How this works
79 national forests list a 2026 Christmas tree permit on Recreation.gov, and 65 Bureau of Land Management offices list one in BLM's permit store. We read both on Nov 12, 2026 and print what they say: the dates, the price, the limit and the rules, each with its source. Sale times are in each place's own time zone. Recreation.gov prints them in Eastern, and we convert. A permit is the agency's to sell, and the rules on it are the agency's. We quote them and link them. We don't sell permits, and nothing here is one.
2 forests have pages on Recreation.gov with no permit type named and no dates on them. We print what the page says and no date. 53 more Forest Service units and 50 BLM field offices don't list a permit in either store. We say "not posted yet" for those, never "no program": some sell at the office and never post one online. Distances are straight lines to a forest's boundary, not to the cutting area and not by road. The forest's own map shows where you can cut. How we read the agencies · Not a permit, not the agency
Read from the agencies Nov 12, 2026
South Dakota Christmas tree permits 3 places have a permit online
2 national forests and 1 national grassland in South Dakota list a 2026 Christmas tree permit online, and every one sells one today. Of the prices printed here, the lowest is $5, at 2 places. 2 of them publish their own cutting-area maps.
Not posted yet
- Buffalo Gap National GrasslandNot posted yet
- Fort Pierre National GrasslandNot posted yet
- Grand River National GrasslandNot posted yet
Good to know in South Dakota
Near Rapid City, locals name Nemo and Bogus Jim Road for spruce, and say the best trees are in the northern Hills.
From r/RapidCity, "Where to cut Christmas tree in BHNF" (2024) and r/RapidCity, "Best places to harvest a Xmas tree?" (2024), read Nov 11, 2026.

