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Rio Grande National Forest
National Forest

Rio Grande National Forest

Colorado · CO

1.9M

Acres

14

Campgrounds

Official sources & verification

Managed by United States Forest Service

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We display cached information from agency feeds. Hours, fees, permits, closures, fire restrictions, and conditions change without notice. Outdoors is not the permitting authority. Confirm current conditions for this park using the links above before you go — you are responsible for compliance. Last verified by us: May 10, 2026. Our copy is more than a month old — please reconfirm with the agency before relying on it.Spot an error in our data?

About

Imported description
Encircling the San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado, Rio Grande National Forest protects 1.86 million acres spanning from the 7,600-foot high desert floor to the 14,345-foot summit of Blanca Peak, one of Colorado's most prominent fourteeners. The forest safeguards the headwaters of the Rio Grande, one of North America's great rivers, as it begins its 1,900-mile journey from the Continental Divide to the Gulf of Mexico. The Weminuche Wilderness, Colorado's largest wilderness area at over 499,000 acres, stretches across the forest's western reaches with rugged peaks, alpine lakes, and the Continental Divide Trail.\n\nThe Wheeler Geologic Area, once a national monument, features otherworldly volcanic tuff spires and pinnacles eroded into fantastical shapes, accessible only by a challenging 14-mile round-trip hike or horseback ride. The forest's high valleys and streams harbor one of the last strongholds of the rare Rio Grande cutthroat trout, Colorado's state fish and the only trout species native to the Rio Grande basin. Vast spruce-fir forests, expansive aspen groves, and open mountain parks provide critical winter range for large elk herds and summer habitat for mule deer, black bears, and mountain lions.

Source: fs.usda.gov

From Wikipedia

Rio Grande National Forest is a 1.86 million-acre (7,530 km2) U.S. national forest located in southwestern Colorado. The forest encompasses the San Luis Valley, which is the world's largest agricultural alpine valley, as well as one of the world's largest high deserts located around mountains. The Rio Grande rises in the forest, and the Continental Divide runs along most of its western border. The forest lies in parts of nine counties. In descending order of land area within the forest they are Saguache, Mineral, Conejos, Rio Grande, Hinsdale, San Juan, Alamosa, Archuleta, and Custer counties. Forest headquarters are currently located in Del Norte, Colorado. There are local ranger district offices in Del Norte, La Jara, and Saguache.

Source: Wikipedia — text licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Verify alerts and operational details with the managing agency below.

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Hunting in this park

This park overlaps hunting unit

During hunting seasons, wear blaze orange and check regulations — see the Colorado hunting page

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