Land Management Plan - Part 2 Los Padres National Forest Strategy

September 2005 Land Management Plan Part 2
Los Padres National Forest Strategy
Colson
Theme: A traditional, rustic, back-roaded area utilized for hunting, remote touring and camping.
An intermix of recreation and grazing activities, and threatened and endangered species habitat
identify this Place.
Setting: The Colson Place is a steep mountainous area
less than an hour's drive from Santa Maria. This Place is
situated east of Tepusquet Canyon, south of California
State Highway 166, and north of the Sisquoc River.
Local ranches border the Colson Place on the west,
north, and south, with the San Rafael Wilderness on the
eastern border. The landscape character is natural
appearing with little development.
The South and North Fork La Brea Creeks drain
through the Colson Place and are the primary
watersheds in the area. The Colson Quarry extracts
flagstone for commercial sale from private land.
Vegetation is primarily mixed chaparral with oak
woodlands with riparian vegetation in the canyon
bottoms. The riparian areas consist of diverse populations of deciduous and evergreen plant
species. The area is highly susceptible to lightning and human-caused fires. Tepusquet Canyon
has numerous homes and ranches that are threatened by wildland fire due to access problems and
fuel accumulations.
Wildlife is diverse in this Place. The threatened California red-legged frog (Rana aurora
draytonii) and the endangered southern steelhead are found in and adjacent to the riparian zones
in some areas. Livestock grazing and recreation use can disturb frog populations. Currently, the
South Fork La Brea Creek can have seasonal closures for livestock grazing and vehicle travel as
determined by monitoring. Access to the Colson Place is via Sierra Madre or Colson Canyon
Roads. Most of the area is used for dispersed recreation activities including hunting, equestrian
use, hiking, and camping. There
are six semi-primitive
campgrounds in the area.
Colson Campground has been
subject to vandalism and is the
site of large parties, requiring
additional Forest Service
presence to control
inappropriate activities. Most
recreationists visiting the
Colson Place are repeat visitors
from the Central Coast desiring
a rustic outdoor experience
away from urban centers.
Historic use of the Place is
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