Official websites use .gov
A .gov
website belongs to an official government organization in the
United States.
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock
(
) or https:// means you've safely
connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only
on official, secure websites.
Recreation Fee Change Proposal Information
This page provides detailed information on the proposed recreation fee changes on the Rio Grande National Forest.
The official comment period for this process has closed. A decision will be posted on this page when it has been published.
Background
The Recreation Enhancement Act authorizes the Forest Service to charge fees at developed recreation sites. These fees are known as expanded amenity fees. Expanded amenity fees are fees for facilities or services that provide direct benefits to people. The Rio Grande National Forest currently charges an expanded amenity fee for use of developed campgrounds that provide, at least, a majority of the following:
| Tent or trailer spaces | Picnic tables |
| Drinking water | Access roads |
| Reasonable visitor protection | Refuse containers |
| Simple devices for containing a campfire | Toilet facilities |
| The collection of the fee by a FS employee |
Fees charged for these expanded amenities are used for:
- Repair, maintenance, and facility enhancement related directly to visitor enjoyment, visitor access, and health and safety
- Interpretation, visitor information, visitor service, visitor needs assessments, and signs
- Law enforcement related to public use and recreation
- Direct operating or capital costs associated with the recreation fee program
- A fee management agreement established under section 6805(a) of this title or a visitor reservation service.
The Rio Grande National Forest is seeking comments on these four primary potential fee changes:
1. Charging $10.00 expanded amenity fees at these Divide Ranger District locations:
| Cathedral Campground | Comstock Campground |
| Ivy Creek Campground | Lost Trail Campground |
| Rio Grande Campground | Road Canyon Campground |
| Rock Creek Campground |
2. Charging a reduced $10.00 shoulder season expanded amenity fee at the following Divide Ranger District sites. (The shoulder season is before/after the concessionaire season which is generally, Memorial Day through Labor Day.)
| Big Meadows Campground | Cross Creek Campground |
| Lower Beaver Campground | Palisade Campground |
| Silver Thread Campground | Thirty Mile Campground |
3. Increasing the existing expanded amenity fees on the Saguache Ranger District to $10.00 at the following sites:
| Buffalo Pass Campground | Luders Creek Campground |
| North Crestone Creek Campground | Poso Campground |
| Stone Cellar Campground | Storm King Campground |
4. Begin charging a fee at two new rental cabins:
- Duncan Cabin, $40 / night – located between Crestone and the Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve.
- Alamosa Guard Station Cabin, $55 / night - located on Forest Road #250 in Alamosa Canyon.
How to provide comments on the proposed fee changes
The official comment period for this process has closed.
Send your written comments to:
Rio Grande National Forest
Attn: Campground Fees
1803 West US Highway 160
Monte Vista, CO 81144
Email comments to:
comments-rocky-mountain-rio-grande@fs.fed.us
Subject Line: “Campground Fees”
Visit the region-wide "story map"
https://usfs.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=c6ccf2cf19e44e39995868ccf0ce70fc