Last September, Clint Kyhl of the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest gave a presentation on the effects of the pine bark beetle in his neck of the woods during a regional workshop. On a giant screen, a 1997 map of the state - with U.S. Forest Service land demarked in green - showed a few blips of red designating where the match-head sized bug was killing swaths of lodgepole pine.
The procession of maps through the years ended with 2007 showing most of the forest aflame. Prognosticators paint a grim diagnosis for the forests, stating all mature lodgepole pines could become fodder for the beetle before the infestation subsides.
USFS officials survey the damage done by the beetle infestation.
In Boulder County, pine beetle activity is up 1500% and there is a 800% increase in Larimer County. At the end of 2006, Chambers said there was 1 million acres affected. That figure jumped to 1.5 million at the end of last year.
The epidemic means more than losing much of the beautiful scenery of the Rocky Mountains. It means loss of habitat for wildlife, increased fire danger, more hazards of falling trees and a loss of revenue for towns, which are gateways to these wild places.
The answer to how the problem grew to this magnitude is a complicated one. Part of it is in the not-so-distant past. Mary Ann Chambers of the U.S. Forest Service explained during the Colorado gold rush in the late 1800s, there were a couple of devastating wildfires - imagine larger than the Hayman Fire in scope.
"The lodgepoles, they are very straight and very uniform," Chambers said. "They got nailed by the miners and settlers. They are a type of tree that when it does burn, it burns in a very large area."
The forest of course grew back and now there are large stands of 100-150 year-old lodgepole pines dominating the landscape. Pine beetles found an awaiting buffet with the mature trees and did not suffer from the natural buffers which curbed their numbers in the past.
"We had 11 years of really warm winters with no temps below -40, which would kill the bugs if we had it for 10 consecutive days," Chambers said. "It's the perfect bug food and bug conditions and they are not getting killed off in the winter."
Willow Creek Pass shows the damage done by the beetles.
The Forest Service is not hoping to stifle the onslaught but to mitigate the danger it might pose to the public and protect high-congested areas, such as campgrounds.
Select trees are being sprayed around campsites, and it is a time-consuming and costly effort. Kyhl estimates the Forest Service is spending $130,000 in the state. That breaks down to $10-15 per tree for the spraying.
"And you're looking at 30,000 trees or more in a campground," he said. "You can't get all of them so you have to be selective."
There are over 20 National Forest developed campgrounds in the state which will be partially or completely closed because of the concern of falling trees. A number will also be delayed in opening.
Campgrounds closed
The following is a list of U.S. Forest Service campgrounds which are completely or partially closed. To check the status of any campground, visit www.fs.fed.us/r2/recreation/camping/campgroundlist
Arapahoe - Roosevelt National Forest
Sulfur District
Green Ridge
Medicine Bow - Routt National Forest
Brush Creek / Hayden District
Ryan Park
South Brush Creek
Silver Lake
Hog Park
Lake View
Hahns District
Hahns Peak Lake
Seedhouse
Granite
Ferndale
Parks District
Big Creek Lakes
Teal Lake
Pines
White River National Forest
Dillon District
Lowry
Prospector
Blue River
Eagle / Holy Cross District
East Fork at Camp Hale