Changes are coming to a popular campground and scenic site in Colorado.

The U.S. Forest Service recently announced a major overhaul for the Lake Irwin Campground and Day Use Area near Crested Butte that will keep overnighters away next year.

The campground will close for the season Sept. 8, while the day use area will remain open to kayakers, paddleboarders and sightseers, though “construction crews may temporarily cordon off areas or slow traffic as needed to maintain public safety,” according to a news release.

Come 2027, the area will close amid “a full demolition and reconstruction of roads, trails, restrooms, kiosks, picnic areas, fire rings and supporting structures,” as detailed on a project webpage.

The Forest Service anticipates “a grand reopening” in June 2028.

“Facilities at Lake Irwin were built in the 1960s and have exceeded their useful life,” the release explained. “The reconstruction project will update the site to meet current recreation needs and improve safety.”

Along with a new access road, bathrooms and a modernized campground, the project is expected to triple parking capacity and add eight campsites, bringing the total to 40.

Crested Butte has been no stranger to camping changes in recent years.

The COVID-19 pandemic saw an “explosion in camping,” in the words of Crested Butte Mountain Bike Association, which maintains a webpage recalling that time of “resource damage, escaped campfires, spiderwebs of ‘social’ routes and roads and sanitation issues.”

This led to the Forest Service establishing “designated dispersed” sites ー 208 off several forest roads close to town, as counted by CBMBA. The sites are marked by posts with metal fire rings and are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

“It is common for all 208 designated sites to be occupied from early Friday through Sunday or longer during the height of summer,” CBMBA advises.

As far as campgrounds that take reservations close to town, CBMBA lists Lake Irwin and Oh Be Joyful as the only two.

And so the organization’s recommendations might be especially heeded during the upcoming closure. “Please have a plan B!” reads the top of the camping webpage, which includes other tips and a map: crestedbuttemountainbike.com/camping.