Raptor Nesting Sites Area Closure- Canyon Lakes Ranger District

PROHIBITIONS

Pursuant to 16 USC § 551 and 36 CFR § 261.50(a), the following is prohibited on the National Forest System (NFS) lands in the Canyon Lakes Ranger District, Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests and Pawnee National Grassland, described below and shown on the attached map incorporated into this Order as Exhibits 1-4 (the “Described Areas”):

1. Going into or being in the Triple Tier and Grazing Allotment Crag, Described Areas A & B, from February 1 through July 31, 36 C.F.R. § 261.53(a).
2. Going into or being in Boston Peak and Mt. Olympus, Described Areas C & D, from March 1 through July 31, 36 36 C.F.R. § 261.53(a).

EXEMPTIONS

Pursuant to 36 CFR § 261.50(e), the following persons are exempt from this Order:

1. Persons with Forest Service Permit No. FS-7700-48 (Permit for Use of Roads, Trails, or Areas Restricted by Regulation or Order), specifically exempting them from this Order or a written determination by a Forest Service authorized officer that a permit is not required under 36 CFR § 251.50(e)(1) or (2).
2. Any Federal, State, or Local Officer, or member of an organized rescue or firefighting resource in the performance of an official duty.

DESCRIBED Areas

This Order will close an area of 250 acres of National Forest System land in the Canyon Lakes Ranger District of the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests and Pawnee National Grassland in Larimer County, Colorado. The areas closed are as follows:

1. Triple Tier – Exhibit 1

South of Highway 14 (Poudre Canyon Road) on the eastside of the Baldwin Tunnel and southeast of the Crystal Wall climbing area in Section 5, Township 8 North, Range 71 West, 6th P.M., and includes all NFS lands within the following boundaries: the entire rock formation known as Triple Tier including the Fist, Undertall Wall, the Sail, Laughing Man, Chimney Sweep Wall, Middle Class Wall, and Upper Echelon (aka Old Aid Wall). 

2. Grazing Allotment Crag – Exhibit 2

    

Northwest of the Prairie Divide Road and north of Travois Trail Road, in Section 18, Township 10 North, Range 72 West, 6th P.M., and includes all NFS lands within the following boundaries: the entire rock formation known as Grazing Allotment Crag located west and northwest from the Prairie Divide Road and north of Travois Trail Road along the private land boundary. 

3. Boston Peak – Exhibit 3

North of State Highway 14 (Poudre Canyon Road) and west of the town of Kinikinik in Sections 35 and 36, Township 9 North, Range 75 West, 6th P.M., and includes all NFS lands within the following boundaries: all of the rock features that comprise Boston Peak including routes on Orange Wall, South Ridge, and includes accessing the summit. The Area borders the Bliss State Wildlife Area and 420 Boulders and is west/southwest of Williams Gulch.

4. Mt. Olympus – Exhibit 4

Mt. Olympus Described Area (Exhibit 4) is southeast of U.S. Highway 34 (Big Thompson Canyon Road), in Sections 21 and 28, Township 5 North, Range 72 West, 6th P.M., and includes all NFS lands within the following boundaries: from U.S. Highway 34 - the area south to the private land boundary, southeast and east including the southwest portion of Mt. Olympus, and includes any approaches to the summit.

The above-described areas are depicted in a map that is attached to the Order (Exhibits 1-4). 

PURPOSE

The purpose of this Order is to protect nesting raptors on National Forest System lands by prohibiting unauthorized access within the area of Raptor Nesting Sites. It provides for safety to the public and those authorized to be working in the area by preventing the general public from disturbing birds of prey, known as raptors, during their breeding and nesting seasons.

Each year, the U.S. Forest Service initiates adaptive, temporary closures to ensure birds of prey, also known as raptors, will be undisturbed during their breeding and nesting seasons. Raptors are sensitive to human disturbance during these times, and the closures give them a chance to select a nest site during courtship free of human influence. These closures occur at known nesting sites that are monitored by staff from the U.S. Forest Service and Colorado Parks and Wildlife. 

According to Standard (ST) 101 in the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests and Pawnee National Grassland Forest Plan, the U.S. Forest Service is required to “protect known raptor nest areas. Base the extent of protection on proposed management activities, human activities existing before nest establishment, species, topography, vegetative cover, and other factors. A no-disturbance buffer around active nest sites will be required from nest-site selection to fledgling (generally March through July). Exceptions may occur when individuals are adapted to human activity”.

IMPLEMENTATION

1. This Order shall be in effect from February 1, 2026, at 12:01 AM through July 31, 2026, at 11:59 PM, unless rescinded.
2. A map identifying the Described Areas is attached and made part of this Order as Exhibits 1-4. For a digital version of this Order and Exhibits 1-4, go to https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/arp/alerts.
3. Unless otherwise expressly defined in this Order, the terms used in this Order are defined by the regulations of the Secretary of Agriculture, 36 CFR Chapter II, Parts 200-299. If there are terms in this Order that are not expressly defined in the Order or 36 CFR Chapter II, Parts 200-299, their meaning shall be determined by their plain language definitions.
4. A violation of the above prohibitions is punishable as a Class B misdemeanor by a fine of not more than $5,000 for individuals and $10,000 for organizations, or by imprisonment for not more than six months, or both. 16 USC § 551; 18 USC §§ 3559, 3571, and 3581.
5. Contact the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests and Pawnee National Grassland’s Supervisor’s Office in Fort Collins, Colorado by phone at (970) 295-6600 for more information about this Order.
6. This Order supersedes any previous Orders prohibiting the same or similar acts in the same Described Areas.