The species of Colorado's forests are well adapted to perpetuating themselves in locations which experience frequent fires. Before mid-nineteenth century European settlement, fire was the primary force of change in these forests. Subsequently, three regimes of use and management can be recognized: extractive, custodial, and recreational. These are described mainly in relation to Pikes Peak and Summit County. In the extractive era, lasting to the close of the nineteenth century, much forest cover was removed by logging and burning. During the custodial era (about 1900-1950), the U.S. Forest Service managed the forests according to the sustained-yield doctrine, emphasizing protection of forests from fire. Subsequent forest management has been oriented toward recreation, and also to the provision of water. Wood production is relatively unimportant, as demands are low and costs are high. To provide the desired outputs, the forests require management, particularly because of their increasingly unstable structure. Logging is not always the best form of management; prescribed burning should be more widely used. This requires a new concept of sustained-yield forestry that ensures the provision of all outputs desired by present and future generations, using optimal management tools. Considerable changes in the attitudes of citizens, foresters, and policy-makers will be required.