Load up the station wagon, Griswolds! The Pike National Forest, Pikes Peak Ranger District, will be selling Christmas tree cutting permits November 27 through December 15. Permits may be purchased at the Pikes Peak Ranger District Office at 601 South Weber St. in Colorado Springs. Office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The cost is $10.00 per tree permit.
Tree cutting permits will also be sold in Woodland Park on December 2, 3, 9 and 10, between 8:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. at the East parking lot of the Woodland Park Middle School on the corner of Rampart Range Road and Kelley Road. On December 9, parking will be limited as Christmas tree permit sales will be located near the ballfield in the upper gravel lot. Only cash and checks will be accepted at the Woodland Park location.
The tree cutting area is approximately 10,000 acres and is located northeast of Woodland Park on Rampart Range Road (Forest Road 300), approximately three miles from the Woodland Park Middle School. Trees may be cut from November 27 through December 15. Prepare for winter driving conditions and roads may not be plowed.
All trees are native and are not as full or shaped as those sold at commercial lots. Trees are of various species, including lodgepole pine, ponderosa pine, Douglas-fir and Engelmann spruce. The maximum tree size allowed is six inches in diameter at the base of the tree. Use of a hand saw is recommended – chainsaws are not allowed. For additional information, access https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/psicc/passes-permits/forestproducts/ for a map of the cutting area or, call 719-636-1602.