MENDOCINO NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. – The Grindstone Ranger District is extending customer service hours at the Stonyford Work Center for the public to purchase Christmas tree permits.

The Stonyford Work Center will be open on the following Saturdays from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., with a half-hour closure from noon to 12:30 p.m.: Nov. 26, Dec. 3, Dec. 10 and Dec. 17.

Permits sell for $10 each with a limit of one permit per household. The number of permits is limited and will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

Permits are good for this year only and trees can be cut and removed any day of the week through Dec. 24. All Mendocino National Forest offices will be closed on Thanksgiving Day Nov. 24, but will be open on Friday, Nov. 25.

As part of the Every Kid in a Park initiative, all fourth graders are eligible for a free Christmas tree permit upon presenting a valid fourth grade pass.

To obtain a free Christmas tree permit, the fourth grader must be accompanied by a parent or guardian and present their fourth grade pass or paper voucher.

For more information about this initiative and how to obtain a fourth grade pass, please visit www.everykidinapark.gov .

Christmas tree cutting in the National Forest is managed as a recreational experience. It is a chance to take the family out into the woods and cut a tree the old-fashioned way.

For more information, including tree cutting tips, please see the forest Web site http://tinyurl.com/h5o8h3h or call 530-934-3316.