Yes, with limits, and they are small ones. Picture the campfire-sized pit most people keep in a backyard. It is fine on private property in Durango as long as somebody stays with it, it stays under 3 feet across and 2 feet high, and it sits 25 feet or more from any building or other fuel, which is what Durango Fire & Rescue publishes. A burn pile or a brush fire is another matter inside city limits. We stick to everyday backyard rules here, because the county's stage system gets its own page: how fire restrictions work in La Plata County.
Are fire pits allowed in Durango?
Yes. A small, attended recreational, cooking or warming fire needs no permit (Durango Fire & Rescue). The same page says all other open burning is not permitted within city limits. The district also publishes a one-page chart with columns for the city, the unincorporated county and agricultural burns. The city column allows only the small attended fire on private property (Durango Fire & Rescue). So a backyard fire pit is legal in principle. A burn pile of yard waste is not.
What size and distance limits apply to a backyard fire?
The district gives you four numbers to remember:
- Diameter: no more than 3 feet across
- Height: no more than 2 feet (the chart says flame height, the permit page says height)
- Clearance: at least 25 feet from any structure or other combustible
- Attention: someone stays with it, and it is fully out before you leave
- Under county Stage 1 (unincorporated area): the fire sits in a fire ring with a grate or screen on private land or in a campground, and campfires are off the table on undeveloped or public land
- Under county Stage 1: charcoal and gas grills stay allowed
Why do the city and the fire district seem to disagree?
They read a little differently, and it is worth knowing before you light anything. The city's fire restrictions page says its Stage 1 rules are always in effect. It lists recreational fires and open burning among the prohibited actions (City of Durango). The fire district's page says no open burning is allowed in the city, with one exception: recreation, cooking and warming fires on private property (Durango Fire & Rescue). Both agree that open burning in general is out. They differ on the backyard fire itself.
Durango Fire & Rescue issues the permits and answers the calls, so most residents follow its reading. For certainty, call the district. The main line is 970-382-6000, and the office is at 103 Sheppard Drive (Durango Fire & Rescue). The district's checklist before any burn asks four things. Do you have or need a permit? Are you prepared? Have you checked the weather? Have you called in your intended burn? The call-in number is the Durango-La Plata emergency center's non-emergency line, 970-385-2900.
What can you burn in a fire pit?
Clean, untreated wood and little else. Colorado does not allow burning coated or treated wood, tree stumps, cut lumber, construction debris, plastics, tires, rubber, chemical products or trash other than paper. The district adds that barrels and incinerators are not allowed (Durango Fire & Rescue). That rules out the leftover fence boards and the old pallet. It also rules out burning in a barrel.
When are fire pits banned in Durango?
Whenever conditions turn. As of October 22, 2026, the county reports no fire restrictions at all (La Plata County), but that can change within a day. The district discourages recreational fires on any Red Flag Warning day, when strong wind, low humidity and warm air meet. It does the same for a High Wind Advisory (Durango Fire & Rescue). The city also has stages above its always-on baseline. At the city's Stage 2, wood and charcoal fires are out. Only a device that uses pressurized liquid or gas with a shut-off valve is allowed. At Stage 3, the city bans fires of any type, including propane fire pits, and closes city trails and open space (City of Durango). Permits for burn piles are suspended whenever La Plata County has any restrictions in place.
Conditions change fast, so check the county page on the day you plan to burn, not the week before. Our wildfire preparedness guide covers defensible space, evacuation and the alerts worth signing up for.