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5. Vegetation Alpine vegetation OCcurs along the crest of the mountain range with spruce/fir, Douglas-fir, and ponderosa pine at lower elevations. The majority (83 percent) of the western slope of the Sangre de Cristo Range is non-forested, and only about 17 percent of the area is forested. The nonforested area consists of rock, alpine, and brushland vegetation. The eastern side of the range (San Isabel) is predominantly forested with only about 28 percent of the area in a nonforested condition. These forested areas generally occur along the lower elevations adj acent to the eastern WSA boundary. Riparian vegetation occurs adjacent to the perennial streams. 6. Capable Forest Land Most of the timber in the study area is mature (conifer sawtimber and aspen poletimber). Other stands with pole-size trees, seedlings/saplings, or understocked areas are also present. Most of these areas are probably the result of fires in the early 1900' s. Aspen, Engelmann spruce, ponderosa pine, Douglas-fir and lodgepole pine are the predominant forest types in the area. Bristlecone pine, limber pine, pinon pine/juniper and several nopforest types (alpine tundra, dwarf willows, montane meadow, Gambel oak, Krummholz, and rock) are also present. ~ Most of the study area has been logged or had some timber cutting in the past. Most of this oCcurred in conjunction with homesteading and provided house logs, corral poles, and fence posts. Cutting for mine props, railroad ties, bridge timbers, and charcoal provided raw materials for mining and commerce. Many of the steeper slopes were logged with horses and the material removed on low-standard wagon roads. The WSA includes approximately 218,000 acres, of which 25 percent is forest land as shown on Table E capable of producing regulated timber products. Approximately 49 percent of the suitable land base is on slopes less than 45 percent and capable of being logged wi th conventional harvesting systems. See Figure 7. 44 P02652