Foundation for America’s Public Lands

The Sierra Vista National Recreation Trail, stretching 30 miles between Las Cruces, NM, and El Paso, TX, bridging the Organ Mountains–Desert Peaks National Monument (OMDPNM) to Franklin Mountains State Park, is one of southern New Mexico’s signature long-distance trail experiences. It offers year-round opportunities for hiking, mountain biking, and equestrian use. The trail serves 45,000 visitors annually and connects communities, public lands, and outdoor recreation in Dona Ana County. This project reroutes a section of trail to reduce user conflict and enhance safe access to outdoor recreation. It will be undertaken by the applicant, Foundation for America’s Public Lands — the official nonprofit partner of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) — and partners at BLM Las Cruces District Office and the Southern New Mexico Trail Alliance (SNMTA). If funding is secured, SNMTA will contract trail building services to reroute and build approximately 11.5 miles of the rerouted Sierra Vista Trail with the help of SNMTA volunteers. BLM, the landowner and manager, will supervise, inspect, and approve the reroute, as well as develop and install supporting signage commissioned through the Public Lands Interpretive Association (PLIA). The Foundation will oversee this grant and its funds, as well as lead ongoing fundraising for the site, grant reporting, and storytelling. As the dedicated nonprofit partner to the BLM, the Foundation will also be able to assist SNMTA in procurement if there is a government shutdown.  Currently, motorized and nonmotorized recreationists compete for space on the trail. The project will allow OHV and 4WD users to enjoy the original trail and provide separate, improved recreation access for nonmotorized users (e.g., hikers, equestrians, and mountain bikers). The partners will also enhance visitor safety materials, signage, and wayfinding in English and Spanish along one of the region’s most popular nonmotorized trail systems to encourage recreation from diverse users. The reroute, undertaken by contracted professionals and designed by BLM engineers, will create a long-lasting trail corridor. The project will benefit cities like Las Cruces and El Paso, and historically underserved rural communities like Mesquite, Vado, Anthony, La Union, and Chaparral. Partners will do so with robust community support, as evidenced by supporting letters. The resilient design will reduce trail erosion, helping ensure the longevity of the reroute trail. Land managers and volunteers partnering to execute the grant will sustain maintenance and stewardship. Last year, the BLM used its budget to fund the installation of updated parking areas and a trail reroute on the final 1.2 miles of this portion of the Sierra Vista Trail. New parking areas feature shade structures, picnic tables, hitching posts for equestrian users, parking for trailers, and interpretation signs. The proposed reroute maximizes previous BLM investments of $103,000 for trail and trailhead improvements, 300+ SNMTA volunteer hours, and $2,500 in driving costs, and offers a nearly 1:1 match. This request will produce a trail valuing more than half a million dollars to fuel the recreation economy in Southern New Mexico.