Another area impacted by the Cameron Peak Fire has opened, following the opening of numerous areas in February. The new area opening up is north of County Road 44H (Buckhorn Rd.) and south of Old Flowers Road. This does not open any additional roads or trails within the fire perimeter, but does open up some general forest area. Visitors to the area are reminded there are safety hazards within burn areas to be aware of, including but not limited to, falling trees, flood risks, stump holes and rock fall danger.
Most areas impacted by the fire remain closed for safety and natural resource protection. The general area that remains closed is all National Forest System lands east of the Laramie River Road north of the West Branch Trailhead and east of Colorado State Forest State Park south of the trailhead; west of County Roads 69, 63E, and 27; south of County Road 86; and north of Rocky Mountain Park and County Road 43. Details of the latest closure and map are available on the Forest website.
Other areas that have reopened this year include the Lower Dadd Gulch Trail, Chambers Lake and Access Road, Long Draw Road (for over-snow use only and no overnight use), Long Draw Reservoir, the Neota Wilderness and the Joe Wright Ski Trail. The Zimmerman Lake Trailhead and restroom (which opens Zimmerman Lake, Zimmerman Loop, upper portion of the Meadows Trail and Montgomery Pass trails); Cameron Pass Trailhead and restroom (which opens the Cameron Connection Trail); and Joe Wright Trailhead and restroom (reservoir is open for ice fishing when appropriate) are open, along with the Long Draw ski route and the lower portion of Meadows Trail. For these open trails and road, the area opened is 50 feet on either side of the trail or road.
Crews continue to evaluate other recreation areas as conditions allow. Forest Service staff and volunteer trail crews from the Cameron Peak Nordic Rangers and Poudre Wilderness Volunteers have worked hard in areas that are open. There are more than 120 miles of Forest Service trails within the Cameron Peak Fire perimeter and over 350 miles of Forest Service roads. Most areas will not be safely accessible for evaluation until after the snow melts. Many factors come into play when determining when an area can reopen. Beyond the immediate risk of hazard trees, considerations need to be made for trail markers, erosion control and trail stabilization issues, damaged infrastructure like bridges, and safety signage. The district is hopeful a few more areas will open before Memorial Day, but this will be heavily dependent on impacts from spring runoff.
Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com
HikinginGlacier.com
TetonHikingTrails.com
Ramble On: A History of Hiking
Exploring Glacier National Park
Exploring Grand Teton National Park
No comments:
Post a Comment