With more than 200,000 visitors a year, two famously ruddy peaks and a glassy lake that reflects the changing seasons in pictures that travel the world, Pitkin County Open Space and Trails Director Gary Tennenbaum believes “the Maroon Bells is one of the most iconic landscapes around the country.”
Soon, his department could be the one managing it.
The Pitkin Board of County Commissioners unanimously approved a proposal on first reading Wednesday to take over day-to-day operations and deferred maintenance at the Maroon Bells Scenic Area — which includes some trails around Maroon Lake and developed amenities like bathrooms and campgrounds, and which is currently run by the U.S. Forest Service in partnership with the county and other entities.
“This is big stuff. It’s exciting stuff,” Tennenbaum said at Wednesday’s meeting, adding later: “I think we really need to step up and do this.”
As a special-use permit holder operating on the White River National Forest, the county would have more flexibility to raise use and access fees than the Forest Service could do on its own. Those increases — in some cases double or triple the current rates — could help cover management and maintenance costs that have far outpaced revenue under the existing fee structure, in which parking at the scenic area today costs the same as it did in the late ’90s. The county would establish a dedicated enterprise fund to hold that revenue.
“This model would ensure that fees generated at the Bells stay at the Bells — directly supporting management, maintenance, infrastructure, and long-term stewardship,” according to a county landing page for the proposal. “Most importantly, it keeps management focused on the community’s priorities identified through the Maroon Bells Comprehensive Recreation Management Plan: protecting this extraordinary resource while ensuring sustainable, high-quality public access for generations to come.”
At a presentation to county commissioners last year, Forest Service officials showed the scenic area operating at a roughly $380,000 deficit, “and that doesn’t include the large amounts of deferred maintenance that exist at the site,”Aspen-Sopris District Ranger Jennifer Schuller said Wednesday. While the Forest Service was able to introduce a $5 e-bike fee to the Maroon Bells this summer to chip away at the gap, a larger overhaul of the fees under their purview would be “a very lengthy process,” Schuller said.
That prompted officials to look at other options to handle the complex management of the Bells. Given that the county has already been a partner at the Maroon Bells for nearly 50 years — and that already owns the road to the site — Forest Service leaders believe this agreement is “the right choice,” Schuller said, framing it as “an effective solution for better management of the area.” The county already employs the facilities and operations supervisor for the scenic area.
The county and Forest Service count several other entities as partners in transportation, safety and public engagement at the Bells, and that collaboration would continue under this agreement. The Forest Service would retain ownership and oversight of the area, and would remain in charge of other management aspects like wilderness regulations and permits for outfitters and guides, Schuller said.
“We’re not trying to change anything at the Maroon Bells,” Tennenbaum told commissioners. “We’re just trying to manage it sustainably, and that takes money.” As he already advised them earlier this year, fees will be going up, with the new rate proposal included in this week’s agenda packet.
The most significant fee hikes proposed for next year would apply to passenger vehicles: Both the day-use fee and wilderness permit overnight parking fees would triple, from the current $10 to $30, and the season pass would increase from $25 to $75. Parking reservation no-show fees would double, from $10 to $20.
Motorcycle and e-bike fees would also double, from $5 to $10. A new e-bike annual pass would be introduced next year for $30. It would still be free to ride a non-electric bike.
Under Pitkin County management, the “America the Beautiful” pass would likely not be accepted at the Maroon Bells Scenic Area, Tennenbaum told the Aspen Daily News after the meeting. That pass covers day-use fees at thousands of other recreation sites managed by a slate of federal agencies.
Meanwhile, campground nightly fees in the Maroon Creek valley would increase from the current $15 per night to $33 per night, on par with the rates at other campgrounds on Forest Service land nearby. Those fees would still be half price for seniors. Reservations for the amphitheater would remain $200 next year, since bookings have already opened for that, but could go up to $300 in 2028.
These rate hikes are meant to catch up with inflation and the local cost of goods and services. The $10 day-use fee has remained the same since it went into effect nearly three decades ago; if it had risen with general inflation alone, it would be more than double that today, but “inflation and the cost of labor, materials and services in the Aspen area are significantly higher than the national average,” according to a memo from several county staff.
The new fees proposed are comparable to those at some other highly-visited (and highly-managed) destinations, like Rocky Mountain National Park.
In an effort to retain more affordable options to experience the Bells, Pitkin County would keep the day-use fee for the quieter East Maroon Portal at $10 and would keep reservations for that picnic area, about two miles up from the welcome station, at the current $75.
Shuttle tickets for next year, allowing people to take a Roaring Fork Transportation Authority bus from Aspen Highlands to the Bells, would stay the same too: $16 in advance for teens and adults, and $10 in advance for kids and seniors. A new initiative to reduce cost barriers through free shuttle passes checked out from local libraries would also continue.
Projected revenue and expenses will be shared with county commissioners during the annual budget process this fall, according to Liz Woods, the county’s finance director, treasurer and public trustee.
While the special use permit generally requires a land use fee of 18% of adjusted gross revenue paid back to the Forest Service, it also allows that money to go back into deferred maintenance on-site. Kendra Head, the developed and dispersed recreation manager for the Aspen-Sopris Ranger District, said that’s a cause worth celebrating.
“I just want you to know how much we appreciate what you guys will be able to do to make the Maroon Bells an amazing place for future generations to be able to come up and enjoy,” Head said.
The special use permit and establishing the enterprise fund will be up for a second reading and public hearing Sept. 23. Both county commissioners and the Forest Service will have to approve the updated fees.