Colorado · Burn Bans

Before

Colorado has no single statewide fire ban — Stage 1 and Stage 2 restrictions are set separately by each county, national forest, BLM field office and national park, and units keep stepping down as the season winds down. NATIONAL FORESTS, re-read September 21, 2026: the ARAPAHO & ROOSEVELT National Forests carry STAGE 1 restrictions on 3 ranger districts, not 4 - Boulder and Clear Creek, covering Boulder, Clear Creek, Gilpin and Jefferson counties (Order 02-10-00-26-05), and Sulphur in Grand County (Order 02-10-08-26-06): fires only in Forest Service installed and maintained rings and grills at developed campgrounds with a host, or a portable stove with an on/off switch elsewhere. THE CANYON LAKES RANGER DISTRICT IN LARIMER COUNTY IS NO LONGER RESTRICTED: the forest fire-restrictions alert, carrying an alert start date of September 21, 2026 and re-read on the date in this row, states that no restrictions are in place on the Canyon Lakes Ranger District or the Pawnee National Grassland, so Order 02-10-05-26-08 is off. Larimer County and local rules still apply on top. The GRAND MESA, UNCOMPAHGRE & GUNNISON National Forests TERMINATED their Stage 1 fire restrictions effective September 3, 2026 (Forest Order 02-04-00-26-27). BLM, last re-read September 10, 2026 from BLM's Rocky Mountain Area fire-restriction layer (BLM update of September 9, 2026) and NOT re-checked today: STAGE 2 (no campfires or charcoal grills at all, even in developed campgrounds) on the Kremmling field office, whose Stage 2 order covers Grand, Summit and Eagle counties (the layer also flags Kremmling land in Jackson and Larimer counties as Stage 2 while linking a Stage 1 order for those two counties, so treat all Kremmling land as Stage 2 and confirm with the field office); STAGE 1 (campfires generally only in permanent fire rings at developed sites) on the Colorado River Valley, Grand Junction, Gunnison, Little Snake, Royal Gorge, San Luis Valley, Tres Rios and Uncompahgre field offices; White River carries only BLM's year-round order. National Park Service units, last verified August 21, 2026 and not re-checked today: Rocky Mountain National Park, Mesa Verde, Great Sand Dunes, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Colorado National Monument and Dinosaur published Stage 1, and Yucca House National Monument Stage 2 — confirm with the park. Baseline on public lands at every stage: no fireworks, exploding targets or tracer ammunition, and engines need a working spark arrestor; gas, jellied-petroleum and pressurized-liquid-fuel stoves with a shut-off valve stay legal. Counties set their own separate bans on top of this. Confirm your exact county and land manager before any fire — Colorado restrictions change fast in both directions.

Now

Colorado has no single statewide fire ban — restrictions are set separately by each county, national forest, BLM field office and national park, and most federal units have now lifted their seasonal restrictions. ARAPAHO & ROOSEVELT NATIONAL FORESTS AND PAWNEE NATIONAL GRASSLAND: the forest's fire-restrictions alert, last updated September 28, 2026 and re-read September 30, 2026, states that there are currently no fire restrictions in place, so the Stage 1 orders that had covered the Boulder, Clear Creek and Sulphur Ranger Districts (Orders 02-10-00-26-05 and 02-10-08-26-06) are off; some National Forest areas keep year-round campfire bans, so follow posted signs. The GRAND MESA, UNCOMPAHGRE & GUNNISON National Forests terminated their Stage 1 restrictions effective September 3, 2026 (Forest Order 02-04-00-26-27). BLM: on BLM's Colorado Fire Restrictions & Closures page, re-read September 30, 2026, all 10 Colorado field offices list their seasonal restrictions as lifted with only the year-round wildfire prevention rules remaining — most recently Kremmling (Grand, Summit and Eagle counties) on September 24, 2026, Colorado River Valley on September 23, 2026, and Royal Gorge and San Luis Valley on September 21, 2026. The Gunnison Field Office still keeps a temporary emergency closure in Ouray and Hinsdale counties, reduced on August 25, 2026. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE: Great Sand Dunes National Park still posts STAGE 1 fire restrictions on its NPS alert feed, in effect since August 18, 2026: wood and charcoal fires only in established fire rings in designated campsites or picnic sites, and no other open fires. The NPS alert feeds for Rocky Mountain National Park, Mesa Verde, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Dinosaur and Yucca House carried no fire-restriction alert on September 30, 2026, but LawLert has not seen a lifting notice for them, so confirm with the park. Colorado National Monument keeps its year-round rule: wood fires and fireworks always prohibited, charcoal only in designated grills. Baseline on federal land at every stage: no fireworks, exploding targets or tracer ammunition. Counties set their own separate bans on top of all of this — restrictions are set unit by unit; check your county and land manager before you burn.