Logging activity for forest health closes road to popular recreation access
BOZEMAN, Mont. — A temporary road closure will start Sunday evening in a popular recreation area outside of Bozeman.
The upper gate on Fairy Lake Road will close to all uses, including foot traffic, due to logging activities happening within feet of the road. An ongoing forest health project in the north Bridger Mountains involves heavy equipment removing timber.
The closure is expected to last through the end of the month for public safety.
“We’ve got some units that they are working on logging up toward the lake,” Custer Gallatin National Forest’s west zone implementation coordinator for Bozeman and Hebgen Lake Ranger Districts Melanie Cota said. “They’re very small units and right next to the road versus the other ones that are larger and farther away from Fairy Lake Road. They just felt like it would be you know safety wise in the best interest to have that closed while they’re logging in there.”
The closure area starts near the Carrol Creek Trailhead. Fairy Lake Campground will close at the same time.
People can park at the Carrol Creek Trailhead and hike Fairy Creek Trail to access Fairy Lake. It is about a 2-mile hike, and people can expect to hear the nearby logging activity.
Active logging for the North Bridger Forest Health Project is also happening in the Bracket Creek area. The project will implement vegetation and fuels management activities to over 2,500 acres in the North Bridger Mountains over the next three years.
Thinning trees in this area is due to insect and disease detection and wildfire protection, according to the U.S. Forest Service. The management strategy aims to increase trees’ resiliency to insect or disease infestations in the area, promote aspen regeneration, enhance wildlife habitat and supply forest products to support local industries and economies.
The project’s current phase around Fairy Lake is expected to run through January 2022.
