Great Outdoors Colorado has awarded $36,000 to the Grand Lake Metropolitan Recreation District to support recovery efforts at parks and trails following the East Troublesome Fire.

The October fire impacted most of the area’s trails and other recreation amenities and restoration work is needed before reopening these areas to the public, according to a release from GOCO.

The recreation district will partner with Rocky Mountain Youth Corps to clear burned tress from roads and trails, remove hazard trees to mitigate future fire risk and restore and reroute trails. This project will focus on 46 acres at the Grand Lake Golf Course and an additional 79 acres of roads and trails nearby.

The crew will work for four weeks beginning in May with the goal of reopening the course and surrounding trails sometime this summer.

The East Troublesome Fire destroyed most of the resources managed by the recreation district, including the disc golf course, 10 miles of trails and the Nordic Center, which has since reopened.

Prior to the fire, Grand Lake’s outdoor spaces and trail system saw record crowds due to the pandemic. The outdoors is a key part of Grand Lake’s economy and community vitality, so restoring these spaces is a top priority for the town and its residents.

The grant is part of GOCO’s Resilient Communities program, which advances outdoor recreation, stewardship and land protection work. Funding will go toward projects responding to one-time, immediate needs or opportunities in direct response to the pandemic.

To date, GOCO has invested more than $17.6 million in projects in Grand County and conserved more than 20,900 acres of land here. The grants have supported the Hot Sulphur Springs Town Park, conservation of Yust Ranch, Fraser Valley Sports Complex, the Arrow Trail System and more.