Sonora, CA…As the holiday season approaches, the Stanislaus National Forest is pleased to announce our inaugural season offering Christmas Tree permits. In celebration of this event, this year only, Christmas Tree permits will be made available for free. Christmas Tree permits will be available Friday, November 25 through recreation.gov who charges a $2.50 processing fee. There will be a limit of 5000 permits issued.

“There’s a certain magic in families coming together to wander into the forest to find that special tree,” said Stanislaus National Forest Supervisor, Jason Kuiken. “We are pleased to make this available to our community and hope this will be the beginning of new traditions for so many families.”

Families interested in obtaining a Christmas Tree permit should visit recreation.gov. Recreation.gov makes it easy to purchase a permit. “Visitor feedback has been extremely positive,” said Rick DeLappe, Recreation.gov Program Manager. “Of the more than 9,000-star ratings submitted by those who purchased permits on Recreation.gov during the 2021 season, 96 percent gave 4 or 5 stars of their experience.”

Once on Recreation.gov, national forests provide important details, like cutting area maps, types of trees to cut, and other important planning tips on their respective permit pages. Through recreation.gov only, Christmas Tree permits will be made available for free with a maximum of two trees per permit with one permit per house hold. Those purchasing a permit should also expect to pay a $2.50 administrative fee to rec.gov.

Broadly speaking, only two areas are off limits for cutting Christmas Trees: designated Wilderness Areas and the Experimental Forest. In addition, please do not cut any Christmas trees from any Forest Service administrative site (offices, campgrounds, or other facilities, etc.). Additional information and guidance regarding how and where to harvest your tree is contained in the permit.

“It is important to remember that visitors will need to print the permit and display it on the dash of their vehicle on the day of their visit to cut their trees,” said Stanislaus National Forest Public Services Staff Officer, Todd Newburger.

In planning your outing, please understand that our seasonal road closures go into effect on December 15, 2022. Many higher elevation roads will be closed at that time. Please visit our forest website at Stanislaus National Forest – Maps & Publications (usda.gov) to find more information regarding our Motor Vehicle Use designations and dates. Please enjoy a safe winter visit, creating memories and leaving only footprints behind.

Cutting a Christmas Tree improves forest health. The permit system helps to thin densely populated stands of small-diameter trees. Local forest health experts identify areas that benefit from thinning trees and tend to be the perfect size for a Christmas Tree. Removing these trees in designated areas helps other trees grow larger and can open areas that provide food for wildlife.

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