Permits are now available to harvest Christmas trees from the public lands of the White Mountain National Forest.
The permits are being sold online for the first time this year, and can also be picked up at forest offices in Campton, Conway and Gorham.
Households can buy one permit per year to cut one tree, using hand tools like axes and handsaws only – no chainsaws allowed.
Trees cannot be taken within 100 feet of trailheads, campgrounds, water bodies, roads and certain other areas – harvesters should ask for details when they buy their permit.
There are also restrictions on tree size and what kind of stump and limbs are left behind.
Permits are $7.50 online or $5 in person. The families of fourth and fifth grade students can get a free permit through the government’s Every Kid Outdoors initiative.