Posts tagged Skunk Canyon
Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks begins seasonal cliff-nesting raptor closures
0January 30, 2013
Each year, the City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) Department temporarily closes areas to the public in order to protect nesting and roosting raptors. The following areas and formations will be closed from Feb. 1 through July 31:
- Lefthand Canyon Palisades, at the intersection of Lefthand Canyon Drive and Olde Stage Road (Buckingham picnic area remains open);
- Mount Sanitas, First Buttress, accessible from the Mount Sanitas trailhead, a half mile west of Fourth Street and Mapleton Avenue (no closures to the bouldering areas along the ridge; Mount Sanitas trail will remain open);
- Gregory Canyon Amphitheater, including the Amphitheater Express Trail and the 3rd Pinnacle (the Amphitheater Trail to Saddle Rock will remain open);
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- Third Flatiron, including the East and West Ironing Boards, Queen Anne’s Head and Jaws, and WC Pinnacle, accessible from Chautauqua trailhead;
- Flagstaff Mountain: the north side of Flagstaff Mountain will be closed (the Boy Scout Trail will remain open);
- Skunk Canyon, including Ridges 2, 3 and 4, the Aechean Pronouncement, the Dreadnaught, the North Ridge and the entirety of Sacred Cliffs, accessible from NCAR trailhead at the west end of Table Mesa Road;
- The Back Porch and The Box, accessible from the NCAR trailhead at the west end of Table Mesa Road;
- Bear Creek Spire, accessible from the NCAR trailhead at the west end of Table Mesa Road;
- Fern Canyon, accessible from the NCAR trailhead at the west end of Table Mesa Road (the designated Fern Canyon hiking trail will remain open);
- Shadow Canyon and the Matron, accessible from the South Mesa Trailhead (the Maiden will remain open and accessible from the east; the designated Shadow Canyon hiking trail will re-open in 2013 following post-fire maintenance);
- The Sphinx, accessible from the NCAR trailhead at the west end of Table Mesa Road;
- Diamond Head and SoBo Buttress, west of Shadow Canyon, accessible from South Mesa Trailhead (South Boulder Peak Trail will remain open);
- The entire Mickey Mouse wall, accessible from the Goshawk Ridge Trail.
High-quality cliff habitat and rich food resources on OSMP lands, as well as community cooperation in protecting nesting sites, sustains the mountain backdrop as a regionally important area for nesting falcons and golden eagles. OSMP volunteers and staff have been monitoring raptor nesting and roosting areas since 1984, and the program is an integral part of efforts to protect the species and adaptively manage the closures.
Trespassing violations can result in a summons with penalties up to 90 days in jail and/or a $1,000 fine. OSMP relies heavily on the public to respect the closures, and the cooperation of visitors to these areas is greatly appreciated. Closures may be lifted early, if no raptor activity is observed at these sites.
Some modifications have occurred to the Flagstaff and The Sphinx raptor closures. Please visit Open Space and Mountain Parks’ website at www.osmp.org for detailed maps and up-to-date information on raptor closures or call 303-441-3440.
Related posts:
City to lift some seasonal raptor closures early
0July 20, 2012
The City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) department will lift the following raptor closures effective Monday, July 23: Third Flatiron, The Matron, Skunk Canyon, Bear Creek Spire, Flagstaff Mountain, Fern Canyon, and The Sphinx.
The following closures will remain in effect through Tuesday, July 31, to continue to protect nesting raptors: Back Porch and The Box, Mickey Mouse Wall, Kolb, and Coal Creek. OSMP will also be lifting seasonal closures established to protect ground-nesting birds on the originally scheduled date of Tuesday, July 31. However, the property known as Superior Associates—north of the Coalton Trail—will remain closed through Oct. 31 because of the presence of nesting burrowing owls.
This year marked another successful season for raptors nesting on OSMP. Below is a table detailing what OSMP staff and volunteers recorded this season:
| Species | Number of Nesting Attempts | Number of Successful Nesting Attempts | Number of Fledglings |
| Peregrine Falcon | 4 | 4 | 12 |
| Prairie Falcon | 4 | 4 | 17 |
| Golden Eagle | 4 | 2 | 3 |
| Bald Eagle | 2 | 2 | 3 |
This year was the most productive year for Peregrine Falcons since OSMP monitoring began in 1984. Volunteer raptor monitors are an integral part of the success of the monitoring program. Thank you to all the volunteer raptor monitors!
OSMP relies heavily on the public to respect the closures and the cooperation of visitors to these areas is greatly appreciated. OSMP would specifically like to highlight the cooperation among the Boulder climbing community with respect to these closures.
