The Michigan Ditch Pre-Fire Mitigation Project will kick off in the coming days. The project area is located entirely within the Colorado State Forest, near the popular Crags area of State Forest State Park near Cameron Pass. The project will improve forest health and protect the City of Fort Collins’ water infrastructure and water supply from threats associated with destructive, large-scale wildfires. Potential post-fire impacts include damage to key infrastructure, interruptions in water supply and degradation of water quality due to post-fire erosion and mudslides. The upper Michigan River Watershed is also a part of the water supply for the Town of Walden.
Phase 1 of this multi-phase project consists of 150 acres of targeted forest treatment in areas mostly above and below the Michigan Ditch. This work will occur in very steep terrain, so contractors will use tethered and helicopter logging. Staff anticipate the work will occur between July and October of 2025 and 2026, which will result in some closures in the area during these times.
“The Michigan Ditch provides about 11% of Fort Collins raw water supply,” said Richard Thorp, City of Fort Collins watershed program manager. “This project will remove dead trees that could potentially fuel a wildfire, thereby protecting the water quality and the infrastructure that carries the water.”
This section of the Colorado State Forest has experienced high mortality from spruce bark beetles that have killed up to 80% of mature trees in some parts of the project area. Contractors will remove dead trees, as well as trees at risk of blowing down; they will also thin understory trees to reduce fuels available to burn during a wildfire.
“Most of the mature spruce surrounding the ditch have been dead for 10-15 years. As these large trees continue falling, it creates an excess of heavy fuels on the forest floor that will persist for 50-100 years, said Blair Rynearson, Colorado State Forest manager. “This elevates the risk of high soil burn severity, which is known to increase the probability of extreme erosion if a wildfire occurs. Removing large dead trees from targeted areas on steep slopes above and below the ditch can reduce the impact of post-wildfire landslides and erosion.”
Visitors to State Forest State Park will experience some trail closures during the project due to safety concerns, and drivers on Highway 14 near the project area will likely see logging trucks on the road. Michigan Ditch Road, the American Lakes Trailhead and portions of the American Lakes Trail will be closed while work happens, from July to mid-October 2025. Closures could occur again in spring 2026 as helicopter logging work will complete the project. In the meantime, all areas of State Forest State Park north of Highway 14 will remain open.
“As Colorado’s largest state park, with more than 70,000 acres, there are still a lot of places to recreate in State Forest State Park. Visitors can stop by Moose Visitor Center or download the CoTrex app for more information about open trails and campgrounds,” said Ryan Crabb, State Forest State Park manager.
Phase 1 of the Michigan Ditch Pre-Fire Mitigation Project is funded in part by a Forest Restoration and Wildfire Risk Mitigation grant, Congressionally Directed Spending and matching funds from the City of Fort Collins. Miller Timber Services Inc., an Oregon based company, is the contractor that will complete the work. The project is a partnership among the City of Fort Collins, Colorado State Forest Service, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, State Land Board and the Department of Natural Resources.
