Crystal River Valley

Home to bighorn sheep, geothermal hot springs, rare orchids, and even fireflies, the Crystal River Valley is one of a kind.

The North and South Forks of the Crystal River begin in the Maroon-Bells Snowmass Wilderness (doubled in size by Wilderness Workshop’s founders), come together at the iconic Crystal Mill, then travel downstream through Marble and Redstone, eventually converging with the Roaring Fork River in Carbondale. Whether it’s new wilderness, efforts to permanently protect the Crystal River, or proposed trails, there is no shortage of public lands projects in the Crystal River Valley. In addition to the projects highlighted below, the Thompson Divide abuts the Crystal River Valley and our work to permanently protect the Divide directly impacts the Crystal’s watershed.

Want to get involved in our Crystal River Valley work? Reach out to Advocacy Director Erin Riccio. 

Permanently protecting the Crystal River

WW is a founding member of the Coalition to Keep the Crystal River Wild & Scenic, which seeks Wild and Scenic designation for the Crystal River. This federal designation would keep the river as it is today: free-flowing and free of dams. With an ongoing drought and climate change impacts escalating, demand for the Crystal’s water will only increase.

We encourage community members to learn more about the current collaborative stakeholder process and sign the petition supporting Wild & Scenic designation. You can learn more about potential designation is the December 2021 issue of Wild Works.

Proposed Redstone to McClure Pass Trail

Pitkin County has proposed a 7-mile trail, 5 miles of which would be on Forest Service land, connecting Redstone with McClure Pass (as part of a larger Crystal Valley Trail and a 83-mile Carbondale to Crested Butte trail). In this March 2023 Aspen Times Guest Column, WW Executive Director summed up the situation well: “When this new trail proposal was submitted, USFS officials had a chance to develop a holistic plan for the Crystal River Valley and comprehensively analyze the impacts not just of this seven-mile trail, but also of the dozens of other miles of trails being proposed and discussed. This trail segment is part of the much longer 83-mile Carbondale to Crested Butte Trail, but the Forest Service ignored that broader plan as well as other foreseeable recreation developments, including illegal user-created trails and their impacts.”

The White River National Forest issued a draft Environmental Assessment (EA) in January 2022; we rallied community members to submit comments, in addition to the technical comments we submitted. A final environmental assessment and draft decision notice was issued in January 2023; in response, WW submitted a 25-page objection outlining our continued concerns with the proposal and the flawed process that lead to the draft decision.

“The agency’s cumulative impact analysis should acknowledge the extent to which the Carbondale to Crested Butte Trail proposal and other foreseeable recreation will transform the Crystal River Valley and the trail corridor. But the environmental assessment fails to do any of this, continuing an ecologically damaging practice of piecemeal planning and analysis that leads to death by a thousand cuts for our wildlife and wildlands.”   – Will Roush, Executive Director

Potential Wilderness Areas Additions

Senator Bennet is proposing new legislation that would designate wilderness areas right in our backyard! The Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection Act (GORP Act) would protect spectacular public landscapes from Gunnison to Ashcroft. The GORP Act includes new wilderness designations for Star Peak, at the headwaters of Castle Creek, and Treasure Mountain, an expansion of the Raggeds Wilderness above Marble. We’re enthusiastically supportive of the GORP Act, and the Star Peak and Treasure Mountain wilderness designations in particular.

We’re also encouraging Senator Bennet to increase protections for additional public lands in the North Fork Valley just over McClure Pass from the Crystal– places like the Clear Fork and Pilot Knob roadless areas. WW has worked for a decade to protect our wild roadless forests in the North Fork from oil and gas drilling, and it’s time these places get the permanent protection they deserve.