SOQUEL >> After more than a five-month closure, a popular forested recreational area in the Santa Cruz Mountains is ready to reopen to the public.

According to a release from Cal Fire, Soquel Demonstration State Forest will reopen Wednesday and remain open on weekdays after timber operations across 320 acres — known as the Sulphur Timber Harvesting Plan — was completed along with health and fuel reduction treatments across 347 acres. In addition to all that work, the closure, which began May 1, allowed for completion of major road repairs and improvements. This included the replacement of a large watercourse crossing, emergency repairs to a permanent bridge and the placement of 4.3 miles of road rocking along the main road to improve access and infrastructure resiliency.

According to the release, the extended closure allowed logging crews enough time and space to complete all necessary work within a single season, when it could have otherwise brought impacts to Hihn’s Mill Road and Sulphur Springs Road that could have lasted for multiple years.

However, not all areas will reopen immediately.

Corral Trail and Corral Road will stay closed through the winter season and will reopen in the spring when soil conditions are appropriate, per the release. All other trails including Ridge Trail, Braille Trail, Flow Trail and Sawpit Trail are open. No recreation is allowed in the area of the Sulphur Timber Harvesting Plan through the winter season due to potential hazards such as loose hanging branches, rough terrain and unstable logs. While regions recently subject to the timber harvest are closed, Hihn’s Mill Road and Sulphur Springs Road will be open in order to allow access to other trails.

Members of the public are advised to notice and obey all the signage encountered along the roads and trails while in the forest.