Christmas tree permits now available on Pike-San Isabel National Forests
PUEBLO, Colo., Nov. 15, 2024 — The Leadville, Salida, San Carlos, South Park, South Platte and Pikes Peak ranger districts are selling Christmas tree permits for the upcoming holiday season. Permits can be purchased online through Recreation.gov. There is an additional $2.50 processing fee for all online purchases. Recreation.gov offers maps of designated cutting areas as well as tips for selecting and cutting trees. Permitted dates and areas vary, so it is important to carefully read all information prior to purchasing.
Tree permit availability, cost, and limits by district:
Leadville, Salida, and San Carlos ranger districts—Tree permits are available online and at the district office. The cost is $10 per tree permit with a limit of two permits per family. Cash, checks and credit cards accepted (cash or check only for Westcliffe and La Veta offices).
- South Park Ranger District—Tree permits are available online and at the district office. The cost is $20 per tree permit with a limit of five permits per family.
- South Platte Ranger District—Tree permits are available online only; a limited number is available. The cost is $20 per tree permit with a limit of five permits per family.
- Pikes Peak Ranger District—Tree permit sales will begin online November 29, and will also be available for purchase at the district office on December 2, between 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The cost is $20 per tree permit with a limit of five permits per family.
All fourth graders are eligible for a free Christmas tree permit as part of the national Every Kid Outdoors initiative. First, obtain an Every Kid Outdoors voucher or pass at https://everykidoutdoors.gov. Then, apply for the Christmas tree permit at Christmas Tree Permits – Recreation.gov where you can search for the forest by name. Click on Purchase Tree Permit. Enter information and check “I have a fourth grade Every Kid Outdoors Pass.” Enter voucher or pass number when prompted. Please note, this Every Kid Outdoors pass does not waive the $2.50 Recreation.gov purchase processing fee.
When venturing out to cut a Christmas tree, make sure to be on National Forest lands and on the correct ranger district. Bring a printed copy of the permit or Christmas tree tag along with a paper map as cell service may be unavailable. It is important to read all the instructions on where trees can or cannot be cut. Contact your local district for all guidelines and restrictions for that area. District office contact information can be found at https://www.fs.usda.gov/contactus/psicc/about-forest/contactus.
Forest Service roads are generally not plowed and some roads close seasonally. Handsaws and axes are the only tools allowed; chainsaws are prohibited. Dress in warm layers, bring a rope to secure the tree to the vehicle and enjoy the tradition. For more information about the Christmas tree program, visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/psicc/passes-permits/?cid=stelprdb5103584.
Pike-San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands prepares for prescribed pile burning:
Pueblo, Colo., Oct. 1, 2024 — The Pike-San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands plans to conduct prescribed pile burning on National Forest System lands on all ranger districts beginning November 2024 through spring of 2025, as conditions allow. Prescribed burning of slash piles on the administrative unit will take place at the following locations:
Salida Ranger District
- Cleveland Mountain Piles – between County Road 210 and U.S. Highway 285 (Chaffee County).
Leadville Ranger District
- Railroad Bridge Piles – between County Road 371 and County Road 375 (Chaffee County).
Slash piles consist of small trees, treetops and limbs that were cut and piled during hazardous fuel management projects or other vegetation management projects. Ignitions will occur only when weather and fuel conditions meet established parameters and when smoke impacts can be managed within state requirements. Ignition operations may continue for several days or weeks depending on the number of piles being burned. Fire personnel will monitor the burns until the fires are completely out.
The goals of prescribed fire projects are to reduce the accumulation of hazardous fuels and to restore and maintain healthy and diverse forest ecosystems and wildlife habitat. Prescribed fire is an important tool to lessen the risk of wildfire across the landscape and can help prevent high severity wildfires by reducing buildup. Prescribed fire creates less of a smoke impact than wildfire and can help reduce the occurrence of wildfire-related smoke in the treated areas. Once the prescribed fire begins, smoke may be present for several days or weeks in the general project area. Prescribed fire smoke may affect people’s health. For more information, visit https://cdphe.colorado.gov/wood-smoke-and-your-health.
