Forest Service plan to designate dispersed campsites draws Chaffee County support and request for flexible implementation

Gabe Hobson, a Forest Service planner, briefed the Chaffee County commissioners on the Salida and Leadville Ranger Districts’ Dispersed Camping Management Plan and emphasized the limited 30‑day comment window (the transcript states the deadline is tomorrow). The plan would identify and delineate roughly 100 existing sites in impacted areas (including Brown's Creek, Clear Creek and Fourmile), mark them as designated camping sites, and allow camping up to about 300 feet off the road within those designated sites while limiting additional informal campsite creation elsewhere.

Hobson said the draft does not create new fire restrictions beyond existing fire‑management practice, and that the agency would use adaptive management and specialist screening in year one to avoid heritage or wildlife impacts before adding infrastructure, signage and enforcement in year two. He estimated a relatively small reduction (about 5–10%) in camping capacity where degraded sites would be eliminated, but said overall district capacity would remain close to current levels because campers would disperse to other sites when some are removed.

Commissioners asked about natural barriers, signage, fencing or boulders to prevent campsite creep and stressed the value of protecting riparian areas. The board directed staff to draft a short comment letter supporting the concept while requesting flexibility for constrained areas where a strict 100‑foot riparian buffer is not practicable. Hobson offered to draft an initial comment for BOCC review that afternoon, and staff will return a proposed letter for the board’s edits.