Tres Rios Field Office

The BLM Tres Rios Field Office (TRFO) is responsible for the management and stewardship of more than 600,000 acres of public land and over 2.6 million acres of federal mineral estate in southwestern Colorado. The field office also has trust responsibility for mineral management on 800,000 acres of Tribal lands. From the spectacular San Juan Mountains to the stunning Dolores River Canyon, TRFO hosts many of the premier recreation attractions and opportunities in the Four Corners Region.

Within TRFO, the BLM manages four wilderness study areas (Weber Mountain, Dolores River Canyon, Menefee Mountain and McKenna Peak), three recreation management areas (Cortez, Durango, and Dolores River), portions of the Old Spanish Historic Trail, 628 miles of rivers and streams, and 500,000 acres of lands open to livestock grazing. Wildlife, including bighorn sheep, mule deer, golden eagles, turkeys, elk, mountain lions, black bears, and collared lizards, call this area home.

Canyons of the Ancients National Monument lies within the TRFO boundary. Canyons of the Ancients Visitor Center & Museum is located on Highway 184 about 3 miles west of Dolores, CO.

BLM CO Public Room

Visit the Public Room for BLM Colorado maps, brochures, and information.

Southwest District Fire

Find current fire restrictions and notices for the BLM Colorado Southwest District.

Seasonal Closures

Review maps of locations in the Tres Rios Field Office closed seasonally to protect wildlife.

The BLM has finalized a rule implementing regulatory decisions pertaining to motorized and non-motorized travel, day-use areas, camping, and seasonal wildlife habitat in the Tres Rios Field Office and the Silverton area of the Gunnison Field Office, Colorado.

BLM Tres Rios and Gunnison Supplementary Rule

Box Elder area along the Dolores River in Tres Rios Field Office, CO

One of four wild horse herd management areas in Colorado, Spring Creek Basin spans about 22,000 acres of rolling salt-desert shrub and piñon-juniper hills in the southwestern part of the state. The HMA is located in Disappointment Valley between the towns of Dove Creek and Norwood. Natural barriers such as cliffs and ridges, supplemented by fencing, define the HMA and control herd movement. The BLM manages the HMA to enable the herd to remain as wild as possible.

Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area

Canyons of the Ancients National Monument encompasses 174,000 acres of BLM-administered public lands that contain the highest known archaeological site density in the United States, with rich well-preserved evidence of Native American cultures. The Monument is located in the Four Corners region of southwestern Colorado, about 50 miles west of Durango, 10 miles west of Cortez, and 12 miles west of Mesa Verde National Park.

Canyons of the Ancients National Monument

Canyons of the Ancients NM at night. Photo: Bob Wick

Southwest Colorado's premier archaeological museum, housing permanent and temporary exhibits that focus on Ancestral Puebloan, Native American, and historic cultures in the Four Corners region.

Canyons of the Ancients Visitor Center & Museum

Canyons of the Ancients Visitor Center and Museum

Field Office Spotlight

Animas City Mountain Prescribed Burn (May 8, 2023)

On May 8, 2023, the BLM Southwest District Fire and Aviation program implemented a Type 1 prescribed burn on Animas City Mountain adjacent to the city of Durango. The popular recreational area is managed by the BLM Tres Rios Field Office. Existing and newly created trails were used as unit boundaries. The crew took three days to successfully complete ignition operations on 495 acres and a little over a week of patrolling to ensure that the burn was completely out. The treatment cleaned up the ponderosa pine forest understory to assist in reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfire, while improving wildlife habitat.

YouTube video: Animas City Mountain Type 1 Prescribed Fire - 2023

Animas City Mountain Rx May 2023 — **Smoke rises above Animas City Mountain during a prescribed burn in May 2023.**

Spring Creek Basin Wild Horse Herd Management Area Plan Revision

Tres Rios Field Office issued a decision in July 2020 revising and updating the 1994 Spring Creek Basin HMAP. Implementation of this decision will provide long-term management guidance for sustaining a healthy herd of 50 to 80 adult wild horses in Spring Creek Basin HMA in balance with the ecosystem, while ensuring that Public Land Health Standards developed for Colorado are being achieved. Additional information on this project can be found by visiting the ePlanning project website at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/1503484/510.

**Wild horses in the Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area. Photo: TJ Holmes**

Fuelwood Permits

The Tres Rios Field Office offers the purchase of fuelwood permits online. To purchase a permit visit forestproducts.blm.gov, answer the questions, and review the terms and conditions. Payment information is collected through a secure government payment site. Please print and keep a copy of your permit for law enforcement officers to check.

Special Recreation Permits

Tres Rios Field Office and Canyons of the Ancients National Monument accept commercial Special Recreation Permit applications and modification requests for the following year during the month of September (September 1-30). This includes existing permittees requesting permit modifications, such as requesting additional use areas or proposing changes to the pre-existing purposes and/or activities authorized. Please review the CANM/TRFO Special Recreation Permit Policy for additional information.