030	977
Intercompany interest receivable	3,111	3,848
Prepaid and other current assets	7,331	9,527
Total current assets	40,938	39,173
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	1,385,703	1,384,608
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	3,077	3,055
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE	74,388	69,219
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	0	0
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	0	0
OTHER ASSETS	37,666	31,622
TOTAL ASSETS	1,541,772	1,527,677
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	3,622	7,141
Current maturities of long-term debt	0	0
Accrued taxes	2,614	1,385
Accrued payroll and benefits	2,257	3,776
Accrued interest	609	609
Accrued customer incentives	0	0
Other current liabilities	7,364	7,536
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	0	0
Total current liabilities	16,466	20,447
LONG-TERM DEBT	88,297	88,582
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	0	0
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	0	0
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	1,433	1,385
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	228,460	214,997
TOTAL LIABILITIES	334,656	325,411
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,207,116	1,202,266
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	1,541,772	1,527,677
Senior Notes due 2022 at a fixed interest rate of 3.75% [Member] | Consolidation, Eliminations [Member]
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	0	0	0	0
Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts	0	0
Inventory	(7,957)	(11,302)
Intercompany interest receivable	(3,111)	(3,848)
Prepaid and other current assets	0	0
Total current assets	(11,068)	(15,150)
TIMBER AND TIMBERLANDS, NET OF DEPLETION AND AMORTIZATION	1,860	1,860
NET PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT	0	0
INVESTMENT IN JOINT VENTURE	0	0
INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES	(2,124,782)	(2,040,499)
INTERCOMPANY NOTES RECEIVABLE	(204,420)	(204,420)
OTHER ASSETS	(552,536)	(551,921)
TOTAL ASSETS	(2,890,946)	(2,810,130)
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	0	0
Current maturities of long-term debt	0	0
Accrued taxes	0	0
Accrued payroll and benefits	0	0
Accrued interest	0	0
Accrued customer incentives	0	0
Other current liabilities	0	0
Current liabilities for dispositions and discontinued operations	0	0
Total current liabilities	0	0
LONG-TERM DEBT	0	0
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES FOR DISPOSITIONS AND DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS	0	0
PENSION AND OTHER POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS	0	0
OTHER NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES	0	0
INTERCOMPANY PAYABLE	(355,078)	(369,203)
TOTAL LIABILITIES	(355,078)	(369,203)
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	(2,535,868)	(2,440,927)
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY	$ (2,890,946)	$ (2,810,130)