Less is more

Anyone who has visited the Blue Lakes between Ouray and Telluride knows: it’s crowded. But that’s about to change. The U.S. Forest Service, which oversees the 16,200-acre area, which includes Dallas Peak and Mount Sneffels, officially announced it will be going to a permit system for day hikers and campers from June-September.

Exactly when the new system will take effect remains unknown, although Forest Service officials said it will likely be next summer or summer of 2026. 

The decision, announced Tuesday, comes after nearly a year of public input. The move is in response to increased foot traffic (thank you, Instagram) to see the turquoise blue waters of the three lakes near 14,000-foot Mount Sneffels. The increased traffic has negatively impacted the natural landscape and the experience for hikers. Prompted by public complaints, officials began looking at a plan to curtail visitation last fall.

Up to 40 day-use permits will be issued per day, which can be reserved at recreation.gov. Every individual would need their own permit. The agency will also issue up to 24 overnight permits per night, but only for four designated campsites. That means each campsite could have up to six people.

Hikers would need either a day-use permit or an overnight permit – not both. That means up to 64 people per day would use the trail. Permits will likely carry a fee though the cost has yet to be determined.

Climbers will not be required to have a permit to climb Mount Sneffels if they approach from the Yankee Boy Basin trailhead. However, dogs are prohibited from the Mount Sneffels zone altogether.

Permits will be divided among five zones: Lower East Dallas; Blaine Basin; Yankee Boy Basin; Mount Sneffels (including the summit); and Wilderness, which encompasses the Blue Lakes.

Dana Gardunio, Ouray Ranger District for the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests, estimates the permit system will cut the number of summertime visitors by 40%, from 13,000 to 7,808. The agency deemed it necessary to mitigate human waste, vegetation loss, user-created trails, negative dog interactions, illegal campfires, bear conflicts and overcrowding.

“Keep in mind that this plan is really a blueprint of where we are headed,” Gardunio told the Denver Post. “It’s not an ‘on/off’ switch … this will be years of planning and implementation to come.”