Locals must head to Utah to cut Christmas trees

Monday, Dec. 11, 2000 | 9:14 a.m.

Riding in a horse-drawn sleigh across snow-covered fields to cut your own Christmas tree is one of the many traditional myths that recur every holiday season.

While people living in Vermont might be able to bring the myth to life, Las Vegans can forget it. For one thing, there is no snow in the fields. For another, riding a horse-drawn sleigh to where the trees are could take days.

By horseless carriage, the closest place the public can cut their own Christmas tree is on government-owned land in the Dixie National Forest surrounding Cedar City, Utah -- a drive that takes about three hours.

The cutting season began Nov. 24 and continues through Dec. 22.

There aren't enough trees in the Spring Mountains north of Las Vegas to satisfy the area's 1.4-million residents, so cutting is not allowed there.

"We have a good supply but a limited species," Cedar City Ranger District spokeswoman Frances Reynolds said.

Trees are limited to one per customer. Bring your own cutting tools. Reynolds said the forestry service does not provide them.

"Most use chain saws," she said.

Tree-cutting permits are required. They cost $5 and are available at the office in Cedar City. The money helps defray the cost of the project.

"This falls under our timber program," Tracie Welton, spokeswoman for the North Kaibab Ranger District in Fredonia, Ariz., said. "It helps us to provide the community a recreational opportunity."

The Kaibab National Forest is the next closest area for Las Vegans who want to cut their own trees. The cutting locale is near the Arizona-Utah state line, a drive of more than four hours. A permit there costs $10.

"We had some Las Vegas people in two weeks ago," Welton said. "We get quite a few from Phoenix, which is a six-hour drive. They usually combine it with other activities, such as visiting family in the area or stopping on way their way to Salt Lake City."

For many tree cutters, the event can take on the trappings of an annual reunion with friends and family.

"A lot of people will wait in the parking lot for family members to arrive, or they leave little handwritten messages where to meet on a certain road," Welton said.

The cutting usually begins the day after Thanksgiving, but is primarily a Saturday event.

"They are pretty much allowed to cut anywhere," Welton said. "We provide a map to assist people in finding the locations. But Mother Nature determines where a lot of the cutting will take place. If there is considerable snow in an area we will shut it down."

Highway 67, which leads to the top of the plateau on the north rim of the Grand Canyon, is closed due to snow and won't reopen until May 15. Forest service roads at lower levels are open, Welton said.

The Christmas tree program helps thin out tree populations. If an area doesn't need thinning, such as around Salt Lake City, Welton said cutting is not allowed.

"We have a lot of trees ... (we) can offer them," Welton said. "It helps clear some of the forest floor and when we open the floor the animals can enjoy more grasses. Small trees will choke out a lot of the grasses."

The two most popular trees are white fir and blue spruce.

"The spruce is a beautiful blue tree with the traditional look of white fir, but the ends are like needles and the tree is painful to hang. It's almost like cactus. Keep that in mind around small children. If you cut one you need a heavy-duty glove, and sometimes they aren't enough." Welton said.

Other available species include Englemann spruce, Douglas fir, ponderosa pine and juniper.

For more information about where to buy permits and directions to tree-cutting areas, call the Bureau of Land Management at (435) 644-2672.