Fee coming to popular winter destination in Colorado

A new fee will be imposed at a popular destination for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing in northern Colorado.

Vehicles will be charged $10 to park at the Brainard Gateway trailhead, the starting point to Brainard Lake, at the edge of Indian Peaks Wilderness outside Boulder County. Fees will be required starting Nov. 15.

Meanwhile, this month will see the start of $10 parking fees at other popular sites more north, around Red Feather Lakes, at the Dowdy Lake and West Lake picnic sites.

The fee at those two sites will remain year-round, while the wintertime fee at Brainard Gateway will end March 16, according to a recent announcement from the U.S. Forest Service.

A news release said "managers will take information learned this winter to improve the program next winter."

The release added Brainard Gateway visitors over the next couple of months might see workers installing a new kiosk, a tube for cash and check drops, and a Wi-Fi system for a scan and pay option via phone.

Previously, ahead of this summer, the Forest Service notified of "a pilot winter fee program" coming for the Brainard Lake Recreation Area. That was part of announcing a broad agreement with Vista Recreation to help manage dozens of campgrounds and day use sites across Arapaho and Roosevelt national forests and Pawnee National Grassland.

Headquartered in Arizona, that Forest Service announcement credited Vista Recreation's "nearly 40 years of experience in public recreation management from campgrounds and day use facilities to marinas and stores." The company has agreements with federal land managers at locations across the nation.

In announcing its five-year agreement for Vista to oversee sites around northern Colorado — including new reservation systems for campgrounds in Grand County — the Forest Service recalled its work with concessionaires going back to the 1990s. "Concessionaires use a portion of the fees they collect to invest in improving facilities, amenities and operations," read the recent news release regarding Brainard Lake.

"Winter services include cleaning toilets, removing trash, plowing snow from roads, parking areas and around facilities," the release added.

Along with Brainard Lake, the Forest Service previously announced Vista would implement a fee at Crow Valley Recreation Area on the national grassland in Weld County.

Around Winter Park, the Idlewild, Midland and St. Louis Creek campgrounds were among campgrounds specified for online reservation systems.