Related posts:
Flagstaff Fire Boulder “live TV” Day 1
0June 26, 2012
Jann Scott and Boulder Channel 1 spend 30 minutes at the staging area at FairView High looking at fire, air tankers and talking with folks on the scene.
June 26 — Flagstaff Fire 9 p.m. update
Update:
Only 26 homes have been evacuated near Bison Drive and Kossler Lake.
A total of 2,416 reverse notifications have been sent to people in and around the affected area.
Three helicopters and two tanker planes were working the fire until sunset.
About 100 firefighters are on the ground doing structure protection through the night.
The fire is burning in upper Skunk Canyon. just west of the NIST/NOAA campus, and expected to produce smoke in Boulder through the night.
A Federal Type 1 team is expected to take over management of the fire on Wednesday.
All Pets Animal Hospital, 5290 Manhattan Circle, 303-499-5335, is open 24 hours and is accepting small animals. In the case of an evacuation, small animals can be dropped off at All Pets if their owners are unable to take them with them in the case of an evacuation.
No structures are threatened at this time.
There are no reported injuries and there is zero percent containment of the approximately 300 acre fire.
June 26 – 9 p.m. – Fire is burning on City of Boulder Open Space
#FlagstaffFire is burning in Upper Skunk Canyon, just west of NIST/NOAA, and expected to produce smoke in Boulder through the night. Only the original 26 homes that were evacuated near Bison Drive have been evacuated. A remaining 2,416 notifications were sent out to city residents near Flagstaff to remain on standby in case of a change in fire direction and behavior overnight. The Emergency Operations Center will remain open on a 24/7 basis until further notice.
June 26 – 8:10 p.m. – Smoke-related health tips available
Information about steps individuals can take to protect themselves from negative health effects related to the smoke is available at: http://www.bouldercounty.org/env/air/pages/wildfire.aspx
June 26 – 8 p.m. – Evacuation center location moved to East Boulder Community Center
The Red Cross has closed the evacuation center at New Vista High School and established an evacuation center and overnight shelter at the East Boulder Community Center, 5660 Sioux Drive. People impacted by the fire who need information and/or a place to stay overnight are encouraged to go to that location.
June 26 – 7:50 p.m. – Update on firefighting efforts
Fire officials have provided an update on attack efforts. The fire has consumed an estimated 228 acres and is moving east in both the north and south directions. There are about 200 firefighters working this incident at this time from the following agencies: Rocky Mountain Fire, Coal Creek Fire, City of Boulder Fire, Boulder County Fire, Arapahoe and Roosevelt Forest Service, the Colorado State Fire Service, Lafayette Fire, Longmont Fire, Boulder Rural Fire, Boulder Emergency Squad and the Longmont Emergency Unit. The incident is currently being managed by the Boulder County Type 3 Incident Management Team.
Air attacks continue to be the primary strategy for as long as daylight remains. There are currently three Type 1 helicopters, one Type 3 helicopter, two heavy air tankers, a lead plane and an air attack plane working the fire.
A federal Type 1 team is expected to take over command sometime tomorrow morning.
June 26 – 7:15 p.m. – City firefighting task force headed to upper Table Mesa area
Three spot fires are visible on the eastern side of the ridge behind NCAR. A task force of 40 firefighters are headed to the area of upper Table Mesa to attack these fires and create defensible space for homes and structures in the vicinity. Winds are now blowing to the northeast and have picked up in speed.
June 26 – 6:40 p.m. – Media briefing scheduled for 8:30 p.m.
Fire officials are planning to hold a media briefing with updates on the fire at 8:30 p.m. at the Criminal Justice Center at 6th and Canyon.
June 26 – 6 p.m. – Call center activated
The Emergency Operations Center has activated a call center for residents and others impacted by the fire to obtain information. The phone number is 303-413-7730. People seeking fire and evacuation information are encouraged to call this number. Individuals reporting new emergencies should continue to call 911. Media should continue to contact the media line. Any help getting this phone number out to the public is much appreciated.
June 26 5:45 p.m. – Additional pre-evacuation notices sent out in city
The City of Boulder has issued 1,485 additional pre-evacuation notices to phone numbers within city limits to include the Shanahan Ridge neighborhood. This is in addition to the 931 notices previously sent out. The current boundaries are Dartmouth to the north, Greenbriar to the south, Table Mesa and foothills on the west and Broadway on the east.
Residents in this area should begin preparing for possible evacuation orders. Gather up personal belongings and pets and stay tuned for additional instructions. An evacuation center has been established at New Vista High School at Broadway and Baseline.
In addition, the City of Boulder has announced that it is closing the pool at the South Boulder Recreation Center as a result of poor air quality caused by smoke. The recreation center itself remains open. For parents with children participating in summer camps, staff are continuing to monitor the situation and will issue e-mail updates as they become available.
