OCR Text |
Show Escalante trail designation lacks public support The Final National Trail Study Report for the Dominguez-Escalante Trail is now available from the National Na-tional Park Service. The study was initiated to determine if the route of the 1,800-mile journey taken by Franciscan Fathers in 1776 should be established as a component on the National Trails System. Fathers Francisco Antanasio Dom-inguez Dom-inguez and Silvestre Velez de Escalante set out to establish a route from Sante Fe, New Mexico to Monterey, Calif., but their journey was unsuccessful. It turned into a five-month, 1,794 mile round trip through parts of New Mexico, Mex-ico, Colorado, Utah and Arizona. The study was conducted by representatives of the involved states, the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Forest Service. Although the study team found the trail qualified to be designated as either a national historic or national scenic trail, they found little public support for such designation. With consideration for the lack of public support and the current fiscal situation, the team recommended that no federal action be taken and that the trail not be included as either a national 'historic or national scenic trail in the National Trail System at this time. The team recommended, however, that the trails be reevaluated at some time in the future, when attitudes and fiscal conditions may be more favorable for such designation. Additional information and copies of the final report may be obtained from the National Park Service Rocky Mountain Moun-tain Region, 655 Parfet Street, P. O. Box 25287, Denver, Colo., 80225. |