Follow @PSICC_NF on X and Facebook for up-to-date information on active prescribed fire projects. For more fire resources, please visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/psicc/fire/?cid=fseprd667411.
Oct. 1, 2024 — Leadville Ranger District solicits outfitting and guiding services: The Leadville Ranger District of the Pike-San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands is accepting applications for a priority outfitting and guiding special use permit through a competitive selection process, or prospectus. Six hundred service days are available in this prospectus for summer day use hiking on Mount Elbert on the South Elbert Trail #1481 and North Elbert Trail #1484.
A service day is an allocation of use constituting a day or any part of a day on National Forest System lands for which an outfitter or guide provides services to a client. The total number of service days is calculated by multiplying each service day by the number of clients on the trip.
Applicants must submit one paper copy and one electronic copy of the completed application package and supporting documents by 4:30 p.m. MST on Jan. 15, 2025.
The electronic copy should be sent to Rebekka Gardiner at rebekka.gardiner@usda.gov. The paper copy should be sent to District Ranger Patrick Mercer at the Leadville Ranger District to the attention of Rebekka Gardiner at 810 Front Street, Leadville, Colo., 80461.
All prospective applicants are advised to read the prospectus carefully. The prospectus documents and application information are available at https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/psicc/passes-permits/?cid=FSEPRD1206746.
“The use and need we’re seeing on Mount Elbert has created a business opportunity with an outdoor education component,” said Mercer. “Outfitters and guides double as teachers of responsible land use ethics. The knowledge they share keeps giving back to the land.”
For more information, contact Special Uses Administrator Rebekka Gardiner at Leadville Ranger District at 719-486-0749.
Forest resilience and firewood thanks to Threemile Creek forest health project: The Salida Ranger District of the Pike-San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands completed a forest health project in the Threemile Creek and Browns Creek areas off Forest Service Road 272 near Nathrop, Colo. The intent of this project is to create forest conditions that are more resilient to insect infestations, lessen disease susceptibility and reduce the likelihood of high intensity wildfire.
The timber from this project is decked and available to the public for firewood with the purchase of a fuelwood permit beginning July 1, 2024. Fuelwood permits are available for purchase on the Salida Ranger District annually from June 1 through Nov. 30. Fuelwood tags and maps of the designated cutting areas are issued with the fuelwood permit. All loads of firewood must be tagged with a valid fuelwood tag. Cutting fuelwood without a valid permit is punishable by a fine. The cost for a fuel wood permit is $10 per cord with a minimum purchase of three cords. Personal use fuelwood permits can be purchased at the Salida Ranger District Office at 5575 Cleora Rd, Salida, Colo. 81201.
This project was completed using mechanical treatments that included a combination of thinning and regeneration harvests using the cut-to-length harvesting equipment. In the cut-to-length method, two machines are used, called a harvester and forwarder. The harvester cuts down, delimbs, and measures the trees, cutting them into lengths. The forwarder moves the trees to the desired staging location. The harvester has a crane arm that can reach approximately 30 feet, which enables efficient selective thinning. In selective thinning, a dense forest stand is thinned, and the healthiest trees are left to grow.
“Since the harvester can delimb the trees in the forest, the nutrition-rich top and limb slash are left behind,” said Timber Sale Administrator for the San Isabel National Forest Justin Anderson. “This gives the trees left growing, or the new seedlings that sprout, the benefits of added nutrients to the soil.”
Top and limb slash consists of leaves, needles, branches and tops of the trees that have been harvested. Slash is also placed on the driving path to reduce the strain of the machine on the terrain. The cut-to-length method is more efficient, uses less equipment and leaves less of an impact to the ground than traditional logging equipment.
“There is no zero-sum game where one resource benefits and another is impacted with this work,” said Salida District Ranger Perry Edwards. “I see benefits to all resources and people who get easy access to firewood.”
For more information on the San Isabel National Forest fuelwood program visit, https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/psicc/about-forest/districts/?cid=fseprd563989.
