Just a heads up for those of you headed west in the next few weeks. Much of CO has fire bans in place. There are two stages. Stage I and Stage II. Stage I basically means no camp fires (unless in a designated campground fire pit, rock fire rings are not acceptable), no charcoal grills (UL listed propane is OK), and all stoves, chainsaws, ATV's need spark arrestors. Stage II is Stage I plus no chainsaws unless accompanied by fire extinguisher and pointed shovel, no wood or charcoal stoves - even with a spark arrestor, no welding (probably not an issue.) Some stage II's prohibit recreational shooting (I've never seen hunting banned). If it's stage II in your area verify what it includes, it may mean outdoor ranges are closed, and you can't take a few sighter shots at your elevation. Please look the restrictions up for your area as the rules are not always consistent and my thoughts here are summarized. The authorities here take these violations very seriously as the potential for mass fire related damage is high.
Where we are are going the county is under stage II restrictions and Forest Service land is under stage I restrictions. I spoke with the FS this morning and they said even with the predicted rain and snow, they do not anticipate removing the stage I restrictions. There are two active fires burning in our area, and until those are out, the agent said, they bans will likely remain. Again this means no campfires. I guarantee that rangers will be out patrolling for campfires. Guaranteed. Campfire is more of a social thing, so probably not overly crucial to camp, the wood stove restriction though could be a huge issue.
If you're in Stage II area, you can't use a wood or charcoal stove in your tent. That could really change things for some people, especially since the weather is predicting snow.
Best thing to do is call the Forest Service or BLM or County Sheriff in your area (for whatever land you are camping on). Web info. hasn't been reliable as they change the rules, sometimes daily. Get the name, date, time, etc. of the person you talked to and note what they said.
